Takarafuji Daisuke
| 宝富士 大輔 Takarafuji Daisuke | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | Daisuke Sugiyama February 18, 1987 Aomori prefecture, Japan |
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in) |
| Weight | 162 kg (357 lb) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Isegahama |
| Current rank | see below |
| Debut | January, 2009 |
| Highest rank | Maegashira 10 (July, 2011) |
| Championships | 1 (Sandanme) |
| * Up to date as of May 2012. | |
Takarafuji Daisuke (宝富士 大輔) (born February 18, 1987 as Daisuke Sugiyama) is a sumo wrestler from Nakadomari, Aomori, Japan. The highest rank he has reached is maegashira 10.
Early life and sumo experience
From the third grade of elementary school, Sugiyama began practicing at a sumo dōjō near his home and began participating in national amateur sumo tournaments in junior high school. This exposure soon had him being scouted by several sumo stables. He chose to first finish high school and went on to university. He graduated from Kinki University in Osaka.
Career
Upon his graduation, the former yokozuna Asahifuji, who had previously attended the same high school and university as Sugiyama, invited him to join Isegahama stable of which Asahifuji was head coach. Sugiyama's professional sumo career began in January 2009. He took the ring name of Takarafuji from the beginning, following the practice at Isegahama of wrestlers taking a ring name at the beginning rather than waiting for a promotion opportunity as most stables do. He advanced quickly through the lower ranks. He narrowly lost the jonokuchi championship in his debut, losing in a playoff. He then posted an impressive 6-1 in his jonidan division debut in the next tournament. In the following July 2009 tournament, he won the sandanme division championship with a perfect record and a playoff win. His progress slowed only slightly on entering the tougher makushita division. Through to July 2010 he posted only one losing tournament, and was promoted to the jūryō second division in September 2010. His promotion from makushita 2 to jūryō 12 was higher than normal due to seven other wrestlers being suspended for gambling on baseball. Regardless of being put at a higher rank than his record had yet warranted, he excelled, posting four consecutive winning records and advancing to the top-tier makuuchi division in July 2011 at maegashira 10. His debut in the division would turn out to be the same tournament that his stablemate, Ōzeki Harumafuji would win the championship. This auspicious debut did little for his record, and an unimpressive 4-11 record had him demoted. For four tournaments, he alternated between losing records in makuuchi that bounced him down to jūryō where he would post an impressive enough record to achieve top-tier promotion again. Though he only posted a 6-9 record at maegashira 14 in the March 2012 tournament, unimpressive performances by many wrestlers in nearby ranks allowed him to stay in the makuuchi division at the bottom maegashira 16 rank for the May 2012 tournament. In this tournament he would finally post his first winning record, being in the championship race until late in the tournament before several consecutive losses knocked him out of the running. Regardless, this winning record will allow him to stay in the top division for a third consecutive tournament.
Fighting style
Takarafuji is a yotsu–sumo wrestler who prefers a hidari–yotsu, or right hand outside and left hand inside grip on his opponent's mawashi. His most common winning kimarite are the two most popular techniques in sumo, yorikiri or force out, and oshidashi or push out.
Personal
On his promotion to the top division, his passing resemblance to the celebrity Matsuko Deluxe was noted by the Japanese media.
Career record
| Year | January Hatsu basho, Tokyo |
March Haru basho, Osaka |
May Natsu basho, Tokyo |
July Nagoya basho, Nagoya |
September Aki basho, Tokyo |
November Kyūshū basho, Fukuoka |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | (Maezumo) | West Jonokuchi #25 6–1 | West Jonidan #58 6–1 | East Sandanme #91 7–0 Champion | East Makushita #58 6–1 | East Makushita #28 5–2 |
| 2010 | East Makushita #20 5–2 | West Makushita #12 6–1 | West Makushita #2 3–4 | West Makushita #5 5–2 | West Jūryō #12 9–6 | West Jūryō #7 9–6 |
| 2011 | East Jūryō #5 8–7 |
Tournament Cancelled 0–0–15 | East Jūryō #3 9–6 | West Maegashira #10 4–11 | West Jūryō #1 9–6 | West Maegashira #14 5–10 |
| 2012 | East Jūryō #2 10–5 | East Maegashira #14 6–9 | East Maegashira #16 9–6 | x | x | x |
| Record given as wins–losses–absencies Top division champion Top division runner-up Retired Lower divisions Non-participation Sanshō key: F=Fighting spirit; O=Outstanding performance; T=Technique Also shown: ★=Kinboshi; P=Playoff(s) |
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See also
References
- ^ "Sumo reference". Retrieved 2012-05-22.