Newcomer Asahifuji- for real?
Moti Dichne
Newcomer Jonokuchi 19 Asahifuji - is he for real? The title of "the strongest new deshi in history" is not a lie. Mongolian-born Asahifuji (23, Isegahama), whose real name is Battsetseghe Ochirsaikhan, inherited his shikona from the 63rd Yokozuna and made his sumo debut at the Kyushu Basho. He showed his presence at a heya sekitori keiko session on the 27th, - a public training session at his heya in Tokyo in preparation for Hatsu Basho Asahifuji participated in the sekitori session, going 16-8 . He faced four Maegashira rikishi : Yoshinofuji, Hakunofuji, Atamifuji, and Midorifuji, all of whom he beat in terms of number of matches, number of wins, and winning percentage. At first he attempted to join the Makushita keiko session, but Isegahama Oyakata (former yokozuna Terunofuji), told him, "You're too fast." He was fully prepared to take part in the Makuuchi session and immediately won three straight matches. He threw Atamifuji with a left-handed uwatedashinage, pushed out Midorifuji via oshidashi, and then finished Atamifuji off again with a tsukidashi.. His well-proportioned, 185cm, 150kg body was muscular and powerful, combining power and speed. He was once defeated by Hakunofuji, but was called out by Atamifuji to return to the dohyo, where he had 10 consecutive matches, winning 7 and losing 3, leaving an impression of outstanding stamina.
Following Asahifuji was Yoshinofuji with 13 wins and 8 losses. The center of the session was a Jonokuchi rikishi (Asahifuji), and while it may seem the other sekitori seemed to be overshadowed by him, his abilities are recognized by everyone in the stable. The rule is that a heya can only have one foreign-born rikishi, and because his current Oyakata was still active until this year's Hatsu basho, it took him four and a half years to take the shin-dehi kensa, during which time he made remarkable progress. Even so, Asahifuji's ranking is still Jonokuchi, and the heya's policy is that he is not yet fully-fledged, so he was not available for interviews.