Kiribayama¡¯s unlikely conversion of a 4-3 start in Osaka into a first career championship means Japan¡¯s national sport has now seen a different title winner for eight straight tournaments.
With a record 13 top-division champions still currently active, sumo has begun to resemble one of Oprah Winfrey¡¯s famed giveaway shows: ¡°You get an Emperor¡¯s Cup, and you get an Emperor¡¯s Cup ¡ª everybody gets an Emperor¡¯s Cup!¡±
While some kind of power vacuum was to be expected in the wake of the sport¡¯s most dominant wrestler retiring, few could have predicted this degree of chaos so soon after Hakuho exited the stage.
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