Wakatakakage Atsushi
| Wakatakakage Atsushi | |
|---|---|
| 若隆景 渥 | |
 Wakatakakage in 2022 | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | Atsushi Onami December 6, 1994 Fukushima, Fukushima, Japan |
| Height | 1.82 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in) |
| Weight | 127 kg (280 lb; 20 st 0 lb) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Arashio |
| University | Toyo University |
| Current rank | see below |
| Debut | March, 2017 |
| Highest rank | Sekiwake (March, 2022) |
| Championships | 1 (Makuuchi) 1 (Makushita) 1 (Sandanme) |
| Special Prizes | 4 (Technique) |
| * Up to date as of 27 November 2022. | |
Wakatakakage Atsushi (Japanese: 若隆景 渥, born December 6, 1994 as Atsushi Onami (大波 渥, Ōnami Atsushi)) is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Fukushima. He made his debut in March 2017 and reached the top makuuchi division in November 2019. He wrestles for Arashio stable, where he is a stablemate of his older brothers Wakatakamoto and Wakamotoharu. His highest rank has been sekiwake. He has four special prizes for Technique. In March 2022 he won his first top division championship.
Family background
The three Onami brothers are the grandchildren of former komusubi Wakabayama. They were given their shikona or sumo names by Arashio stable's head coach Ōyutaka, after the three sons of Mōri Motonari in the well-known Japanese parable "Lesson of the three arrows" – Takamoto, Motoharu, and Takakage.[1] The eldest brother, Wakatakamoto, has a highest rank of makushita 7 and has been in sumo the longest, debuting in November 2009. Wakatakakage and Wakamotoharu are the 19th pair of brothers in sumo to both reach sekitori level.[2] Wakamotoharu is the second eldest and entered in November 2011, but did not make his jūryō debut until after Wakatakakage, in March 2019. On the January 2022 banzuke Wakamotoharu made his makuuchi division debut. Wakatakakage, the youngest brother, has had by far the quickest rise up the rankings of the three.
Career
He made his professional debut in March 2017, and because of his success in amateur sumo began as a sandanme tsukedashi entrant. He won the sandanme division championship in May 2017 with a perfect 7–0 record and also won the makushita division championship in January 2018 by the same score. He made his jūryō debut in May 2018, the second to do from Arashio stable after Sokokurai in 2010 and the first from Fukushima Prefecture since Sotairyu in 2009. He rose slowly up the jūryō division, winning promotion to the top makuuchi division after a 9–6 record at jūryō 3 in September 2019. Despite a poor 2–6 start to that tournament he won his final seven matches (including wins over top division veterans such as Toyonoshima and Kaisei) to secure his promotion. He was the third sandanme tsukedashi entrant to reach the top division after Yutakayama and Asanoyama.
Wakatakakage won his first four bouts in his top division debut in November 2019, but dislocated a joint in his right foot after landing awkwardly during his fourth day win over Terutsuyoshi and had to withdraw from the rest of the tournament.[3] Back in jūryō he put together two consecutive winning records of 9–6 and 10–5 upon his return from injury to earn promotion back the top division for the (subsequently cancelled) May 2020 tournament at his highest rank to date of maegashira 14. In July 2020 he completed his first full tournament in makuuchi, posting a respectable 10 wins. In September he was on the leaderboard for much of the tournament, although he picked up his fourth loss to Mitakeumi on Day 14[4] and finished in a share of third place on 11–4.
