Yokozuna Asashoryu's quest for a third straight Emperor's Cup took an unexpected hit Tuesday as he was handed his first defeat of the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament by fellow Mongolian grappler Kyokutenho.
The spunky 22-year-old from Ulan Bator, who is aiming to become the first yokozuna debutant ever to win the spring basho, looked on course for his third straight victory only to fall victim to a major upset at Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium.
Asashoryu slipped to 2-1 in the 15-day meet and allowed relegation-haunted ozeki Chiyotaikai to jump into the lead at 3-0 with rank-and-filers Kotoryu and Jumonji.
In other key bouts, Kaio, whose ozeki rank is also hanging in the balance after missing the last two meets with an arm injury, scored a second win but Musoyama's woes continued as he was sent to another defeat, this time by crowd favorite Takamisakari.