Hakuho flexed his yokozuna muscles on Wednesday to stay on the heels of a pair of rank-and-filers in the lead after four days of action at the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament.
The Mongolian-born veteran was made to work overtime by top-ranked maegashira Okinoumi (1-3), who went toe-to-toe with the yokozuna and had Hakuho teetering at the edge, but eventually fell in an otherwise impressive display at Fukuoka Kokusai Center.
Okinoumi, who went 11-4 and earned a Fighting Spirit Prize at September’s Autumn Basho, was looking to beat the grand champion for just the second time in 22 career matchups.