Ukrainian sumo star Aonishiki defeats local favorite for second Kyushu Basho win
Aonishiki during his winning bout (Photo: sumokyokay, X (Twitter))
Ukrainian sumo wrestler Danylo Aonishiki Yavhusyshyn has secured his second victory at the prestigious Kyushu Basho-2026 tournament in Japan. On the third day of competition, he defeated Japanese wrestler Kazuki Ura using the yorikiri technique, according to Sumo.or.jp.
Aonishiki claims his second win at the tournament
Ukrainian wrestler Danylo Yavhusyshyn (Aonishiki) continues his campaign at the final Emperor's Grand Sumo Tournament of the season, Kyushu Basho-2026, which is being held in Fukuoka, Japan.
On the third day of competition, Aonishiki faced Japanese wrestler Kazuki Ura. The Ukrainian defeated his opponent with a yorikiri force-out, pushing him out of the dohyo, or sumo ring.
After losing his opening bout to Hiroki Asanoyama, Yavhusyshyn has now won two consecutive matches. He previously defeated Naoya Yoshinofuji. The Ukrainian now has two wins and one loss at the tournament.
Shishi suffers his third consecutive defeat
Another Ukrainian sumo wrestler, Serhii Sokolovskyi, who competes under the name Shishi Masaru, was unable to secure a victory.
On the third day of competition, he faced Mongolian wrestler Oshoma. The bout ended in favor of the Ukrainian's opponent, who won using the hatakikomi slap-down technique.
It was Sokolovskyi's third consecutive loss at this tournament. He previously fell to Asakoryu and Takanosho.
Hoshoryu suffers first loss, Kirishima also defeated
One of the biggest surprises on the third day was yokozuna Hoshoryu's defeat. The Mongolian lost to Japanese wrestler Fujiryo, who won with the oshitaoshi push-down technique. It was Hoshoryu's first loss at Kyushu Basho-2026.
Another Mongolian wrestler, ozeki Kirishima, also suffered a defeat. He was beaten by Yoshinofuji, who used the uwatenage overarm throw.
Meanwhile, the other yokozuna, Onosato, defeated Asanoyama with a yoritaoshi frontal crush-out. Ozeki Kotozakura beat Fujiseiun, while sekiwake Atamifuji defeated Daieisho.
Other notable results from day three
Other notable results included Takayasu's victory over Hakunofuji and Takerufuji's win against Gonoyama. Kotoshoho defeated Hiraodumi, Wakamotoharu beat Roga, and Oho came out on top against Asahakuryu.
After three days of competition, four wrestlers remain undefeated: Atamifuji, Kinbozan, Takanosho and Dewaanoryu. With a 2-1 record, Aonishiki is among the wrestlers chasing the leaders, while Shishi is still searching for his first win.
Kyushu Basho-2026 runs through November 22. Each competitor is scheduled to take part in 15 bouts.
Earlier, we reported that Ukrainian wrestler Aonishiki received elite status and learned his position in the latest sumo rankings.a
