Ōnosato Daiki

Ōnosato Daiki (大の里 泰輝), born June 7, 2000, as Daiki Nakamura (中村 泰輝, Nakamura Daiki) is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Tsubata, Ishikawa Prefecture. After a successful amateur career and defined as "the most eagerly awaited prospect to come out of collegiate sumo in decades," he joined Nishonoseki stable and began his professional career at the rank of makushita 10 via the makushita tsukedashi system. He reached the top makuuchi division in January 2024 after competing in just four tournaments, and in May of the same year won his first top-division championship in a record seven tournaments. His highest rank has been komusubi.

Early life and sumo background

Daiki Nakamura was born in Tsubata, Ishikawa Prefecture. He began wrestling in a sumo club at his elementary school in first grade. As a child he was fascinated by professional sumo and admits that one of his favourite books was the magazine Sumo published by Baseball Magazine. In August 2014, he participated in the Openweight competition at the Sumo World Championships held in Taiwan and finished third, behind Ukrainian wrestler Oleksandr Veresiuk and Mongolian Baasansuren Turbold, who won that year's tournament. Nakamura then attended Itoigawa City Nō Junior High School and Niigata Prefectural Marine High School. During his years at Itoigawa, he won the 2016 Junior High School competition at the Hakuhō Cup. At Niigata's Kaiyo High School, he took part in several training camps organised by Arashio stable, training with future makuuchi-ranked Wakamotoharu.

In 2019, he entered Nippon Sport Science University, a university famous for its strong sumo club. During his first year, he first won the individual competition in the adult division of the National Athletic Meet, hence becoming the second best individual champion in the history of the competition and allowing him to become professional at the rank of makushita tsukedashi 15. He then took part in the National Student Sumo Tournament in Sakai as a freshman and won the individual tournament. This victory, over Kindai University's Koshiro Tanioka, marked the first time in 29 years that a freshman won the tournament, since Luis Gō Ikemori (who later became a professional wrestler under the shikona of Ryūkō) won in 1990. In May 2021, he participated to the 70th All Japan Sumo Championships at the Ryōgoku Kokugikan and became amateur yokozuna after defeating Kindai University's Kanzaki Taiga in the final, again qualifying for the makushita tsukedashi system. During that same tournament, he defeated Tottori Jōhoku High School's Tetsuya Ochiai during the team competition. During his university years, he also notably faced Mikiya Ishioka, facing him a total of four times and winning two of these matches, leaving Ishioka with a sense of rivalry towards him.

In January 2022, Nakamura took part in the World Games' sumo competition held that year in Birmingham, Alabama. Competing in the Openweight and Over 115kg categories, he won the former and finished runner-up in the latter. In October of the same year, he participated in the National Athletic Meet in Ōtawara and won the amateur yokozuna title for the second consecutive time in this tournament. With his victory at the 70th All Japan Sumo Championships, Nakamura became the fourth person since the introduction of this system in 2000 to be eligible to join professional sumo at the rank of makushita tsukedachi 10. This victory was also the fifth time that Nakamura had won the championship title in a tournament counting towards makushita tsukedashi status. Overall, during his time as an amateur wrestler at university level, Nakamura won no less than 13 titles, placing him ex aequo for the greatest number of amateur titles won by a wrestler. His dominance of amateur sumo in Japan was such that sumo columnist John Gunning declared that he saw in Nakamura's sumo a continuous display of "calm smooth style reminiscent of Hakuhō in his younger days."

In March 2023, Nakamura made the decision to become a professional wrestler (rikishi) by joining Nishonoseki stable under the guidance of former yokozuna Kisenosato. At the time of his recruitment, he expressed his intention to achieve sekitori status as quickly as possible. Moreover, his entry into the professional world a few months after the record-breaking promotion of Hakuōhō (then known as Ochiai) did not fail to raise the interest of commentators as to the hypothesis of a rivalry between these two dominant wrestlers of the amateur world. On the subject of choosing to join this particular stable, Nakamura expressed his interest in being trained by a former yokozuna and that the stable, located in Ami, Ibaraki, offered him a healthy working environment "to eliminate any temptations and be able to concentrate on sumo." Since he turned professional in May 2023, Ōnosato was the last wrestler to be promoted to makushita tsukedashi 10 due to his amateur prowess, the system for promotion to the top of the makushita division having been abolished in September 2023.

