Ozeki Takanonami snapped out of his funk Tuesday to defeat yokozuna Musashimaru and give stablemate and unbeaten leader Takatoriki some extra daylight at the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament.
Musashimaru, who came into the day's final bout at Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium with an 8-1 record, lost the initiative at the face-off as Takanonami neutralized the Samoan-born giant's thrusting attack by quickly locking onto his belt.
The slumping ozeki never let Musashimaru get even a sniff of victory, marching him out with surprising ease to boost his own record to 4-6.
Earlier, No. 14 maegashira Takatoriki showed neat footwork in escaping from ninth-ranked Oginishiki (5-5), before flinging him to the deck to improve to a perfect 10-0 in the 15-day meet.