Hakuho losing for Good of Sumo

I have been reading recently on some sumo forums and have found Sumo fans comparing Sumo to WWF, saying that it is all staged. Saying that Hakuho in the last tournament dropped a couple bouts and lost the tournament to "create some competition". Making himself "catch-able" by wrestlers like Kotoshigiku, who beat Hakuho as he sought Ozeki promotion. Also that because Sumo is a dying sport, nobody except die hard fans will show up to see Sumo where one guy (Hakuho) is dominating. Therefore he is trying to create good sumo by dropping a few.

I think this is absolutely FALSE. I may have only been following Sumo for 2 and a half years, but I have seen nothing that would prove to me that Hakuho would purposely lose. He is very competitive. And by saying that Hakuho lost on purpose is basically like saying Harumafuji was handed the tournament.

Harumafuji worked hard for this one. Hakuho is beatable. Period. Just because he had the streak and has won the last 7 tournaments in a row doesn't mean the guy is never going to slip up.

I think we need to just watch the Sport and quit looking for it's flaws.

Sumo: The Last pure Sport

You may wonder how I could call Sumo a "pure" sport, what with all the scandal the last few years. Betting on baseball, throwing bouts and the hazing of young wrestlers. Other sports have these same problems. Gambling, steroid use and other such happenings.

But lets look at the history of Sumo. Sumo wrestling like many sports was designed as a test of strength in combat. Like in the Highlands of Scotland they used these tests of strength as training for battle. You can still see this in their intense training today.

Also the religious significance is still seen today. The ritual dances take you back to an ancient time when Japan was cut off from the Western world. Watching Sumo is sort of like stepping back in time.

I think for these reasons Sumo remains a pure sport because although there have been subtle changes over the years, Sumo still retains tradition and the spirit of Japan of old.

Wrestler of the Month: Maegashira 5 Kaisei

Coming to sumo in 2006 Brazil native Kaisei has risen up the sumo ranks. After moving up to Juryo in 2010 and getting a Yusho (tournament victory) in November of 2010 he made his Makuuchi debut in May of 2011. His first tournament went well as he won 9 straight and finished the tournament with a 10-5 record. He was then promoted to Maegashira #5. In the July tournament he went 6-9 while having to face an Ozeki for the first time. He will be demoted for the September Basho.

Here are some career stats for Kaisei:
Wins 145
Losses 99
1 Juryo Yusho