Photo by Michihiro Taguchi — shot ringside.
In sumo, Takayasu is a wrestler who climbed to ozeki on the back of a sudden surge in form. He was never tipped early on as a future ozeki — his rise came only recently, after a run of strong tournaments in the sekiwake and komusubi ranks. The open question is whether he has the strength to go further and chase a top-division championship.
A late, sudden rise to ozeki
Takayasu was not a wrestler marked from the start as a future ozeki. His leap forward came only recently. At the July 2016 basho, ranked at komusubi, he posted an 11–4 kachikoshi. He then held the sekiwake or komusubi ranks for six straight tournaments before earning promotion to ozeki. His best result in the upper ranks came at the March 2017 tournament, where he went 12–3.
His first basho as a new ozeki
For all the promise, Takayasu’s debut tournament as a new ozeki fell short of his own billing. He had spoken of going undefeated, yet finished 9–6 — a long way from a yusho. Heading into the September tournament, he was back at work, sweating through the black mawashi he wears in training and competition.
The record against yokozuna and ozeki
One way to measure Takayasu is to look at how he fared against the very top ranks. Across the seven tournaments from July 2016 through July 2017, his record against the yokozuna was 6 wins and 11 losses — a clear deficit. He went 3–2 against Kakuryu (one of those wins by default), 2–5 against Harumafuji, and 1–4 against Hakuho.
Against the ozeki, the picture flipped. Over the same span he dominated with 14 wins and just 3 losses. The takeaway is straightforward: Takayasu already has ozeki-level strength, but he has not yet reached the level of the yokozuna.
Where the losses come from
Against sekiwake and below, Takayasu went 51–20 over the seven tournaments, a winning rate of .718. The breakdown of those 20 losses is telling. He dropped four bouts each to Tamawashi and Yoshikaze, three to Aoiyama, and two each to Mitakeumi and Tochiozan. Tamawashi and Yoshikaze in particular have given him trouble. Until he settles those matchups, a championship will be hard to come by.
Which kind of ozeki will he be?
Some historical context helps frame his standing. Since the 15-day system took hold in the Chiyonoyama era, there have been 32 yokozuna, and 11 of them managed 9 wins or fewer in their first tournament as a new ozeki — though weak and short-lived yokozuna stand out among that group. Over the same kind of span dating to the Mineyama era, there have been 35 wrestlers whose highest rank was ozeki, and 19 of them won 9 or fewer as a new ozeki. The question is which of these two groups Takayasu will end up joining.
Takayasu is 27. There seems to be time, and yet there isn’t. Depending on which yokozuna sit out, the September tournament shapes up as a real chance at a yusho. Whether he seizes it will tell us a great deal about where his career is headed.
Frequently asked questions
Q. How did Takayasu reach ozeki?
After an 11–4 record at komusubi in July 2016, he held the sekiwake or komusubi ranks for six straight tournaments before being promoted to ozeki.
Q. How did Takayasu do in his first tournament as a new ozeki?
He had spoken of going undefeated but finished 9–6, well short of a yusho.
Q. How does Takayasu match up against the yokozuna and ozeki?
From July 2016 to July 2017 he went 6–11 against the yokozuna but 14–3 against the ozeki — ozeki-level strength, but not yet at yokozuna level.
Photos by Michihiro Taguchi, shot ringside.
