Day 7: New Juryo Asahifuji Wins a Sixth Straight With a Kotenage, Stays Quiet on His Taped Left Thigh
East Juryo 12 Asahifuji, 24 (Isegahama), who inherited the shikona of the 63rd yokozuna, beat fellow new juryo Ryuho, 19 (Otowayama), at West Juryo 14 for his sixth straight win and a 6-1 record. After his left-hand grip led to a stalemate, he switched to wrapping Ryuho's right arm and won by kotenage. 'Nothing special. Same as always,' he said, but was critical of himself: 'My tachi-ai was no good. I'm not getting forward' (Sports Hochi). He has been wrestling with tape on his left thigh since partway through the basho; asked about it, he said only 'a minor injury... It's a secret. Everyone has something that hurts' (Nikkan Sports). In his first 15-day basho, he says all the food in Fukuoka is good, and his favorite is umegae-mochi from Dazaifu Tenmangu, where Isegahama stable lodges (Sports Hochi, Nikkan Sports).
Sources: Yahoo! Japan Sports (Sports Hochi) · Yahoo! Japan Sports (Nikkan Sports)