2026 Natsu Basho: Day 14 results and analysis
Recapping all the top division action from Grand Sumo's 2026 Natsu Basho (spoilers).
The 2026 May basho wraps up tonight! And it’s been a very exciting tournament with lots of twists and turns so far.
Kirishima was our leader heading into day fourteen, after his explosive win over Kotoeihō on the night before. He had a stacked field of wrestlers on his tail, though.
Check out below to see if Kirishima was able to maintain his lead or if the pack caught up with him.
Our bonus gif today is the always expressive Ichiyamamoto.
Take advantage of my May sale to get 15% off a Sumo Stomp! subscription (for life!)
SPOILERS BELOW
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
Results
Daiseizan (8-6) def. Tokihayate (4-10) by yorikiri (frontal force out)
Wakanoshō (8-6) def. Kinbōzan (5-9) by okuridashi (rear push out)*
Shishi (5-9) def. Abi (5-9) by oshidashi (frontal push out)
Nishikifuji (4-10) def. Tamawashi (2-12) by hatakikomi (slap down)
Ōshōma (8-6) def. Rōga (8-6) by shitatenage (underarm throw)
Asahakūryū (5-9) def. Ryūden (5-9) def. by tsukiotoshi (thrust down)
Mitakeumi (8-6) def. Chiyoshōma (5-9) by yorikiri*
Wakamotoharu (5-9) def. Ōshōumi (4-10) by yoritoashi (frontal crush out)
Churanoumi (9-5) def. Gōnoyama (8-6) by yoritoashi
Fujiseun (7-7) def. Hiradoumi (6-8) by yorikiri
Ōhō (8-6) def. Tobizaru (9-5) by oshidashi
Fujiryoga (10-4) def. Yoshinofuji (10-3) by sukuinage (beltless arm throw)*
Daieishō (6-8) def. Ichiyamamoto (5-9) by hikiotoshi (hand pull down)
Ura (10-4) def. Fujinokawa (6-8) by tsukiotoshi*
Takanoshō (6-8) def. Shōdai (6-8) by hikiotoshi
Wakatakakage (10-4) def. Kotoeihō (10-4) by oshidashi
Atamifuji (8-6) def. Kotoshōhō (8-6) by yorikiri
Hakunofuji (10-4) def. Kirishima (11-3) by yoritoashi (frontal crush out)
*Must see bouts!
If you’re unable to pick up a paid subscription to Sumo Stomp! but would still like to tip me for these posts, please consider buying me a coffee below (via PayPal).
Leaderboard
O2e Kirishima, K1e Wakatakakage: 11-3
M2e Yoshinofuji, M10w Hakunofuji, M11e Ura, M13e Kotoeihō, M17e Fujiryoga: 10-4
Analysis
Kirishima lost to Hakunofuji last night and… now there is potential for total chaos on senshuraku (last day of the tournament).
If Kirishima had beaten Hakunofuji he would have strode into tonight’s matches knowing the yushō could be his without him needing to wrestle. He tried very hard to make that a reality, but Hakunofuji proved up to the task of stopping him.
In this bout Hakunofuji showed why he was projected to start his career like Ōnosato and Aonishiki, who came slightly after him. Injuries and controversies have dogged his young career, and possibly stunted his development, but last night he was electric.
He foiled Kirishima last night due, in part, to a genius approach to this bout. Hakunofuji had to assume that Kirishima would want to secure a hidari-yotsu (left arm inside position) in this match. That’s Kirishima’s favorite hold and something he’s used to great effect this month. It’s Hakunofuji’s preferred hold, too, though.
Hakunofuji knew Kirishima would go for the hidari-yotsu off the tachiai and thus present him with the same hold. Kirishima got his left arm inside on the tachiai and so did Hakunofuji. However, Hakunofuji didn’t settle for an underhook (like Kirishima did), he instead went for a mae-mitsu (front narrow grip). The mae-mitsu is something Kirishima likes to use himself. I’ve never seen Hakunofuji go for that as deliberately as he did here.
That grip allowed Hakunofuji to pull against Kirishima when Kirishima tried to generate power to force Hakunofuji out. And it was very effective. His pulling on the belt, along with an inside leg hook with his right foot, kept him in bounds when Kirishima had him right on the straw.
After Hakunofuji survived that, Kirishima reset in the middle and tried to improve his own grips — he tried to get a mae-mitsu himself, but Hakunofuji was able to hamper that with his very strong forearms.
