March in sumo, both in Japan and internationally, came in “like a lion” as the old proverb goes.

As expected, ticket demand for the Japan Sumo Association’s October tournament in London — the first ōzumō event there in over three decades — far outstripped supply.

Almost as soon as the sales window opened, social media was flooded with fans complaining about a buggy booking system, high prices and the overall lack of ticket availability.

Many of those who tried to purchase seats immediately after sales began were shocked to find themselves already placed behind thousands of customers in an online queue.

Some posted about checkout baskets showing different options from those they had selected, while others said they were randomly kicked out of the queue and had to restart their applications.

Fans’ frustration grew as tickets that were unavailable through official channels appeared almost instantly on resale sites at several times the face value.

Despite these issues, the event sold out in short order, with only VIP hospitality packages still available — and at prices that would make traveling to Tokyo to see the real thing a cheaper option.

Meanwhile in Osaka, things got off to a similarly rocky start.

On the opening day of the Spring Basho, Hoshoryu earned the dubious honor of being the first newly promoted yokozuna to lose in his debut at the top rank since Takanohana in January 1995.

Sumo’s latest grand champion can console himself with the fact that the former yokozuna recovered from that early setback and went on to lift the Emperor’s Cup.

After being overwhelmed by Abi in their Day One matchup, Hoshoryu subsequently got back on track by downing the Onami brothers Wakatakakage and Wakamotoharu on consecutive days, but he hasn’t quite been in full flow and may need time to settle into his new rank.

The Osaka tournament’s famously stormy reputation is thus far also holding true for other prominent wrestlers.

January’s breakout star Oho suffered two losses in the first three days of his sanyaku debut and, with all the top rankers yet to come, is staring at an uphill battle just to hold on to his new rank.

Oho was being tipped by some sumo commentators as a potential ozeki candidate in 2025 but, at least over the opening stages of the ongoing meet, he has looked like a man struggling to handle what comes with high expectations — namely, getting every opponent’s best effort.

It’s a similar story for Kotozakura at ozeki, with all the promise of just two months ago now completely evaporated.

The 27-year-old entered the new year with legitimate hopes of becoming yokozuna by the end of January, but unless he can turn things around quickly, he could find himself in a dogfight just to remain at ozeki.

The pain of disappointment across the first few days of the spring meet hasn’t been limited to sumo’s highest ranks.

Makuuchi division rookie Aonishiki needed three attempts to get his first win in sumo’s top tier.

If the young Ukrainian is to continue his rapid ascent up the ranks then he may need to add some bulk. Aonishiki is a skillful grappler but thus far in professional sumo has leaned into a style of constantly driving forward.

While that has worked out well to date, opponents are stronger and faster at the top of the sumo pyramid and much harder to simply overwhelm.

At 120 kilograms, Aonishiki will be on the back foot figuratively and literally if he continues going head to head with much heavier men.

As Hoshoryu, Oho, Aonishiki and others try to navigate choppy waters it’s been smooth sailing so far for the pre-tournament title favorite.

Onosato has eased out to a 3-0 start and the early lead with a series of comprehensive wins that showcased not only his power but a calmer, more controlled approach.

On the first and third days, the hulking ozeki smoothly avoided falling victim to overreach near the edge of the ring, dropping his hips and maintaining his balance.

If the former amateur yokozuna continues with that measured approach, then it’s hard to see anyone preventing him from steamrolling his way to a third Emperor’s Cup in the space of 10 months.

A championship at his current rank would put Onosato in line for promotion to yokozuna with a repeat performance or similar in May, so all eyes will be on sumo’s rising star over the next couple of weeks.

Keeping pace with Onosato over the first three days is a group that includes a handful of veterans and a couple of former Nippon Sports Science University sumo club teammates.

Of course, it’s far too early to call that group a leading pack and it’s entirely possible that the eventual tournament winner may only have one win to his name at this stage.

Even so, the way Onosato has sailed through Osaka’s stormy seas in the opening stages of the ongoing meet has been impressive, boding well for his title and promotion hopes.

If the sport’s newest superstar claims victory in Kansai, and sets up the possibility of Japan seeing only its second native-born yokozuna since the turn of the millennium, then what came in like a lion will go out like a lamb.