Work in Progress: Kinboshi Stats and Comparison - Yokozuna #s 60 - 75
But first, a video from JWags
I had been (slowly) working on compiling kinboshi stats from the “other side” — that is, how many kinboshi Yokozuna had given up.
JWags did it, first, and made a video:
I am using the same data source as he is, and using the same approach in getting numbers, but I want to point out some different stats (and I’m sharing my spreadsheet and query results, so you can check).
Alas, I ran into problems with sumoDB, with all users of sumoDB knowing what that means (yeah, they’re probably running into data limits, etc.) So I’m giving my partial results.
JWags has the comprehensive results - I will already note I spot-checked, and duh, we match where I have calculated. I’ve only dipped my toes into the data thus far.
Kinboshi count ranking: Yokozuna #60-75
Let’s start with the easiest: the kinboshi given up. As noted above, this doesn’t count fusen (absences by Yokozuna) nor wins due to a forbidden move (such as pulling on the topknot).
Yes, I had to indicate Wakanohana (3) — because there have been three Yokozuna with the shikona Wakanohana, which was a pain in the ass in querying the database. I have the results for the two other Wakanohanas, by the way.
This Wakanohana is the brother of Takanohana, became a Yokozuna in 1998, retired in 2000, and often appears on Abema during tournaments to commentate. He often gets in the mini-demo-dohyo Abema has so he can demonstrate what just happened in a bout. It’s one of my favorite Abema features.
https://x.com/Midnight_Sumo/status/1680699489227616256?lang=ar
I can’t embed twitter videos, but if you click on the link, it will take you over there and you can watch the clip. It is fun to watch these. Wakanohana is only in his mid-50s, and he still has the moves.
Kinboshi Percentage Ranking: Yokozuna #60-75
Now, the kinboshi count is a very misleading stat — Hakuho was Yokozuna for a very long time; Hoshoryu and Onosato have just gotten started.
Let’s look at percentage of Maegashira bouts that ended in kinboshi for each Yokozuna.
My list doesn’t match with JWags because I have a shorter list so far. My statistics match up (except for rounding).
Yeah, Hoshoryu and Onosato aren’t looking too good, are they?
However.
Let’s think a moment, however — not all of these guys have been up against a similar roster of wrestlers, and that can make Hoshoryu and Onosato look better (or worse).
You can’t award kinboshi if you are rarely paired against Maegashira ranks.
Percentage of Matches which were against Maegashira Wrestlers: Yokozuna #60-75
We’re a little thin in the sanyaku right now, don’t you think?
We have only one ozeki!
Let’s see what the guys are up against:
And there we go. Remember, there was a time when there were 4 Yokozuna.
You could argue that there are stronger Maegashira that Hoshoryu and Onosato have to be up against (you can also argue that they need to learn how to deal with these guys).
It’s not quite fair, still, as Hoshoryu and Onosato have very few bouts as Yokozuna thus far:
I have embedded my spreadsheet below, so you can download it if you'd like to review it.
I’ve hidden most of the sumoDB pages (you can unhide them - it just clutters up the view). I’ve left the older Wakanohana pages unhidden because I like keeping my pages in order, and I’ve not gotten to their chronological neighbors yet.
This is part of a project of building up Yokozuna stats so we can more fairly compare them. It’s tough because Hakuho so thoroughly dominated his era, and we were spoiled in many ways during that time. I want to give the new guys some time to breathe.
