Former ozeki Terunofuji's miraculous bid for a second tournament title and first in five years will come down to the final day of the July Grand Sumo Tournament after the No. 17 maegashira was dealt his second loss on Saturday at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan.
Terunofuji was forced out by sekiwake Shodai, although he will go into Sunday's final day with a one-win advantage with a 12-2 after ozeki Asanoyama also went down to defeat that left him at 11-3.
Shodai and fellow sekiwake Mitakeumi also stayed alive in the hunt for the Emperor's Cup as each won their matches to join Asanoyama at 11-3.
Terunofuji, who had fought his way back to the upper-most makuuchi division after dropping as far as the second-lowest jonidan division due to injuries and illnesses, can win the title outright Sunday with a victory. If he loses, then any of the three among Asanoyama, Shodai or Mitakeumi that win will join him in a winner-take-all playoff.
In his match, Terunofuji was put on the defensive from the beginning, as Shodai had him backtracking off the jump-off. When Terunofuji made a stand, Shodai took a step back and rotated, which put the former ozeki off balance at the edge.
From there, Shodai put all of his power into forcing him over the edge for his sixth win in 10 career bouts over Terunofuji, although the two had not met since the Summer tournament of 2017.
Sekiwake Mitakeumi kept his slim title hopes alive by staving off an imposing attack from No. 16 maegashira Kotoeko to secure his 11th win.
In the first meeting between the two, Kotoeko had Mitakeumi moved back to the edge when the sekiwake deftly rotated and expelled his opponent with an arm throw.
In other action, komusubi Daieisho was having none of No. 6 maegashira Enho's trickery, as he maintained a solid base and plowed ahead to send the mighty mite over the edge with a mighty shove to improve to 10-4.
In terms of their opponents' size, fellow komusubi Okinoumi had to face the polar opposite in bulky No. 4 maegashira Aoiyama, but also came away with a victory after flooring the Bulgarian with a well-timed twist. Okimoumi improved to 9-5.
Far lower in the rankings, two of the trio of former ozeki -- perhaps drawing inspiration from Terunofuji's resurrection -- continued impressive showings that will see them earn higher ranks for the next tournament.
No. 11 maegashira Tochinoshin and No. 13 maegashira Takayasu both notched their ninth wins, defeating No. 5 maegashira Hokutofuji and No. 16 maegashira Nishikigi, respectively.
The third member of the group, No. 14 maegashira Kotoshogiku, was forced out by No. 12 maegashira Sadanoumi, leaving him at 8-6.
The tournament is finishing up without three of the top four wrestlers. Yokozuna Kakuryu dropped out in the first week, while yokozuna Hakuho and ozeki Takakeisho were late withdrawals.
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