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Asabenkei Daikichi

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Asabenkei Daikichi - 朝弁慶 大吉 (born February 12, 1989) is a former Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Hiratsuka, Kanagawa. He made his debut in March 2007 and wrestled for Takasago stable. He reached the juryo division in November 2015. His highest rank was juryo 7 and he retired in July 2024.

Early Life[]

Asabenkei and asashoryu

Asabenkei with stablemate Asashoryu (c. 2007)

Yasunobu Sakai was born on February 12, 1989, in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa to parents who operated a Chinese restaurant. Sakai had no formal experience with sports until junior high school.[1]

After entering Goryugadai High School, he joined the judo club and excelled in competitions due to his size. He was considering joining a university judo club, and even went to listen to a Yasuhiro Yamashita lecture.[2] During this time, however, he also met Takasago Oyakata (former ozeki Asashio) who held sumo summer camps in Sakai's hometown of Hiratsuka since 1994.[1] At first he rejected Takasago's offer, but was eventually persuaded when they informed him that he could not earn a living by practicing judo.[2]

Career[]

Early Career[]

Sakai started sumo under the shikona "Asasakai" (朝酒井), with the "Asa" a prefix used by most wrestlers in the Takasago stable, and "Sakai", his family name. Even though he trained with Yokozuna Asashoryu, he struggled due to his lack of sumo experience. In his very first tournament, Asasakai suffered a make-koshi or losing record. The next tournament he achieved a 5-2 winning record which was good enough for promotion to the jonidan division for the September 2007 tournament. Asasakai rose steadily through the jonidan division and earned promotion to the sandanme division in September 2008. In May 2009, he was given the shikona "Asabenkei" (朝弁慶). The shikona was devised by then-juryo gyoji, Kimura Asanosuke, who belonged to the same stable and also originates from Kanagawa Prefecture.[3]

Asabenkei2010

Asabenkei prepares for his upcoming match (c. 2010)

Asabenkei earned promotion to the makushita division in November 2010 after producing a 6-1 record the tournament before. Asabenkei withdrew from the May 2011 tournament due to back pains.[4] Nevertheless, Asabenkei established himself as a makushita regular by July 2012.[5]

Starting in January 2015, Asabenkei went on strong run, achieving five straight kachi-koshi, or winning records, and by September 2015, he was ranked at makushita 2. In this tournament, he posted a 6-1 record and defeated juryo wrestler, Amakaze on the final day, which placed him in an eight-man playoff for the makushita yusho. Even though he lost to Chiyoshoma in the first round of the playoff, a promotion to juryo for the following November 2015 tournament was guaranteed.[5]

Juryo Career[]

Asabenkei was the first new sekitori produced by Takasago stable since Oga in 2006 and he was also the first wrestler promoted to sekitori status from Kanagawa Prefecture since Asanosho's promotion in 1993.[6] In his juryo debut in November 2015, Asabenkei finished with a 6-9 losing record. The following January 2016 tournament, Asabenkei produced another losing record of 7-8. He was demoted to the juryo 12 rank in March 2016 where he finished with an 8-7 record, his first juryo kachi-koshi. The next tournament, Asabenkei achieved a career best double-digit 10-5 record. This was good enough for promotion to the rank of juryo 7 for the July 2016 tournament. However Asabenkei suffered a losing record of 5-10 and then a 4-11 in September 2016 which relegated him back to the makushita division for the November 2016 tournament.[5]

AsabenkeiTerunofuji2018

Asabenkei pushes out former ozeki Terunofuji (c. 2018)

Asabenkei would stay in the makushita division for about a year and half. In March 2018, Asabenkei produced a 6-1 record at the rank of makushita 3, which was good enough for a re-promotion to the juryo division for the May 2018 tournament. However, in the May 2018 tournament, Asabenkei lost his first seven matches and on the 13th day, he seriously injured his knee in a match against Daishoho. He suffered a bone cartilage inflammation and had to get medical treatment for meniscal damage which forced him to miss two complete tournaments.[7]