On 31 December 2020 – 10 days before the start of the January 2021 basho - it was announced by the Sumo Association that Wakatakakage tested positive for COVID-19.[5] The entire Arashio stable – along with the Miyagino, Tomozuna and Kokonoe stables – sat out the tournament.[6] He returned in March and produced a 10–5 record, defeating two ōzeki and receiving the Technique Prize.[7] He earned his second Technique Prize in May 2021 with a 9–6 record and was promoted to the san'yaku ranks for the first time as komusubi.[8] He was the first from Arashio stable to reach the komusubi rank since its founding in 2002.[9]
After consecutive winning records at the top maegashira rank in November 2021 and January 2022, Wakatakakage was promoted to a career-best rank of sekiwake for the March 2022 tournament.[10] He followed up this sekiwake debut by winning his first makuuchi tournament after producing a 12-3 record and defeating co-leader Takayasu in a playoff, along with receiving his third Technique prize. This marked the first time in 86 years that a newly promoted sekiwake won the championship (after Futabayama in 1936), as well as the first time in 50 years that a wrestler from Fukushima Prefecture won the championship (after Tochiazuma in January 1972).[11] Wakatakakage failed to defeat ōzeki Shōdai in the final regulation match (thus missing out on the Outstanding Performance Prize that he would have received with a 13–2 record),[12] but was guaranteed at least a playoff as Takayasu had lost his own match to Abi earlier in the day.[13]
Wakatakakage followed up his tournament win with a 9–6 record in the May 2022 tournament.[14] Maintaining his sekiwake rank in July, Wakatakakage recovered from losing his first three matches in September to produce an 11–4 record.[15] He received his fourth Technique Prize on the final day.[16]
Fighting style
According to his Japan Sumo Association profile Wakatakakage prefers a migi-yotsu (right hand inside, left hand outside) grip on his opponent's mawashi. His most common winning kimarite are oshi-dashi (push out), yori-kiri (force out) and okuri-dashi (push out from behind).[17] He is below the average weight for a sekitori at 124 kilograms (273 lb) and makes use of his speed and agility.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | x | Sandanme tsukedashi #100 5–2 |
West Sandanme #63 7–0 Champion |
West Makushita #38 6–1 |
East Makushita #16 4–3 |
East Makushita #12 3–4 |
| 2018 | East Makushita #17 7–0 Champion |
East Makushita #1 4–3 |
West Jūryō #14 8–7 |
East Jūryō #12 9–6 |
West Jūryō #7 8–7 |
West Jūryō #6 8–7 |
| 2019 | East Jūryō #5 7–8 |
East Jūryō #5 8–7 |
West Jūryō #2 6–9 |
East Jūryō #4 8–7 |
West Jūryō #3 9–6 |
East Maegashira #16 4–1–10 |
| 2020 | East Jūryō #5 9–6 |
West Jūryō #2 10–5 |
West Maegashira #14 Tournament Cancelled 0–0–0 |
West Maegashira #14 10–5 |
West Maegashira #8 11–4 |
West Maegashira #1 7–8 |
| 2021 | West Maegashira #2 Sat out due to COVID rules 0–0–15 |
West Maegashira #2 10–5 T |
East Maegashira #1 9–6 T |
East Komusubi #1 5–10 |
East Maegashira #3 9–6 |
West Maegashira #1 8–7 |
| 2022 | East Maegashira #1 9–6 |
East Sekiwake #1 12–3–P T |
East Sekiwake #1 9–6 |
East Sekiwake #1 8–7 |
East Sekiwake #1 11–4 T |
East Sekiwake #1 8–7 |
| Record given as wins–losses–absences 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
- List of sumo tournament top division champions
- List of active sumo wrestlers
- Active special prize winners
- Glossary of sumo terms
- List of sekiwake
References
- ^ "大波、しこ名は毛利元就の三男から「若隆景」". Sanspo. 4 March 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
- ^ Gunning, John (19 March 2019). "Sumo 101: Brothers in sumo". Japan Times. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
- ^ "Sumo: Shodai falls on Day 5 to even odds at injury-plagued Kyushu meet". Kyodo News. 14 November 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
- ^ "Shodai taking lead into final day after beating Asanoyama". Japan Times. 26 September 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
- ^ "Sumo: Top-flight wrestler Wakatakakage infected with coronavirus". Kyodo. 31 December 2020. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
- ^ "SUMO/ 65 wrestlers to stay away from tourney as 5 test positive for virus". Asahi Shimbun. 10 January 2021. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
- ^ "Sumo: Comeback king Terunofuji triumphs to reclaim ozeki rank". Kyodo News. 28 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- ^ "Sumo: Terunofuji beats Takakeisho to win 4th career championship". Kyodo News. 23 May 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
- ^ "2021 July Grand Sumo Tournament Banzuke Topics". Japan Sumo Association. Archived from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
- ^ "Sumo: New rankings put spotlight on endurance, comebacks". Kyodo News. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ "Sumo: Wakatakakage surprises himself with grand tournament win". Kyodo News. 28 March 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
- ^ "【三賞】殊勲賞13勝２敗で優勝すれば若隆景 敢闘賞は高安と琴ノ若 技能賞は若隆景 (Special Prizes: Outstanding Performance award to Wakatakage with 13 wins and 2 losses, Fighting Spirit award to Takayasu and Kotonowaka, Technique Award to Wakatakakage)". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 27 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Sumo: Wakatakakage surprises himself with grand tournament win". Kyodo News. 28 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Sumo: Terunofuji raises 7th Emperor's Cup after loss by Takanosho". Kyodo News. 22 May 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
- ^ "Wakatakakage Pleased with Final Result". Japan Forward. 25 September 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- ^ "Sumo: Tamawashi secures 2nd championship with win over Takayasu". Kyodo News. 25 September 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- ^ "Wins of Wakatakakage". Sumo Reference. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
- ^ "Wakatakakage Atsushi Rikishi Information". Sumo Reference. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
External links
- Wakatakakage Atsushi's official biography (English) at the Grand Sumo Homepage
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