Both Yokozuna lose on Day 12

For those of you who are sitting there today feeling like you had your Speedos yanked down at a crowded public swimming pool, let me soothe you with this tidbit: It's all good, baby.

There are three scenarios for what occurred on Day 12. One, both Hakuho and Asa agreed to a yaocho (fix the outcome of a match). Two, Hakuho lost straight up to The Pup and Asa then lost intentionally. Three, I am full of more shit than a portatoilet at a Menudo concert.

Well we know number three ain't the case, so let's look at the first two.

When looking for yaocho, one must start with the obvious question: Why? So going on the premise of the first scenario, why would the two Yokozuna lose intentionally? The only reason yesterday would be (as Mike pointed out to me) to show Chiyotaikai some propers and give him the easy road to his kachikoshi. It is not unprecedented and they have done it before with Kaio two years ago. Opponents of this scenario might rightly point out that Asa whooped on Pupster on Day 11, and that even had he lost to Hakuho, he would have needed only one win in the final three days vs. guys like Toyonoshima and Wakanoho. But then how to explain the ridiculous forward lean by Hakuho? He could have just as easily turned his head to the left or right, shifted his feet, whatever. He could see right away Chiyotaikai was not directly in front of him. Why would he lean forward like that putting his full weight into it? One of Hakuho's greatest assets is his incredible footwork, balance that is nearly unparalleled in sumo. It was a completely incomprehensible loss, "chinpun kanpun" as we say in Nippon. Plus, if you look at Pup's face just before they start, dude's eyes are darting all over the place, sure sign that he has something on his mind.

But Chiyotaikai DID move away lightning quick from his throat hold, so if Hakuho really did just screw up, then what about scenario two, Asa taking it on his own initiative to lose in order to put things back as they were before the day began? There really is no need to analyze the Asa/Geeku bout. If you saw it, you know Asa did nothing to resist. It was laughable man! If true, the best way to understand it would be to look at it in light of Asa's full career. The only thing missing from the man's resume in the eyes of many is quality wins over another Yokozuna. Asa has only one yusho while another Yokozuna fought the full 15 days, last July in Nagoya. When one is as dominating as Asa has been, racked up as many yusho as he has, one must start to hear the call of history, pay attention to the legacy one will leave. The moment is now and for the next four or five years for Asashoryu to take as many yusho as he can by defeating a man who in all likelihood will retire a Dai-Yokozuna himself, thereby denying the naysayers ammunition when Asa takes the number one slot on the all-time yusho list. Beyond that, Asa is the kind of guy who loves a challenge. You can bet your ass he knows he can beat Hakuho on Day 15 at least one out of two, and knows how glorious it will seem, dramatic and epic. That's really at the heart of scenario number two: Bringing about an epic clash, just like in January.

So which one do I think occurred? Tough to say. Both Hak and Asa seemed rather suspiciously un-pissed that they lost to such easy foes. Hakuho losing like that seems impossible, same with Genghis, so I tend to think that it was a double yaocho for Chiyotaikai's sake. Either way, I long ago disabused myself of the nancy notion that sumo is devoid of fixing. Like Mike always says, just so long as it doesn't screw with the yusho, I'll abide. The Dude abides. Plus it let's Baruto and Tochiohzan back in, so that all in all the suspense level for the next three days got ratcheted way up, at least for me. 

No harm, no foul. Just don't be fooled thinking Day 12 was above board, because it wasn't.