September Grand Sumo Tournament!!!

Congratulations to Hakuho the Makuuchi Division Champion with a 13-2 record!! Great win for his Yokozuna debut!

ALSO
Congratulations to Baruto the Juryo Division Champion with a 13-2 record!!!

Others:

Kotooshu 8-7
Kotomitsuki 10-5
Takamisakari 8-7
Chiyotaikai 9-6

All of my favorite guys ended with winning records! That is great!! Of course especially Hakuho & Baruto were fantastic records and Kotomitsuki's 10-5 is very good too!

Next Grand Sumo Tournament will be held in Fukuoka November 11th -25th.

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 14 Update:

Standings as of Day 14 (Saturday):

Makuuchi:
Hakuho 12-2 (a win today over Goeido)
Kotooshu 8-6 (a loss today to Kasugao)
Kotomitsuki 9-5 (a win today over Chiyotaikai, wish I had seen it!)
Chiyotaikai 9-5 (a loss today to Kotomitsuki, this must have been a great match as they were fairly equal and fighting to keep their rankings!)
Takamisakari 7-7 (his winning streak ended today with a loss to Toyohibiki! I'm so sorry for him! I Hope he comes back tomorrow so he can have 8-7 record!!!!)

Aminishiki 9-5 (he had a win over Toyonoshima today!)

I'm fairly certain Hakuho will clinch this tournament with winning match tomorrow to end at 13-2. The only possible challenge is Kyokutenho who is now 11-3. If Hakuho losses on Sunday and Kyokutenho wins then they'll be tired at 12-3 and they'd have to have a match to break the tie. Kyokutenho is up against Ama who is doing very well this tournament but is only 10-4 now. So that match anything is possible! Hakuho is up against Goeido who is also 10-4 and doing very well this tournament. Hakuho would be the favorite here but Goeido could surprise us and again anything is possible!

Good Luck Hakuho!!! You deserve to win this tournament on your Yokozuna debut!!!!

Juryo:
Baruto 12-2 (a loss today to Chiyohakuho)
However with 12-2 he's won the Juryo division no matter what happens tomorrrow!!
CONGRATULATIONS BARUTO!!!!!

This tournament has been fantastic thus far! Many people were disappointed that Yokozuna Asashoryu would be absent, it would be the first time two Yokozuna would be battling each other and that was a great thing to look forward. However, I don't like Asashoryu and so I don't mind him being absent this tournament at all! Recently some call him the "bad boy" of Sumo. This isn't good! Sumo isn't like WWE where being a "bad boy" is a cool thing!

Forgive me!! I was so busy I couldn't update for day 11 & 12! I couldn't stay awake long enough to log on and post!!!

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 11-13 Update:

Standings as of Day 13 (Friday):
Makuuchi:
Hakuho 11-2 *today he beat Kotomitsuki but on Wednesday he lost to Toyonoshima*
Kotooshu 8-5 *a loss today to Wakanosato*
Kotomitsuki 8-5 *a loss today to Hakuho*
Chiyotaikai 9-4
Takamisakari 7-6 *he has won the last five days in a row!! I'm happy for him! It is good for his confidence*
Aminishiki 8-5 *as I mentioned before he was leading with all wins for the first 8 days but he is a lower ranked wrestler so as soon as he started matches with the big boys it got more difficult (as it should be) and he's unfortunately lost the last 5 days. But 8-5 is not a bad record and he should be proud he remained the sole leader for so long!

Hakuho now leads the tournament with 11-2. There are three others who are with 10-3 in 2nd place so he can't relax! He has to fight hard the next two days to keep his advantage and win his Debut Yokozuna Tournament! GOOD LUCK HAKUHO!!!!

Juryo:
Baruto 12-1 *He had a win today but had his first loss yesterday to Wakanoho! 12-1 is still the best record in Juryo and it looks like he's guaranteed the Juryo division!*

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 10 Update:

Congratulations!!!
BARUTO REMAINS UNDEFEATED!

Standings as of Day 10:
Makuuchi:
Hakuho 9-1
Kotooshu 7-3 (a win today against Miyabiyama! Sorry to say Miyabiyama is one wrestler I do not like at all!!! )
Kotomitsuki 6-4 (a devastating loss today to Dejima)
Chiyotaikai 8-2 (a win over Aminishiki!)
Takamisakari 4-6 (a wonderful win over Tokitsuumi! I watched this match while I was driving today and I loved watching his face when he won, when he wins he is always smiles all around!!)
Aminishiki 8-2 (a loss to Chiyotaikai today!)