Asabenkei returned to action in November 2018, having fallen down to sandanme. Upon his return, he achieved a mediocre 4-3 record as he was still dealing with the effects of his injury. The following tournament in January 2019, he took the sandanme yusho with a perfect 7-0 record. He was promoted to the upper levels of makushita and would remain there for most of 2019.[5]

In March 2020, Asabenkei achieved a 6-1 record at the rank of makushita 3 which promoted him back to the juryo division for the July 2020 tournament. Asabenkei started the tournament with two straight losses and three straight wins. However he went on a slump and suffered nine straight defeats before withdrawing from the tournament on the final day. He subsequently finished with a 3-12 and was demoted back down to makushita for the September 2020 tournament.[5]

Later Career[]

AsabenkeiUnsalaried2020

Asabenkei prepares for his upcoming match (c. 2020)

Asabenkei remained in the makushita division for the majority of his later career. In 2022, he never managed a winning record and was demoted back down to sandanme in November 2022 where he finished with a 2-5 record. In the following January 2023 tournament, Asabenkei finished with a 6-1 record, his first winning record in over a year. He returned to makushita for the March 2023 tournament, but was unable to remain in the division, and he spent the final year of his career wrestling in the third-tier sandanme division.[5]

Retirement from Sumo[]

On July 20, 2024, the seventh day of the July tournament, Asabenkei submitted his retirement papers to the Japan Sumo Association, which was accepted. He had been sidelined since the May tournament due to a knee injury and underwent surgery, but was unable to recover sufficiently to compete again, leading to his decision to retire.[8] His danpatsu-shiki, or retirement ceremony, was held on September 29, 2024, at Ryogoku Kokugikan, attended by 350 people, with his stablemaster, Takasago (former sekiwake Asasekiryu), making the final cut.[9]

After retirement, he plans to work in sumo-related shows for foreign tourists organized by an event company. In addition, he intends to engage in entertainment activities, including appearing in sumo shows. At the time of the retirement ceremony, he was also featured in an Uber Eats commercial. Additionally, he finished filming an episode of Kodoku no Gourmet in which he appears for just a few seconds.[9]

Personal Life[]

  • Asabenkei's hobbies include watching movies and reading.[10]
  • During his danpatsu-shiki, or retirement ceremony, Asabenkei publicly revealed that he married in 2020 and has a two-year-old daughter.[9]
  • Asabenkei was highly regarded for his skill in offering his chest during butsukari-geiko (intense pushing practice). Even after being demoted from the juryo division to the lower makushita ranks, he continued to take part in training despite wearing medical braces on his aching knees. When coaches like Naruto Oyakata (former ozeki Kotooshu) and Takekuma Oyakata (former ozeki Goeido) brought their wrestlers to visit Takasago stable, they often specifically requested Asabenkei for mune-dashi (offering the chest in practice).[8]

Fighting Style[]

Asabenkei's Fighting Style 3

Asabenkei defeats Azumaryu by kimedashi (arm barring force out)

Asabenkei is an oshi-sumo specialist, which means he prefers thrusting and pushing techniques rather than fighting on the mawashi. The most common kimarite that he employs is oshidashi (force out), yorikiri (push out) and hatakikomi (slap down). Due to his huge weight advantage, he would also commonly employ kimedashi (arm barring force out).[11]

Record[]

Division Results[]

  • Total: 384-359-32/739 (103 basho)
  • Juryo: 46-73-1/117 (8 basho)
  • Makushita: 201-185-20/384 (58 basho)
  • Sandanme: 94-67-11/161 (25 basho)
  • Jonidan: 35-28/63 (9 basho)
  • Jonokuchi: 8-6/14 (2 basho)

Achievements[]

  • 1 Sandanme Championship (January 2019)

Shikona History[]

  • Asasakai Yasunobu (2007.03 - 2009.03)
  • Asabenkei Keisei (2009.05 - 2012.03)
  • Asabenkei Onimaru (2012.05 - 2012.07)
  • Asabenkei Keisei (2012.09 - 2012.11)
  • Asabenkei Daikichi (2013.01 - 2024.07)

Gallery[]

JSA Profile Pictures and Tegata[]

Career Overview[]

See Also[]

External Links[]

References[]

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