Early career

Professional debut

In April 2023, it was announced that Nakamura would now fight under the shikona, or ring name, Ōnosato (大の里), with the kanji "大", meaning 'great', to accentuate his talent and the kanji "の里" to establish Nakamura in the line of Yokozuna Takanosato (隆の里) and Kisenosato (稀勢の里). This name, chosen to represent his master's expectations, was chosen in particular because this shikona had been proposed to Kisenosato when he was still an active wrestler when his promotion to the rank of ōzeki had been certain. Coincidentally, the shikona has the same pronunciation as a Taishō era-ōzeki, Ōnosato Mansuke and Nakamura's father declared "I am deeply moved by the honor of my son being named after a former ōzeki with such a long history." Although the shikona doesn't feature exactly the same kanji (大の里/大ノ里), it has been noted that before giving Nakamura his ring name, his master (former Kisenosato) consulted a former stablemate of his, Wakanosato, so that the latter requested permission from Ōnosato Mansuke's family who still reside in Aomori Prefecture. On the announcement of his entry as a professional wrestler, his former coach at Niigata Kaiyo High (Tetsuya Tōmi) declared his satisfaction and compared him to "a Shohei Ohtani of sumo," announcing that Nakamura had the potential to become the monster of the new era (新時代の怪物). On the occasion of his passage to the new apprentice examination, the now-Ōnosato, obliged to comply with professional wrestlers dress rules, received an obi belt that his master had used.

Having received the Japan Sumo Association approval to compete, Ōnosato logically began his career at the rank of makushita tsukedashi 10. His first professional match was against Takasago stable wrestler Ishizaki, a senior of Ōnosato during their time at NSS University. Ishizaki however defeated Ōnosato by tsukiotoshi in what Ishizaki later describes as a "fluke match". Nonetheless, Ōnosato finished the tournament with a score of 6–1, missing out, however, on promotion directly to the jūryō division, which some observers had been expecting.

During the July tournament, Ōnosato logically competed again in the makushita division, this time ranked as makushita 3. He won his first two matches, but suffered his first defeat in his third match against Tokihayate. On the seventh day of the tournament, Ōnosato faced amateur scene rival and upper-division wrestler, Kihō. Kihō had never managed to beat Ōnosato on the amateur scene, and Ōnosato even won the college yokozuna title from him at the 2022 championships. Kihō nevertheless managed to defeat Ōnosato by hatakikomi and thus inflicted on him his second consecutive defeat. At the time, this defeat was thought to delay even further Ōnosato's promotion to jūryō. Nevertheless, Ōnosato still managed to record a positive score of 4 wins by beating in his last match jūryō-wrestler Hidenoumi. Because of this barely achieved kachi-koshi record, he also shared he felt sick on the last days of the tournament.

Jūryō promotion

When the rankings for the September tournament were announced, however, it was confirmed that Ōnosato's score was sufficient to promote him to jūryō, professional sumo's second-highest division. This promotion, acquired at the same time as stablemate and NSSU senior classmate Takahashi, allowed Nishonoseki stable to simultaneously receive two new sekitori, and the first two raised by Kisenosato alone since he had become master in 2019. Furthermore, this double promotion marks the first time since July 2012 that two stablemates have gained sekitori status at the same time. After his promotion, Ōnosato went to his hometown of Tsubata, Ishikawa to officially announce his promotion to his local fans. After a conference attended by around 600 people, he was presented with a stock of 600 kg (1,300 lb) of rice. During the August jungyō, he took part in public training series and competed against his jūryō peers. He was also honored to be trained later by current and former ōzeki Takakeishō and Takayasu, the latter having been stablemate of Ōnosato's master, and was praised for his attitude toward training.

During his first jūryō tournament, Ōnosato first recorded seven consecutive wins in seven matches with a victory over Kihō, placing him at the top of this competition. On Day 8, Ōnosato maintained his lead with an eighth consecutive victory, making him the seventh jūryō wrestler in the history of the sport to win eight in a row from day one of the competition and the first to achieve this since Takakeishō (then known as Satō) at the May 2016 tournament. Since he also followed this up with a ninth victory in a row, Ōnosato became the jūryō wrestler to win the most victories since the first day of a competition ex aequo with Naruyama at the January 1953 tournament and Shōtenrō at the November 2008 tournament. Ōnosato's winning streak ended at 9 consecutive victories, however, after he was defeated by Ichiyamamoto on the tenth day of the competition. Ōnosato managed to keep himself in the title race with Ichiyamamoto, with the championship set to be decided on the final day. Ōnosato nevertheless lost his final match to Rōga and finished just one defeat behind Ichiyamamoto, who won that month's tournament.

