Promotion-chasing sekiwake Kotomitsuki dodged a bullet before pulling off an upset win over ozeki Kaio to preserve his share of the three-way lead in the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament on Monday.
Meanwhile, ozeki duo Tochiazuma and Chiyotaikai both had a trouble-free day at the office as both posted easy wins to stay unbeaten with six days left in the 15-day meet at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan.
In the day's featured bout, Kotomitsuki needed to pull out all the stops to topple Kaio (6-3) and showed dogged determination as the autumn champion moved closer to promotion to sumo's second highest rank of ozeki.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.