Hey all, long time no see! Finally had a moment to myself the other day and realized I still needed to finish this series, so I thought I’d go ahead and type up the next installment for you all; let’s dive right into the next set of 5 wrestlers on our way to the top of the rankings!

35. Asashio IV (Ozeki, 1978-1989, 839 points in 63 basho, 1x Yusho)

When a young rikishi named Nagaoka was given the shikona of Asashio in just his third Makuuchi basho, it emphasized both how much potential the young Takasago prospect had and the subsequent lofty expectations others in the sumo world had for him (his predecessor, Asashio III, was the sport’s 46th Yokozuna, who retired with 5 yusho to his name). In attempting to live up to his namesake, Asashio IV quickly rose to the top of the banzuke, becoming a san’yaku mainstay for 3 years. During that time, he racked up a record ten Outstanding Performance prizes (in addition to 4 other sansho and 5 kinboshi), but he also gained a reputation for being a perpetual bridesmaid. On 4 separate occasions, he finished as runner-up, 3 of which featured losses in a playoff. In the January 1983 basho, he defeated everyone he faced except for Ozeki Kotokaze, finishing 14-1 and dropping his rematch with Kotokaze in the playoff. However, that performance finally gave him the momentum he needed to complete an Ozeki run, which he finished in the next basho by recording another jun-yusho, this time with a 12-3 record.

After initially struggling with some injuries, the pusher-thruster found his footing as an Ozeki and put up consistent kachi koshi for years at the rank (his career 78% kachi koshi rate ranks 5th among all modern Ozeki). However, consistent as he was at posting winning records, he rarely found himself in championship contention, only exceeding 11 wins once while an Ozeki. That one basho? March 1985, when the stars finally aligned and Asashio was finally able to make good on his potential as a future champion. After starting a mere 3-2, the 30-year-old rattled off 10 consecutive victories, defeating 3 of his fellow Ozeki and the great Chiyonofuji along the way to his sole Emperor’s Cup. He would never come seriously close to contending after 1985, but he quietly maintained his rank for another 4 years before finally retiring just after he reached a decade in the top division. Rarely flashy but always reliable, I think it’s safe to say Asashio IV lived up to the glory of his name.

34. Takamiyama II (Sekiwake, 1968-1984, 840 points in 97 basho, 1x Yusho)

Takamiyama II stands out in the annals of sumo history for a number of reasons. The 97 tournaments he spent in the top division was unheard of in his day, and it’s a mark that’s only been surpassed by 4 other rikishi since he retired. Born in Hawaii, he became the first foreign-born rikishi to ever lift the Emperor’s Cup. His record of consecutive Makuuchi bouts still stands alone (the closest active rikishi, Takarafuji, is 346 bouts behind). And on this list, he is the highest-ranked wrestler to never attain the rank of Ozeki, though he spent many a basho at the lower san’yaku ranks. Additionally, all of that time spent fighting near the top of the division translated to 11 sansho and 12 kinboshi (good enough for second all-time).

This longevity also helps to make up for his relatively lackluster stats, as he boasts only 7.0 wins per basho and a mere 54% kachi koshi rate, and he had no jun-yusho to pair with his lone Emperor’s Cup triumph. But that triumph, in July of 1972, featured Takamiyama in phenomenal form, dispatching a number of current and future Yokozeki on his way to 13 wins and his first promotion to Sekiwake. Though he was unable to ever put together a complete Ozeki run, he etched his name in sumo history with both that singular victory and the hundreds of bouts he fought with his trademark resilience.

33. Hokutenyu (Ozeki, 1980-1990, 862 points in 60 basho, 2x Yusho)

Making his top-division debut at a mere 20 years old, Hokutenyu was tabbed as a legend-in-the-making from a very early age. After a year in Makuuchi, he had already recorded 6 consecutive kachi koshi, broken into the san’yaku ranks, and secured his first sansho and kinboshi. After recovering from an injury that slightly derailed his progress, Hokutenyu entered 1983 ranked as a sekiwake for the very first time, and over the next 3 basho, he showed that he was ready to take the next step as a rikishi. He recorded consecutive scores of 11-4, 12-3 (collecting his first jun-yusho), and finally 14-1, which was good enough to seal his maiden Emperor’s Cup and a promotion to Ozeki (just look at that post-title swagger!).

Unfortunately, Hokutenyu’s progress would stall for a bit after attaining Ozeki status, as he only periodically challenged for the yusho and was typically content to settle for a kachi koshi. However, his consistency even here was remarkable, as Hokutenyu’s stunning 85% career kachi koshi rate is highest among all modern Ozeki and his average of 8.6 wins per basho is among the top 5 as well. As an Ozeki, he won an additional 3 jun-yusho as well as a second Emperor’s Cup in July of 1985, defeating two Yokozuna and our friend Asashio IV back-to-back-to-back over the final 3 days. After 1985, however, it was clear that he would never seriously challenge for Yokozuna promotion, in part due to the diabetes he suffered from. However, his consistency in putting up kachi koshi is second-to-none among his peers, and his two yusho demonstrate that he belongs in any conversation of the top 10 Ozeki of the Modern Era.