During the November 2023 tournament, he won his first match against a wrestler who had been ranked in the san'yaku ranks by defeating former sekiwake Aoiyama on the eighth day of the competition. Ōnosato was then able to maintain his lead throughout the tournament, recording eleven wins on day fourteen, tied with Kotoshōhō, with the championship to be decided on the final day. Although Ōnosato won his final match against Mitoryū, Kotoshōhō also kept himself in the title race by also claiming a twelfth victory. The championship was thus decided in a playoff, which Kotoshōhō won by beating Ōnosato by uwatenage, causing Ōnosato to miss out on the championship for the second consecutive tournament.

Makuuchi

Up-and-comer

After competing in just four tournaments, Ōnosato's promotion to the top makuuchi division was announced for the January 2024 tournament. The promotion made him the first recruited by the former Kisenosato to be elevated to the top division. He is also the third-fastest to reach the top division since 1989 (after Endō and Hakuōhō), doing so in four tournaments under the old tsukedashi system. Ōnosato told reporters after his promotion that he was happy to see his name in big letters at the top of the banzuke, while his stablemaster asked him to win 10 matches and the Fighting Spirit special prize in January as a reward for his arrival in the top division.

Ōnosato performed well in the first half of the tournament, however, recording a defeat on the third day against Ōnoshō. However, he maintained his position as one of the tournament's leading wrestlers by recording a sixth consecutive victory and a kachi-koshi on Day 9 against Meisei. On the tenth day, Ōnosato faced another tournament leader, Kotonowaka, however losing the match by yorikiri and leaving Kotonowaka alone in the lead in the title race. Ōnosato then suffered two consecutive defeats on Day 11 and 12, at the hands of Ōzeki Hōshōryū and Yokozuna Terunofuji, virtually eliminating him from the title race. Because he had a match against Terunofuji, Ōnosato became the first wrestler to face a yokozuna in his first makuuchi tournament in 10 years, since Ichinojō faced yokozuna Kakuryū and Hakuhō in the September 2014 tournament. For his performances, Ōnosato was however elected by popular vote Morinaga's Wrestler of the Day Award no less than four times during the tournament. For his 11 wins in his first tournament in the top division, he was also awarded the Fighting Spirit prize. After his inaugural tournament in the top division, Ōnosato commented that he was grateful to have been able to learn from the san'yaku ranks despite suffering three consecutive defeats at the hands of the upper echelons.

During the March tournament of the same year, Ōnosato remained in the group of wrestlers leading the championship during the first week (tied with Takerufuji) nevertheless recording a defeat on the seventh day against Ōnoshō. Ōnosato managed to keep himself in the title race on Day 9 by beating a san'yaku-ranked wrestler for the first time, defeating Sekiwake Wakamotoharu. On Day 10, Ōnosato lost his match against Takerufuji, leaving the latter alone at the top of the title race with a two-win lead over the rest of the competitors. Ōnosato continued his tournament with a notable win over Ōzeki Takakeishō on Day 11. On Day 14, he maintained his chances of winning the tournament with an eleventh victory over Komusubi Abi, the yūshō to be decided on the final day in his match against Ōzeki Hōshōryū. The latter defeated Ōnosato for the second time in a row, although the championship was not at stake because an injured Takerufuji had already won a thirteenth victory to become the champion. For his prowess at the tournament, however, it was announced that Ōnosato would receive the prizes for Technique and Fighting Spirit. His second consecutive 11-win record in the top division made him a strong contender for potential san'yaku promotion in May. Regarding his rivalry with Takerufuji, the president of the Yokozuna Deliberation Council, Masayuki Yamauchi, defined it in his review of the tournament as that of the "ryūko" (龍虎), an expression drawing a parallel between the rivalry of the tiger and the dragon to designate two opponents of equal strength.

On 22 April 2024, the Sumo Association announced that they had issued a strict warning to Ōnosato and his stablemaster, after the latter reported that Ōnosato drank with an underage wrestler in his stable back in September 2023. Two days later, Ōnosato apologized for his actions. He added that he was grateful to have been allowed to wrestle for the final days of the spring regional tour, which was in progress at the time.

