Digging Deeper
Research Journal #004｜Evening of 1 October 2026｜Shiori
After dinner, I opened my notebook from yesterday.
Beside Atamifuji’s 8–7 record, I added his result from July: 12–3.
In September, he secured a winning record on Day 10, then lost five in a row. Last night I was going over what happened in those bouts. But with his July results alongside September’s, I started wondering about the names, too.
How had he done against the same opponents?
I looked for wrestlers whose names appeared in both July and September. Atamifuji was East Sekiwake at both tournaments. But that didn’t mean he’d faced the same fifteen wrestlers. [1]
I wrote “July” and “September” at the edge of the page, then started lining up the names, one row at a time.
Daieisho’s name made me pause
Ten wrestlers appeared in both.
Against those ten, Atamifuji went 7–3 in July and 5–5 in September. Looking only at the shared opponents, he still had fewer wins in September.
But row by row, I could see that the results hadn’t all changed in the same direction.
A loss to Daieisho in July. A win in September.
Oh, he got the win this time!
Here are the ten, in the order he faced them in July. All wins and losses are from Atamifuji’s perspective. This comparison covers the fifteen regular bouts in each tournament; championship playoffs are not included. [1]
| Opponent | July tournament | September tournament |
|---|---|---|
| Gonoyama | Day 1 · Win | Day 1 · Win |
| Daieisho | Day 4 · Loss | Day 5 · Win |
| Takanosho | Day 5 · Loss | Day 3 · Loss |
| Fujinokawa | Day 6 · Win | Final day · Loss |
| Kotozakura | Day 7 · Win | Day 10 · Win |
| Kirishima | Day 8 · Loss | Day 11 · Loss |
| Churanoumi | Day 10 · Win | Day 2 · Win |
| Onosato | Day 11 · Win | Day 12 · Loss |
| Kotoeiho | Day 12 · Win | Day 8 · Win |
| Aonishiki | Final day · Win | Day 7 · Loss |
Three July wins became September losses: against Fujinokawa, Onosato and Aonishiki. The result against Daieisho went the other way, from a loss to a win.
Three wins lost, one gained. That leaves him with two fewer wins against these ten.
He beat four of them in both tournaments and lost to two in both. I could see what had changed, and what hadn’t, more clearly than when I was just looking at “twelve wins down to eight”.
A closer look at that win
I loved how he kept moving forward against Daieisho in September. Seeing the July result beside it made me happy about that win all over again.
In July, Atamifuji lost by tsukiotoshi. In September, he won by oshidashi. [2][3]
On Day 5 in September, Atamifuji kept his balance through Daieisho’s thrusts and attempts to deflect him. He watched his opponent’s movements as he advanced, and kept attacking without switching to a pull. [3]
Daieisho tries to divert him, but he stays with him. And then forward again! I love that attack.
If I just write “oshidashi,” I tend to picture the push straight ahead. But I want to note how he stayed with Daieisho’s movements before that, too.
Where was the difference from July, when Daieisho thrust him down? I don’t want to stop at “he won by a push out, so he got stronger.” I want another look at how he kept that attack going, with the July bout beside it.
The other five bouts had different opponents
There were four fewer wins across the whole tournament, though, and only two fewer against those same ten. Now I wanted to check the rest.
The five he faced only in July were Hiradoumi, Oho, Ichiyamamoto, Hoshoryu and Shishi. He beat all five.
The five he faced only in September were Fujiryoga, Kotoshoho, Takayasu, Asanoyama and Roga. Against them, he went 3–2. [1]
Now July’s “seven wins plus five” and September’s “five wins plus three” fit together.
Two fewer wins against the same ten, and two fewer in the five bouts with different opponents. Ah, that’s where the other two were.
But those different groups of five don’t tell me that September’s opponents were tougher. Even with the same ten, the days they met were different, and each wrestler’s condition wouldn’t necessarily have been the same. Atamifuji faced Aonishiki on the final day in July, but on Day 7 in September.
Fujinokawa, too: Day 6 in July, the final day in September. With the results lined up, it would be easy to read them as though the timing matched as well. That’s why I kept the day of each bout beside the names.
Matching the names makes the table easier to read. It doesn’t make the circumstances of each bout the same. It feels too soon to use this table alone to decide why his results dropped.
Still, I’m glad I noticed that win against Daieisho.
I’d been so caught up in those five straight losses. But September also included a win over someone who had beaten him in the previous tournament. Those three results that went the other way still hurt, of course. I just don’t want that win to get lost among them.
Beside Daieisho’s name in my notebook, I added: “July loss → September win”.
I want to give those eight wins a proper look, too!
Sources I consulted
- Japan Sumo Association: Atamifuji’s past tournament records. I matched opponents and counted results across all fifteen regular bouts in July 2026 and all fifteen in September 2026, including the five opponents from each tournament who do not appear in the table. Championship playoffs are excluded. Checked on 1 October 2026.
- Kyodo News, carried by Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun: July Day 4 results, published 15 July 2026. Used to check the finishing technique in Atamifuji’s bout against Daieisho.
- Nikkan Sports: Hakkaku praises Atamifuji’s strength but asks for a more complete performance, published 17 September 2026. Used to check the finishing technique and the exchanges in the Day 5 bout in September.
Sources used to check results, opponents, finishing techniques and bout sequences. Checked on 1 October 2026. The linked sources are in Japanese.
Related research journal: #003 — Atamifuji recovered his position. I want another look.
Shiori
I use an illustrated likeness because I prefer not to share my real name or face. The writing and illustrations are created with the help of AI.
Planning and editing: SUMO ARCHAEOLOGY CLUB