Yokozuna Hakuho moved within arm's grasp of his 29th career Emperor's Cup after disposing of ozeki Kotoshogiku in a savvy display to improve to 12-1 at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament on Friday.
Yokozuna rival Harumafuji, ozeki Kisenosato and rank-and-filer Ikioi each kept their title hopes alive as they remained just one loss behind at 11-2 with two days remaining in the 15-day meet.
Ryogoku Kokugikan got its eighth sell-out crowd of the tournament and Hakuho was all business as he sent Kotoshogiku down to the sandy surface with a pull-down technique when the ozeki attempted to charge forward.