San'yaku promotion and first Emperor's Cup

When the banzuke for the May 2024 tournament was announced, Ōnosato was promoted to his then-highest rank, komusubi, making his debut in the san'yaku ranks in just six tournaments, the second-fastest progression to these ranks since the Shōwa era (behind the record set in five tournaments by Ichinojō). At a press conference following the publishing of the banzuke, Ōnosato was seen wearing a small topknot for the first time. His stablemaster Nishonoseki commented that he never imagined Ōnosato would rise through the ranks so quickly. Both also apologized again with regard to the previous September's drinking situation, with Ōnosato stating that he caused trouble to so many people and his stablemaster, and that the most important thing was for him to keep winning.

On the opening day of the May 2024 tournament Ōnosato faced yokozuna Terunofuji and scored an upset victory over his top-ranked opponent by sukuinage ("beltless arm throw"). Ōnosato was the only san'yaku wrestler to win on the first day of the tournament. He continued to win over higher ranked wrestlers, beating sekiwake Wakamotoharu (Day 4) and ōzeki Kirishima (Day 5) and Kotozakura (Day 6). On Day 8, he defeated one of his direct rivals, Daieishō. On the ninth day, he lost his one-win lead when he was defeated by Hiradoumi in an upset creating a tie between five wrestlers. Ōnosato climbed back into contention after that, and entered the final day of the tournament as the sole leader with 11 wins. He quickly defeated his Day 15 opponent, Abi, to avoid a playoff and clinch his first Emperor's Cup. Having won his first top-division title in seven tournaments since his debut, Ōnosato broke the speed record that had just been set by Takerufuji in the previous tournament. Ōnosato also was the first to win the top-division championship immediately after promotion to komusubi in 67 years, the last being the late Haguroyama in May 1957. Additionally, by winning two more special prizes he became the first wrestler in 25 years to win a special prize in each of his first three top-division tournaments. Ōnosato dedicated his victory to the people of Ishikawa Prefecture, who were affected by a deadly earthquake on 1 January. The day after winning the Emperor's Cup he told reporters at Nishonoseki stable: "I'm happy to have won the championship, but my final goal is not here. I want to keep dashing up and go higher." He added that his stablemaster told him after his third loss that "the title is gone," and also before the final bout that he should not celebrate, even if he had won the match and the championship. Ōnosato said that those words made him feel less stressed, renewing his gratitude for joining the stable.

Following the May tournament the head of the Yokozuna Deliberation Council, Masayuki Yamauchi, commented that Ōnosato's victory was "a sign that the sumo world is about to undergo major changes," adding his belief that Ōnosato would eventually reach the ōzeki rank. The Sumo Association also downplayed rumors of a possible ōzeki promotion earlier than usual, saying that only Ōnosato's 12 wins in May would count towards the promotion requirement of 33 wins over 3 tournaments, normally tallied while a wrestler is either a komusubi or sekiwake.

Fighting style

Ōnosato has shown a preference for yotsu techniques which involve grasping his opponent's mawashi or belt. His most common kimarite or winning move are yorikiri force-out wins. His preferred grip is listed as migi-yotsu, meaning a right arm inside and left hand outside position. He is also using significant percentage of oshi-sumo pushing and thrusting techniques.

Personal life

Ōnosato is the eldest in his family and has a little sister.

On 6 February 2024, Ōnosato was part of a delegation of wrestlers from Ishikawa Prefecture sent after the 2024 Noto earthquake (along with Endō, Kagayaki and former Tochinonada); charged with symbolically presenting Governor Hiroshi Hase with the sums raised during the January tournament and donations from the Sumo Association, since the presence of sumo wrestlers is considered a good omen. During his stay, he also paid a visit to the evacuation center that had housed his grandfather, receiving numerous messages of congratulations from the disaster victims for his recent sporting achievements.

Career record

See also

• Glossary of sumo terms
• List of active sumo wrestlers
• Active special prize winners
• List of sumo tournament top division champions
• List of sumo tournament top division runners-up
• List of komusubi

References

External links

• Ōnosato Daiki's official biography (English) at the Grand Sumo Homepage

1. Daiki Nakamura
2. Ōnosato Mansuke
3. Hokutofuji Daiki
4. Takerufuji Mikiya
5. Nishonoseki stable (2021)
6. Ichiyamamoto Daiki
7. Tsubata, Ishikawa
8. List of komusubi
9. Hakuhō Cup