The Level Change Podcast · Combat Sports news variety show usually previewing or reviewing the latest UFC event while covering the latest news in combat sports.

Sumo Stompin' with Tim Bissell

·32 min·2 clips

Takakesho won the last tournament with a henka, sidestepping at the tachiai instead of crashing head-first.

1. The Level Change Podcast episode centers on the Kyushu Basho and the current state of Grand Sumo. 2. Steffi Haines hosts Tim Bissell, who runs Sumo Stomp and writes about sumo for Bloody Elbow. 3. The episode asks whether Kyushu could produce a new Yokozuna and how the rankings are shifting around that possibility. 4. Tim explains that the Kyushu Basho starts on Sunday, lasts 15 days, and is the final tournament of the year. 5. He says the banzuke is the ranking document and that Yokozuna sits at the top of it. 6. Tim describes Yokozuna as the highest rank, with duties that include religious ceremonies and the expectation of dominance. 7. He says Torunofuji is the only current Yokozuna in Grand Sumo and has been injured often this year. 8. Tim identifies Takakesho as the Ozeki with the clearest path to Yokozuna if he wins again in Kyushu. 9. He says the promotion standard is two tournament wins back to back, followed by Japan Sumo Association approval. 10. Tim notes that Takakesho’s style is pusher-thruster sumo, which many fans see as blunt and one-dimensional. 11. He says Takakesho won the last tournament with a henka at the tachiai, sidestepping the opening clash. 12. Tim argues that the henka was smart strategy, while also admitting it gives critics more reason to reject Takakesho’s candidacy. 13. The episode then shifts to the Ozeki picture and the earlier “Ozeki Crisis” when only Takakesho held that rank. 14. Tim says Kirishima and Hoshoryu were both promoted this year and both looked shaky in their first Ozeki tournaments. 15. He says Hoshoryu is 25, is a nephew of a former Yokozuna, and has a habit of staring into the crowd before bouts. 16. Tim says the Mongolians have run sumo for the last couple of decades and points to Hakuho and Asashoryu as major figures. 17. The tone is conversational and explanatory, with Steffi asking direct ranking questions and Tim answering with detailed examples. 18. The format is a structured interview built around five sumo questions and a later update on Bloody Elbow writing plans. 19. Fans of sumo rankings, tournament structure, and fight-style debates will get the most from this episode. 20. Viewers wanting only major-fight highlights or broad MMA talk may skip it.

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