It’s January 2025 and Hoshoryu is officially sumo’s 74th yokozuna.
Just nine days ago the possibility of that sentence being true seemed remote.
With three losses after the midway point of the year’s first tournament, and trailing the unbeaten Kinbozan and three other wrestlers, Hoshoryu’s chances of winning the Emperor’s Cup — which he needed to have any chance of being promoted — appeared all but gone.
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.