Hakuho is now tied for first with rank & filer Goeido in the Makuuchi division with 9-1! I'm sure Hakuho will win this tournament and he deserves it. His Yokozuna Debut!!!

Juryo:
Baruto 10-0

Good Luck to all of these guys on Wednesday!!

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 9 Update:

BARUTO REMAINS UNDEFEATED! WOW!!

Standings as of Day 9:
Makuuchi:
Hakuho 8-1
Kotooshu 6-3 (a win today, back on track!)
Kotomitsuki 6-3 (a loss today to Toyonoshima)
Chiyotaikai 7-2 (surprising loss to Homasho)
Takamisakari 3-6 (Good Job a win today over Ryuo)
Aminishiki 8-1 (he has suffered his first loss today to veteran Wakanosato)

Juryo:
Baruto 9-0

This means Baruto remains the only one undefeated this tournament! That is fantastic! As for Makuuchi the lead is tied now with Hakuho and Aminishiki & Goeido. While Aminishiki is good he'll be facing higher and higher ranked wrestlers from now on and it will get tougher. Then ultimately even if he and Hakuho were to remain tied on the last day it would be a face off between them! I doubt Hakuho would let himself lose after his opening day Yokozuna debut defeat! I'm sure he is powered up for the rest of the tourney!

Tomorrow's best match in my opinion will be Chiyotaikai vs. Aminishiki!! While Chiyo is 7-2 he is really powerful and will be geared up to win for sure since Aminishiki's record is better! This will be the match to watch!

Good Luck to all of these guys on Tuesday!!

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 8 Update:

CONGRATS to BARUTO STILL UNDEFEATED!

Standings as of Day 8:
Makuuchi:
Hakuho 7-1
Kotooshu 5-3 (loss to Toyonoshima today!)
Kotomitsuki 6-2
Chiyotaikai 7-1
Takamisakari 2-6 (a loss again today to Takekaze)
Aminishiki 8-0
(He is still the sole leader of the Makuuchi division as of Sunday!!)
Juryo:
Baruto 7-0

Good Luck to all of these guys on Monday!!

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 7 Update:

BARUTO STILL UNDEFEATED! Way to go!!!

Standings as of Day 7:
Makuuchi:
Hakuho 6-1
Kotooshu 5-2 (unfortunate loss today to Dejima!!!)
Kotomitsuki 5-2
Chiyotaikai 6-1
Takamisakari 2-5 (a loss again today to Tochiozan)
*Incidentally Tochiozan is very nice! He is a member of Kasugano stable and I am a member of the Kasugano Supporter's Club so I always support Kasugano wrestlers too!!)
Aminishiki 7-0
(He is still the sole leader of the Makuuchi division as of Saturday!!)
Juryo:
Baruto 6-0

Good Luck to all of these guys on Sunday!!

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 6 Update:

CONGRATULATIONS BARUTO WHO REMAINS UNDEFEATED!

Standings as of Day 6:
Makuuchi:
Hakuho 5-1
Kotooshu 5-1
Kotomitsuki 4-2 (unfortunate loss to Asasekiryu)
Chiyotaikai 5-1
Takamisakari 2-4 (a loss today to Kokkai!)
Aminishiki 6-0
(He remains the sole leader of the Makuuchi division as of Friday!!)
Juryo:
Baruto 6-0

Good Luck to all of these guys on Saturday!

Kaio has retired from this tournament as of today. He was 1-4 as of yesterday, a terrible record for his rank of Ozeki. His retirement from today for this tourney isn't a surprise.

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 5 Update:

CONGRATULATIONS BARUTO WHO IS STILL UNDEFEATED!

Standings as of Day 5:
Makuuchi:
Hakuho 4-1
Kotooshu 4-1
Kotomitsuki 4-1
Chiyotaikai 4-1 (lost to Ama)
Ama has beat about every "big boy" (high ranking Sumotori this tourney including Hakuho, Kotomitsuki & now Chiyotakai)
Takamisakari 2-3 (he beat Kaiho today!Good Job!)
Aminishiki 5-0
(He is the sole leader of the Makuuchi division as of Thursday!!)
Juryo:
Baruto 5-0

Baruto is the only one of my guys who is now in the Juryo Class. He was demoted from Makuuchi Class after being injured and not competing the past two tournaments. Now in Juryo he is leading with 5-0 which means if he keeps it up he could win his division! Way to go Bartuo!!!