Kirishima then tried to pull Hakunofuji to the side for a throw, but this was rash and he didn’t have a good enough grip to pull it off. As he wheeled to the side, Hakunofuji used an outside trip to destabilize Kirishima. Once Kirishima was wobbled, Hakunofuji put all his weight into him and crushed him out onto the ground.
This massive win puts Hakunofuji in the thick of the title picture for tonight. It’s an amazing turnaround for Hakunofuji who was pretty under-the-radar until this week when he took out other title hopefuls Fujiryoga and Gōnoyama.
The loss means Kirishima is now longer in the driving seat for this tournament. He still has a fantastic chance to win this yushō, but there is a lot more that can go wrong for him now.
Things wouldn’t be so bad for him, had Wakatakakage lost last night. But that didn’t happen. Wakatakakage earned his eleventh win with a fast and clinical push out on Kotoeihō — who is also still in the running.
Wakatakakage has been trailing Kirishima for most of this tournament and has looked brutally effective over the last three nights. He can smell his second career yushō and I bet he’s going to fight like hell to get it.
Sumo Stomp! is entirely human made. Please continue to support human made writing and art over AI generated content.
Icon by HINOKODO (link).
Due to Kirishima’s loss, both Yoshinofuji and Fujiryoga have a chance of winning the title, too.
Fujiryoga beat Yoshinofuji last night to tie him on a 10-4 record and put them both one win behind the leaders. This was a short smash-mouth-style encounter, with both men clattering each other with thrusts before getting into a clinch. In the clinch, Fujiryoga slipped out from under Yoshinofuji forcing Yoshinofuji to flop onto the ground.
Fujiryoga and Kotoeihō were near unknowns before this tournament, but both have proved to be really fun wildcards here. And both have a chance, now, to make things very interesting tonight.
Ura is still in this thing, too!
He had a wild brawl with Fujinokawa last night. They swiped at each other in this bout and Fujinokawa got deep on a very hard nodowa (throat thrust). That backed Ura up, but Ura was able to slip out of his grip and shrug Fujinokawa across and out of the ring. Ura gets a lot of love for his creativity, but his toughness deserves a lot of praise, too. He’s a bit of a goof, but he won’t back down from those wrestlers with more violent skill sets.
With that win, the Ura yushō dream is alive again.
Before I get onto the title possibilities for tonight, I just want to highlight Atamifuji vs. Kotoshōhō. Atamifuji got the win last night and secured his kachi-koshi (winning record). Kotoshōhō already had his kachi-koshi. This means both these guys will retain their sekiwake ranks for Nagoya. That’s pretty good (and surprising) for two first time sekiwake.
Ōhō, Mitakumi, Ōshōma and Wakanoshō all secured kachi-koshi last night, too.
Want a free way to support Sumo Stomp! Help me get to 1,000 subscribers on YouTube (so then I can monetize the thing).
Our final day will see Kirishima vs. Ura, Wakatakakage vs. Fujiryoga, Yoshinofuji vs. Kotoeihō and Hakunofuji vas. Fujiseun. All those wrestlers, minus Fujiseun, have a chance to win the cup tonight.
If Kirishima wins and Wakatakakage loses, Kirishima is our champ.
If Wakatakakage wins and Kirishima loses, Wakatakakage is our champ.
If Kirishima and Wakatakakage both win, they will have a play-off for the cup.
If Kirishima and Wakatakakage both lose, they will go into a play-off with the men who beat them (Ura and Fujiryoga). That play-off will be joined by the winner of Yoshinofuji and Kotoeihō. Hakunofuji will also be in that play-off if he beats Fujiseun. This means there is a chance that teammates Yoshinofuji and Hakunofuji could face each other.
Kirishima has good odds of beating Ura (on paper). He’s 10-4 against Pink Magic and has won the last two bouts. The pressure will be on Kirishima, though. He’s been the favourite to win this since Hōshōryū bowed out on day one. Kirishima has shown he can handle pressure in the past. But pressure plus a care-free Ura (who has been fantastic this month) is going to be quite the task.
Wakatakakage and Fujiryoga have never met. Wakatakakage has beaten up on youngsters in this tournament so far.
Yoshinofuji is 2-0 against Kotoeihō. Hakunofuji has never faced Fujiseun. Fujiseun will be very motivated in this match. He’s fighting for his kachi-koshi and he’ll want to eliminate a potential contender to help out his stablemate Fujiryoga.
This could be epic.
Keeping count!
Henka counter: 9.5
Tobi trample counter (rows): 9*
*Tobizaru upped the trample counter by one, thanks to that loss to Yoshinofuji.
And now something extra…
If you are a paid subscriber, below you will find results, videos and analysis for jūryō.
