May 25, 2026 (News On Japan) - Wakatakakage completed a remarkable comeback from major knee surgery and a fall to the lower divisions by winning his second top-division championship at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament on May 24th, ending a 25-tournament wait for another Emperor's Cup.
"My attacks from below were the best part of my sumo," Wakatakakage said at the news conference.
His first championship in 25 tournaments marked the third-longest gap between titles in sumo history, following Kotonishiki and Terunofuji. Wakatakakage finished the tournament with a 12-3 record, giving him a strong starting point in a potential push for promotion to ozeki.
Wakatakakage's career is shaped by two landmark victories: an historic new-sekiwake title in March 2022, followed by a return from major knee surgery to win again on May 24, 2026.
Born Atsushi Onami in Fukushima City on December 6th, 1994, Wakatakakage comes from one of sumo's best-known wrestling families. His maternal grandfather was former komusubi Wakabayama, while his father competed in the lower divisions under the ring name Wakanobu. His two older brothers also entered professional sumo: the eldest became Wakatakamoto, while the second became Wakamotoharu, who has reached sekiwake in the top division. The three brothers' ring names were inspired by the sons of the 16th-century warlord Mori Motonari, whose story of the "three arrows" has long symbolized strength through brotherly unity.
Wakatakakage began sumo at the age of 7 and later attended Gak法 Fukushima High School before moving to Toyo University, where he established himself as one of the country's leading student wrestlers. He won the East Japan Student Sumo individual weight-class championship, contributed to a national student team championship and finished runner-up in the individual competition at the 2016 National Student Sumo Championships, earning eligibility to begin his professional career at the elevated sandanme rank rather than at the bottom of the rankings.
After graduating from Toyo University's Faculty of Law in 2017, Wakatakakage entered Arashio stable and made his professional debut as a sandanme tsukedashi entrant at the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in March 2017. His progress was immediate. He went 5-2 in his first tournament, captured the sandanme championship with a perfect 7-0 record in May 2017 and rose into the makushita division, where another unbeaten tournament in January 2018 earned him the makushita championship. He reached the salaried juryo ranks in May 2018, little more than a year after entering the professional sport.
His rise to the top division came in November 2019, when he made his makuuchi debut as a maegashira. That first attempt was cut short after he injured his ankle early in the tournament and withdrew with a 4-1-10 record, sending him back to juryo. He responded by recording winning marks in the first two tournaments of 2020, including a 10-5 finish in March, and returned to makuuchi in July 2020. From that point, his compact, technically polished style began to establish him among the leading wrestlers in the division.
At about 183 centimeters and considerably lighter than many of his rivals, Wakatakakage built his sumo around a low stance, forceful forward movement and skilful use of the ottsuke arm-blocking technique to prevent larger opponents from controlling his belt or raising his upper body. He recorded 10 wins in March 2021 and nine wins in May 2021, earning the Technique Prize in both tournaments, before reaching the sanyaku ranks as a new komusubi in July 2021. Although he struggled in that first appearance among the elite rank-holders, he quickly fought his way back into contention.
The defining moment of his early career arrived at the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka in March 2022. Competing as a new sekiwake, Wakatakakage finished the regulation tournament tied with Takayasu at 12-3 and defeated him in a playoff to win his first Emperor's Cup. It was the first championship by a new sekiwake since Futabayama achieved the feat in May 1936, an interval of 86 years, and made Wakatakakage the first wrestler from Fukushima Prefecture to win a top-division title in 50 years.
His first championship appeared to position him as a future ozeki candidate. Wakatakakage remained at sekiwake throughout much of 2022, posting winning records in four of the next five tournaments after his title, including an 11-4 performance and another Technique Prize in September 2022. He opened 2023 with a 9-6 record at sekiwake, maintaining his place close to sumo's second-highest rank.
That momentum ended abruptly during the Spring Tournament in March 2023. Wakatakakage injured his right knee in a bout against Kotonowaka on the 13th day and withdrew from the competition. Medical examinations showed damage including a torn right anterior cruciate ligament, injuries to the lateral meniscus and associated knee damage. He underwent reconstructive surgery in early April 2023, beginning a long rehabilitation period in which his stablemaster, former maegashira Sokokurai, made clear that a complete recovery would take priority over an early return.
The injury carried an especially heavy cost in a sport where rankings fall quickly during absence. Wakatakakage sat out the May, July and September tournaments in 2023, dropping from the sanyaku ranks through juryo and into makushita, outside sumo's salaried divisions. He returned in November 2023 at east makushita No. 6 and went 5-2, then produced a perfect 7-0 championship performance from west makushita No. 1 in January 2024 to regain juryo status. In May 2024, he dominated the second division with a 14-1 record to win the juryo championship and secure his return to makuuchi.
His return to the top division proved far more than a ceremonial comeback. Wakatakakage recorded 11 wins from east maegashira No. 14 in July 2024, followed by a 12-3 performance and the Outstanding Performance Prize in September 2024. He added 10 wins and the Technique Prize in November 2024, demonstrating that his low, driving sumo had survived an injury serious enough to end or permanently limit the careers of many athletes. By January 2025, he had returned to komusubi, little more than a year after resuming competition in makushita.
Wakatakakage continued his renewed push in 2025, going 9-6 in March and 12-3 with another Technique Prize in May, results that returned him to sekiwake. He posted 10 wins in July before slipping back down the rankings later in the year, but he began 2026 with nine wins in January and climbed again toward the sanyaku positions. At the Spring Tournament in March 2026, he defeated yokozuna Onosato on the opening day to earn the first gold star of his career, but a right elbow injury worsened later in the tournament and forced him to withdraw after securing an 8-6-1 winning record.
After missing the spring regional tour to undergo treatment, Wakatakakage entered the Summer Tournament in May 2026 as an east komusubi with fresh doubts over his physical condition. Instead, he began strongly, defeating ozeki Kotozakura on the second day and reaching the halfway point with a 7-1 record. Although a loss to Kirishima on the 11th day gave him his third defeat and appeared to damage his championship hopes, he won his final four regular bouts, including a final-day victory over Fujiryoga by katasukashi, to finish level with Kirishima at 12-3.
In the playoff, Wakatakakage attacked from a low position and drove Kirishima out by oshidashi, securing his second Emperor's Cup. His 25-tournament gap between championships was the third-longest in top-division history, behind only Kotonishiki and Terunofuji. He also received the seventh Technique Prize of his career, recognition of the precise, aggressive sumo that has remained the foundation of his success throughout his rise, collapse in the rankings and eventual return.
The championship carried particular emotional weight because his family had witnessed both ends of his difficult journey. After the victory, Wakatakakage said his children had told him that morning to win the championship, adding that he was pleased to show them his triumph after his family had supported him through the injury. At his news conference on May 25th, he admitted he felt "a little tired, both mentally and physically," but said his attacking sumo from a low position had been the best part of his performance.
Wakatakakage's second title has again raised the prospect of a challenge for ozeki promotion, a possibility that had seemed close before his knee injury in 2023. His career has now traced an unusual path: from university standout to historic new-sekiwake champion, from major surgery and a fall into makushita to a second championship at the age of 31. For a wrestler whose style depends on getting lower than his opponents and driving forward, his return to the Emperor's Cup has reflected the same qualities that define his sumo: patience, balance and an unwillingness to give ground.
Source: Kyodo
