Outright leader Daieisho maintained his one-win buffer at the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament on Tuesday after defeating fellow rank-and-file wrestler Hokutofuji.
Second-place ozeki Shodai remains one victory off the pace after digging deep against No. 5 maegashira Endo in an exciting final bout of Day 10 at Ryogoku Kokugikan.
Earlier in the day, Struggling ozeki Takakeisho pulled out from the 15-day tournament with an ankle injury following a run of bad results that derailed his bid for promotion to the sport's top rank of yokozuna.