Unbeaten ozeki Kotoshogiku, aiming for his first title in the top makuuchi division, took the sole lead at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament on May 10 with another easy win while rival Kisenosato was upset.
Yokozuna Hakuho, the defending champion, won his fourth bout on Day 5 at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan arena and remained in the second tier with one loss.
Kotoshogiku, who had a disappointing 9-6 record in March and an even worse 8-7 before that, took down No. 3 maegashira Takekaze in a bout that was over almost as soon as it began. Takekaze jumped out hard, but Kotoshogiku moved to his right and sent Takekaze down as his momentum carried him forward.
This is Kotoshogiku's fourth tournament at ozeki. He debuted with 11 wins.
Kisenosato fell from the lead as No. 2 maegashira Myogiryu (2-3) got the better of him at the face-off and then drove in chest first to launch the ozeki over the edge. After a solid start, the bout was unexpectedly lopsided against Kisenosato, who failed to mount anything that could be called an attack.
"My plan was to move forward, and it went pretty much as I had hoped,'' Myogiryu said. "But it's still just the fifth day and I have a lot of work to do.''
Hakuho, meanwhile, had komusubi Homasho beat as soon as he could fire off his thrusts. Homasho has never upset Hakuho and was once again no match for the yokozuna.
Still a potential contender, ozeki Baruto allowed top maegashira Aran to get inside and grab a double-handed belt hold that almost cost him the bout. But as soon as he got his own left hand in he took control, lifting the Russian off his feet and depositing him out of bounds to take the win. Baruto's only loss so far is to Aminishiki. Aran is 0-5.
New ozeki Kakuryu made quick work of top maegashira Takayasu, who hasn't won a bout yet as he tests out his skills against tougher opponents than he is accustomed to. The Mongolian needed only a few thrusts to show him who is the boss, and kept his losses at one--to Myogiryu on May 7.
Compatriot Harumafuji, however, lost his second match without putting up much of a fight. No. 3 maegashira Toyohibiki nailed him at the start, and he didn't seem to have a counterattack as he fought to simply keep his balance while retreating out of the ring. Toyohibiki is also 3-2.
Vulnerable to komusubi Aminishiki's throw, Bulgarian ozeki Kotooshu hit the dirt for his third loss as he struggles through yet another tournament in which he could be hard-pressed just to eke out a winning record. In Kotooshu's defense, Aminishiki is on a roll, having already defeated Hakuho and Baruto.
Toyonoshima beat Goeido in the sekiwake showdown. The result puts both at 3-2. Toyonoshima generally fares well against Goeido, and has now won six straight against him.
None of the rank-and-file wrestlers who went into the day undefeated won their bouts.
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