Yokozuna Hakuho notified the Japan Sumo Association on Friday that he will withdraw from the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament scheduled to start at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan on Sunday.
It will be the sixth consecutive tournament from which the 36-year-old yokozuna will miss all or part of the action.
A nagging right knee injury flared up and Hakuho underwent surgery after withdrawing partially through the Spring basho in March.
The July Nagoya tourney now figures to be a career-defining moment for the Mongolian.
Hakuho was to be the only yokozuna at the upcoming tournament and his withdrawal will make it another basho without a wrestler at the spot's highest rank.
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