32. Tochiazuma II (Ozeki, 1996-2007, 862 points in 64 basho, 3x Yusho)

Son of the Emperor’s Cup winner and former Sekiwake Tochiazuma I (who appeared at #82 on this list), Tochiazuma II fought alongside some of the greatest Ozeki of all time and held his own. Similarly to Hokutenyu, Tochiazuma broke into the top division at a young age, making his Makuuchi debut just a day after his 20th birthday, and within a year, he had already risen to Sekiwake and racked up an impressive 4 special prizes. There, he stagnated for a few years as he adjusted to the level of competition against a loaded top of the banzuke, before he finally broke through in 2001 with back-to-back 12-3 jun-yusho to secure an Ozeki promotion. After that, he didn’t wait long at all to make good on the potential he flashed during his Ozeki run, capturing his maiden yusho in his very first tournament at the rank (defeating fellow Ozeki Chiyotaikai twice on the final day to earn the Cup, no less).

Unfortunately, not long after his breakthrough, Tochiazuma’s body would begin to betray him. Perhaps no other modern Ozeki’s career was affected by injury as much as Tochiazuma, as he had to sit out for 166 total days over the course of his top-division career (most among all Ozeki). In between these long absences, Tochiazuma fought just enough to retain his rank, twice having to achieve 10 wins as an Ozekiwake. And on the few occasions when he was fully healthy, he continued to flash his championship-level talent, scoring a second yusho in 2003 (stunning the legendary Asashoryu on the final day) and a third in 2006, finishing 14-1 and again dispatching Asashoryu on senshuraku (after an intense tachiai staredown, no less). To this day, he is one of only 3 modern Ozeki to have won 3 yusho at the rank, along with Kaio and Konishiki; exceptional company indeed. When you adjust for his many kyujo absences, Tochiazuma has the third-best win rate of any modern Ozeki, an indication of how talented he truly was.

31. 73rd Yokozuna Terunofuji* (873 points in 41 basho, 7x Yusho)

When all is said and done, I think Terunofuji will retire as one of sumo’s greatest historical anomalies. His career is the stuff of movies: a young Mongolian races up through the rankings, scoring his first career championship in just his 8th Makuuchi basho and earning promotion to Ozeki after less than 18 months in the top division. From there, the injuries begin to beset him, nearly forcing him into retirement after he drops all the way from sumo’s second-highest rank to its second-lowest division. But he works his way back to the top, scoring a stunning second Emperor’s Cup in his long-awaited return to the top division before capturing a third en route to his second Ozeki promotion (only one other modern Ozeki has ever accomplished this). This time, however, he would not be content with this rank. In the absence of the great Yokozuna of the generation before him, Terunofuji came into his own as the Kaiju. From November 2020 to November of the following year, he racked up an incredible 90-15 record, 4 yusho and 3 jun-yusho, 3 sansho, and promotions to both Ozeki and Yokozuna (it’s a shame that the most memorable match from this stretch will be his famous loss to Hakuho on the final day of the July ’21 basho). Since that stretch, injuries have again begun to catch up to Terunofuji, but he still managed to score a seventh yusho last May (in my eyes, his most impressive due to his obvious physical limitations and his poor 5-3 start).

All of this means the 73rd Yokozuna’s stats are a tale of two Terus. On the one hand, his 66% kachi koshi rate and sub-8.0 wins per basho rate place him near the bottom of modern Yokozuna. On the other hand, his 17% yusho rate and 37% yusho/jun-yusho rate are top 10 among all Modern Era rikishi, a phenomenal achievement. On the one hand, the era he’s dominated has largely been decried as “weak” in the post-Hakuho world. On the other hand, it’s mind-boggling that he’s even still wrestling at all, especially given all that he’s had to overcome in his career.

Thus, it’s nearly impossible to determine what Terunofuji’s final legacy will be, or where he will sit in these rankings when all is said and done (his current pace suggests he’ll easily crack the top 20 if he maintains it for another two years or so). But I think his career is illustrative of the fact that statistics and records cannot ever tell the full story of a rikishi’s talent and fighting spirit. While I hope he sticks around to challenge the new generation of exciting up-and-comers, it’s simply unclear how much more his body has left. With that in mind, I plan on savoring every last time we get the Kaiju on the dohyo, slinging rikishi to the clay off his back foot or executing possibly the greatest kimedashi sumo has ever seen. After all, it’s not every day you get a story quite like this.

As always, thanks for reading; I’m happy to answer any questions below! And as a reminder, I plan on releasing the full spreadsheet with all of my data and stats for every Modern Era rikishi upon the conclusion of this list, so keep an eye out for that as well. Hakkeyoi!