Tomokaze Sodai

Tomokaze Sodai - 友風想大 (born December 2, 1994) is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Kawasaki, Kanagawa. He made his debut in May 2017 and currently wrestles for Nakamura stable. He reached the makuuchi division in March 2019 and has 1 special prize as well as 2 kinboshi. His highest rank as of 2025 is maegashira 3.

Early Life[]

Minami grew up in a single-mother household.^[1] He is an accomplished pianist, his mother being a pianist herself and having taught him the instrument, and Minami wanting to join a music college when he was younger.^[2] As a child, his favorite wrestler was Kisenosato, whose deashi style inspired him enormously.^[3]

BabyTomokazePiano — A young Tomokaze plays the piano (c. 1996)

Minami also participated in many sports at an early age competing in karate and basketball when attending elementary school before taking up judo at junior high school, where his coach was a former sumo wrestler.^[3] Although his school did not have a sumo club, Minami competed, although he had little interest in the sport, and went to win the team championship in the Kanto junior high school tournament.^[3]

When he was about to enter high school, he was invited to join a judo specialized school but decided to join Mukonooka Technical High School, a prefectural high school renowned for its sumo club, on the advice of his judo coach.^[4] During high school sumo competitions, he reached the final of a National High School Tournament; in which he was defeated by the Mongolian Altankhuyag Ichinnorov.^[5] After graduating high school, he was advised to join a music college but instead chose to attend Nippon Sport Science University, and continued to compete with some success in national sumo competitions.^[6]

Career[]

Early Career[]

In the spring of 2017, Minami decided to turn professional sumo and joined the Oguruma stable, led by the former ozeki Kotokaze, on his master's sixtieth birthday.^[6] He shared the same rookie inspection session with Yago Takanori, his stablemate, who was the 2016 amateur-yokozuna.^[7] Since then, the two have been in a friendly rivalry.^[8] He adopted the shikona, or ring name, Tomokaze, combining the kanji for "friend" with the kanji for "wind" (風), the latter being often adopted by many Oguruma wrestlers including Yoshikaze and Takekaze. There, he first served as Yoshikaze's tsukebito (assistant),^[2] a wrestler who is also an alumnus of Nippon Sport Science University, and whom he admires, saying in particular that he wants to emulate him and learn from him.^[9]

He made his debut in the Nagoya tournament, where he claimed the jonokuchi division championship (yusho). He was moved up to the jonidan division in September and secured a second promotion as he posted a 6-1 record. In November he made his first appearance as a sandanme ranked wrestler and took his second yusho as he won all seven of his matches and then defeating Tsuyukusa in a playoff. Tomokaze began 2018 in the makushita division and worked his way steadily up the ranks, although he found it very difficult to compete in the upper echelons of this division. With four consecutive winning records (kachi-koshi), he was promoted to Makushita 4 for the September tournament, a rank that puts him in a position for potential promotion to sekitori status. He won five of his seven matches, securing his promotion to the juryo division with a win over Gagamaru in his final match.^[10]

Juryo Career[]

TomokazeJuryo — Tomokaze during the juryo dohyo-iri (c. 2018)

Promoted along Toyonoshima, this promotion also meant that Tomokaze had been promoted to sekitori in eight tournaments, the same number as his mentor Yoshikaze, something he was pleased about.^[11] At the time of his promotion to juryo, he unusually asked to be maintained as Yoshikaze's tsukebito, because his stable lacked young apprentices who could serve as assistants and that he would benefit from continuing to learn from him.^[12]

In his juryo debut, Tomokaze initially won his first match against Gagamaru thanks to a mono-ii called by the shimpan.^[13] He then went to defeat Shimanoumi but lost the next three matches. During his second defeat by Mitoryu, he dislocated his right little finger and had to be taken to the infirmary immediately after his bout.^[14] He however managed to score nine consecutive wins to enter the final day one win ahead of former sekiwake Kotoyuki. He defeated his more experienced opponent by oshidashi to take the yusho but his low rank of juryo 14 meant that he was not eligible for direct promotion to the makuuchi division. In January Tomokaze was ranked at juryo 4, giving him a realistic prospect of promotion with a strong kachi-koshi but his chances appeared slim when he ended the eighth day with a 3–5 record. In the second week however, he went unbeaten in seven bouts to end the basho on 10–5 secure his elevation to the top makuuchi division along Terutsuyoshi and Daishoho. Tomokaze's promotion makes him the seventh wrestler from Oguruma stable to reach that level in the rankings since the establishment of the stable and the seventh from his university to be promoted in makuuchi since Hokutofuji in 2016. His progress from his jonokuchi debut to makuuchi in eleven basho was the joint-fourth fastest in modern sumo.^[15]

Makuuchi Career[]

In his top division debut Tomokaze was ranked at maegashira 13 and recorded nine wins including victories over Toyonoshima, Takarafuji, Asanoyama and Shohozan. At maegashira 9 in May he made his twelfth consecutive kachi-koshi with eight wins and secured a move up to maegashira 7 for the July basho in Nagoya. In July 2019 Tomokaze was in contention for the yusho after winning nine of his first eleven matches but lost to his old high school rival Ichinojo on day 12. On day 13 he faced the biggest challenge of his career when he was matched against yokozuna Kakuryu and in a major upset he earned his first kinboshi as he defeated the grand champion by hatakikomi. After the bout he commented: ″I'm happy, but it still doesn't feel real.″^[16] He moved to eleven wins by beating Kotoeko but lost tamely to Terutsuyoshi on the final day to end with an 11-4 record. His achievements saw him awarded the shukun-sho or special prize for Outstanding Performance. On receiving the award he said ″It’s still like a dream, but I’m really happy to win this award. I put out some good sumo, but some bouts weren’t that good... I’m grateful for the opportunity to challenge the upper-ranked fighters but I have a long way to go. I’ll do my best to grow and catch up with them″.^[17]