Good Luck to all of these guys on Friday!

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 4 Update:

CONGRATULATIONS BARUTO WHO REMAINS UNDEFEATED!

Standings as of Day 4:
Hakuho 3-1
Kotooshu 3-1
Kotomitsuki 3-1
Chiyotaikai 4-0
Takamisakari 1-3 (he lost again today)
*Ganbette Takamisakari!!!*
Baruto 4-0

All my boys except Takamisakari were able to overpower their opponents! Good Luck to all of these guys Thursday!

September Grand Sumo Tournament: Day 3 Update:

Unfortunately some of my boys didn't do as well today!

Standings as of Day 3:
Hakuho 2-1
Kotooshu 2-1 (he lost to Tochinonada of Kasugano Beya)
Kotomitsuki 2-1 (he lost to Ama, who beat Hakuho Sunday!)
Incidentally this is Kotomitsuki's debut as Ozeki!
Chiyotaikai 3-0
Takamisakari 1-2 (he lost today to Futeno)
*Ganbette Takamisakari!!!*
Baruto 3-0

Sumo update-Day 2 of 15

Hakuho came back and won his match today. I really think it was just nerves yesterday when he lost his debut Yokozuna match.

Standings as of Day 2:
Hakuho 1-1
Kotooshu 2-0
Kotomitsuki 2-0
Chiyotaikai 2-0
Takamisakari 1-1 (he lost today to Kasugao)
Baruto 2-0

As you can see all my favorite guys are doing great!

More Sumo info including live streaming feed can be found (in English or Japanese) here!

September Sumo Grand Tournament

The Fall Tournament has started from today at Ryogoku Kogikan in Tokyo!! All of my favorite guys did so well on the opening day with the exception of a huge upset as newly promoted Hakuho lost his Yokozuna debut match to Ama. What a shocker that is! Maybe Hakuho was just nervous? I hope he'll come back to show us what he is truly made of tomorrow!!!

Sunday, Sept 9th:

Baruto beats Kotokasuga

Takamisakari beats Iwakiyama

Kotomitsuki beats Tochinonada

Kotooshu beats Tokitenku

Ama beats Hakuho

Well, that is 4 out of my favorite 5 who won!!! Congratulations boys!!

Chris in action Leg 3 Rally New Zealand!

Beautiful rainbow in New Zealand during Leg 3!

Jari-Matti during Leg 3 Rally New Zealand!

Petter during Leg 3 Rally New Zealand!

Petter in action Leg 3 Rally New Zealand!

Congratulations Toshi Arai and Tony Sircombe!
They won the PWRC in New Zealand!!

Chris during Leg 2! I love this photo, he looks so young!

Henning during Leg 2. Where is the rest of that Ford Focus? The cars lose half their parts all the time. Front and rear bumpers flying off..that is standard operating procedure I think!

Henning Leg 2 in Water Splash!

Jari-Matti Latvala Leg 2 Water Splash- Looks fun!

Petter during Leg 2!

Rally New Zealand Final

1. Marcus Grønholm, Ford
2. Sebastien Loeb, Citroen, +0,3
3. Mikko Hirvonen, Ford +1.42,8
4. Chris Atkinson, Subaru +2.32,3
5. Jari-Mati Latvala, Ford +2.36,9
6. Dani Sordo, Citroen +3.42,0
7. Petter Solberg, Subaru +3.54,7
8. Urmo Aava, Mitsubishi +9.16,3
9. Henning Solberg, Ford +9.54,6

These were not the results we were hoping for but they could have been worse!! This rally was really exciting though as between Saturday and Sunday there was a good fight between Loeb and Marcus for 1st and also between Chris and Jari-Matti for 4th. That is the way a rally should be. I hate it when Loeb is leading the rally start to finish!
In fact when I went to sleep Saturday the whole thing was different it was Loeb in the lead and Jari-Matti in 4th and it all changed by the time I woke up Sunday!
I'm really happy for Marcus, I'm happy to see him win over Loeb! A good fight though with him winning by only .3 seconds! And Chris too just getting the edge over Jari-Matti with only 4.6 seconds.

Next Rally is at the beginning of October in Catalunya. Until then Petter will be busy traveling around for PR work here in Japan, then to Germany for the Motorshow where he will unveil next year's Impreza. On to France for more PR work and then to Spain for testing! He'll be quite busy as I'm sure all the drivers will be.

For me the next big event is the Autumn Sumo tournament that starts this Sunday!!!

Love,
Viki