In September he defeated Kakuryu for the second straight tournament on Day 7 and afterwards dedicated the win to his stablemate and friend Yoshikaze, who had just announced his retirement.^[18] He picked up his first make-koshi or losing-record in his entire career on Day 14 of the Aki (September) Tournament, losing to future ozeki, Asanoyama on that day.^[10]

Injury and Comeback[]

Tomokaze had to forfeit (kyujo) the tournament, after sustaining a serious injury to his right knee in his fight against Kotoyuki, on the second day of the November 2019 tournament in Kyushu. The medical certificate submitted by his stable to the Japan Sumo Association stated: "Dislocated right knee joint with ligament damage. The treatment period is currently undecided."^[19] His stablemaster stated to the press he could be out for up to a year.^[20] He was transported to a hospital in Fukuoka City by ambulance immediately after the bout, the injury being so serious that it almost resulted in amputation.^[4] However, he was encouraged by his master, who, having suffered a similar injury in the November 1978 tournament, nevertheless reached the rank of ozeki in November 1981.^[21]

Tomokaze13 — Tomokaze falls down to jonidan due to a serious right knee injury (c. 2021)

Following his injury, he underwent surgery with a total of four different operations in five months to reconstruct his ligaments.^[22] He then underwent rehabilitation, dividing his time between his hometown of Kawasaki, Kanagawa and his stable.^[23] Since then, he cannot move his right leg from the ankle down due to the severed nerve.^[24] He sat out the next six tournaments (not including the cancelled May 2020 tournament) and made his comeback in the March 2021 tournament, where he scored a 6–1 record in jonidan. Two more winning records in May and July saw him progress to near the top of the sandanme division by September 2021, and he had reached upper makushita by January 2022. On the pressure of his injury, Tomokaze insists that he's recovering well and that his training with Yago is gradual.^[25]

Because Oguruma-oyakata would reach the mandatory age of retirement, the closure of Oguruma stable was decided in January 2022, the personnel of the stable being mainly transferred to Oshiogawa stable. Tomokaze however was transferred to Nishonoseki stable in February 2022, along his coach and friend Yoshikaze.^[26] March 2022 saw his first losing record since his return from injury. In the following tournament, however, he scored a solid 6–1 and once again found himself in a position of potential promotion to the juryo division.^[10]

Return to Makuuchi[]

After four tournaments, in which Tomokaze stagnated at the top of the makushita division, it was finally announced that he would regain his sekitori status for the March 2023 tournament, after going 4-3 as Makushita 2. This promotion made him the only sekitori in Nishonoseki stable at the time and the first one raised by former yokozuna Kisenosato.^[27]

During the July 2023 tournament, Tomokaze was in position to win the juryo championship being neck and neck with Atamifuji. On Day 14, Daiamami also forced his way into the leading group, the three wrestlers now at 10 wins to 3 defeats. However, Tomokaze was beaten on the fifteenth and final day by Kitanowaka, eliminating him from the title race, while Atamifuji won for the eleventh time and took the playoff against Daiamami. At the next tournament, in September, Tomokaze succeeded in achieving a positive kachi-koshi score as juryo 3, reinforcing the likelihood of makuuchi re-promotion for the first time in four years.^[10]

TomokazeHiradoumi2023 — Tomokaze pushes out and defeats Hiradoumi (c. 2023)

After a good score as juryo 3, it was announced that Tomokaze would make his return to the makuuchi division for the November 2023 tournament. This made Tomokaze the third wrestler in the sport's history to return to sumo's top division after dropping back down to the jonidan division, following Terunofuji in 2020 and Ura in 2021. Following poor results, however, he was demoted for the March tournament to the juryo division before regaining his makuuchi status for the May tournament. However, his results were not up to the standard of this level of competition, and Tomokaze went on to lose six consecutive matches from the first day.^[10]

Following the May 2024 tournament it was announced that Tomokaze would move to the newly-established Nakamura stable, owned by former sekiwake Yoshikaze, effective on 1 June.^[28] When the rankings for the July 2024 tournament were published, it was announced that Tomokaze had changed his first name from Yuta (勇太) to Sodai (想大). After notching the first sekitori win for his new stable on the third day of that tournament, Tomokaze explained that his stablemaster Nakamura suggested the name change. He said that upon his return to the ring after injury, Nakamura told him that he was different from others and continued to do magnificent things, and that he was able to return to the ring because of the "feelings" (sodai) of others.^[29]

Personal Life[]

Tomokaze still has a passion for the piano. His favorite performer is Richard Clayderman.^[6]
Following his injury, Tomokaze admitted in an interview given to the Tokyo Shimbun that he was certified as Level 5 disabled and issued a disability certificate in February 2021.^[4]
Tomokaze has two younger sisters.^[30]
Tomokaze's hobby is playing the piano, his favorite food is sweets, and his favorite artist is Yoshiki.^[31]

Fighting Style[]

Tomokaze has shown a preference for tsuki and oshi techniques which involve pushing and thrusting rather than grasping his opponent's mawashi or belt. His most common kimarite or winning moves are hatakikomi, the slap-down and oshidashi, the push-out.^[32]