Wakatakakage Atsushi

is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Fukushima. He made his debut in March 2017 and reached the top division in November 2019. He wrestles for Arashio stable, where he is a stablemate of his older brothers Wakatakamoto and Wakamotoharu. His highest rank has been . He won his first top division championship in March 2022 and his first kinboshi in March 2026, followed by a second championship in May 2026. For his career Wakatakakage has collected one Outstanding Performance prize and seven Technique prizes.

Wakatakakage sat out for several tournaments in 2023 while recovering from reconstructive knee surgery.

Family background The three Onami brothers are the grandsons of former Wakabayama. They were given their or sumo names by Arashio stable's head coach Ōyutaka, after the three sons of Mōri Motonari in the well-known Japanese parable "Lesson of the three arrows" – Takamoto, Motoharu, and Takakage. The eldest brother, Wakatakamoto, has a highest rank of 7 and has been in sumo the longest, debuting in November 2009. Wakatakakage and Wakamotoharu are the 19th pair of brothers in sumo to both reach level. Wakamotoharu is the second eldest and entered in November 2011, but did not make his debut until after Wakatakakage, in March 2019. On the January 2022 Wakamotoharu made his division debut. Wakatakakage, the youngest brother, had by far the quickest rise up the rankings of the three.

Wakatakakage and his brother Wakamotoharu are the fourth siblings in history to reach sumo's third-highest rank of , achieved with Wakamotoharu's promotion in May 2023. They are the first siblings to reach the rank since brothers Takanohana and Wakanohana in the early 1990s.

Career Sumo debut and promotion Wakatakakage made his professional debut in March 2017, and because of his success in amateur sumo began as a entrant. He won the division championship in May 2017 with a perfect record and also won the division championship in January 2018 by the same score. He made his debut in May 2018, the second to do from Arashio stable after Sokokurai in 2010 and the first from Fukushima Prefecture since in 2009. He rose slowly up the division, winning promotion to the top division after a record at 3 in September 2019. Despite a poor start to that tournament he won his final seven matches (including wins over top division veterans such as Toyonoshima and Kaisei) to secure his promotion. He was the third entrant to reach the top division after Yutakayama and Asanoyama.

Wakatakakage won his first four bouts in his top division debut in November 2019, but dislocated a joint in his right foot after landing awkwardly during his fourth day win over Terutsuyoshi and had to withdraw from the rest of the tournament. Back in he put together two consecutive winning records of and upon his return from injury to earn promotion back the top division for the (subsequently cancelled) May 2020 tournament at his highest rank to date of 14. In July 2020 he completed his first full tournament in , posting a respectable 10 wins. In September he was on the leaderboard for much of the tournament, although he picked up his fourth loss to Mitakeumi on Day 14 and finished in a share of third place on .

On 31 December 2020 – 10 days before the start of the January 2021 - it was announced by the Sumo Association that Wakatakakage tested positive for COVID-19. The entire Arashio stable – along with the Miyagino, Tomozuna and Kokonoe stables – sat out the tournament. He returned in March and produced a record, defeating two and receiving the Technique Prize. He earned his second Technique Prize in May 2021 with a record and was promoted to the ranks for the first time as . He was the first from Arashio stable to reach the rank since its founding in 2002.

After consecutive winning records at the top rank in November 2021 and January 2022, Wakatakakage was promoted to a career-best rank of for the March 2022 tournament. He followed up this debut by winning his first tournament after producing a 12-3 record and defeating co-leader Takayasu in a playoff, along with receiving his third Technique prize. This marked the first time in 86 years that a newly promoted won the championship (after Futabayama in 1936), as well as the first time in 50 years that a wrestler from Fukushima Prefecture won the championship (after Tochiazuma in January 1972). Wakatakakage failed to defeat Shōdai in the final regulation match (thus missing out on the Outstanding Performance Prize that he would have received with a record), but was guaranteed at least a playoff as Takayasu had lost his own match to Abi earlier in the day. Maintaining his rank in July, Wakatakakage recovered from losing his first three matches in September to produce an record. He received his fourth Technique Prize on the final day. He achieved an record in the November tournament to close out the year.

Injury and relegation In the January 2023 tournament Wakatakakage earned a record. He withdrew towards the end of the March 2023 after injuring his right ACL and meniscus in his win over Kotonowaka on Day 13. The following month stablemaster Arashio (former Sōkokurai) announced that Wakatakakage would be sidelined for up to one year after undergoing reconstructive knee surgery. When withdrawing from the September tournament, his medical certificate with the Sumo Association indicated he would need "approximately one month of treatment and outpatient rehabilitation."

In preparation for the November 2023 tournament, Wakatakakage was demoted to the division, where he was ranked sixth. No longer a , observers noted that he now wore the black of the lower-ranked wrestlers during his trainings. Noting his training sessions without knee braces, speculated about a possible return to competition for the Kyushu tournament that same month, Wakatakakage's return at the November tournament was confirmed when his name was listed among the matches for the first day. He began his comeback with a defeat but bounced back to finish the tournament with a score of . During the first tournament of 2024, Wakatakakage won all his matches, winning his second championship, the first in six years. This victory marks the second time a former championship winner has won a championship after a period of demotion, the first being Terunofuji in 2019. He won the May 2024 championship with 14 wins, resulting in his return to the top division in July.

Return to When the banzuke for the January 2025 tournament was published, it was confirmed that Wakatakakage was returning to the ranks, where his brother Wakamotoharu also competed. Wakamotoharu, having completed on two successful tournaments in September and November 2024, could, according to the press, count on his brother's promotion in order to aim for the rank of . Wakatakakage quickly dispatched Terunofuji on the opening day of the January tournament to mark his first career victory against a .

During the 2025 May tournament, Wakatakakage stood out as one of the leaders of the competition, recording seven victories and one defeat during the first half of the tournament, sharing the lead group after undefeated Ōnosato with Aonishiki and Hakuōhō. Although he fell behind in the race for the title, Wakatakakage matched his personal best with a total of twelve victories, renewing hopes of promotion to . For his performance, he also won his sixth Technique prize. At the July 2025 tournament Wakatakakage won ten times, putting him in a position for potential promotion to sumo's second-highest rank of if he can win 11 or more matches in September. Before the tournament, his chances of promotion were commented on by Takadagawa (former Akinoshima), head of the Judging Department, who announced that his sumo level should be sufficient for promotion to the rank of if he managed to achieve a simple double-digit score (ten wins), rather than clinging to the criterion of 33 wins in the last three tournaments.

The run for the title was considered compromised when Wakatakakage suffered a fourth defeat against Kirishima on Day 9. Although benefiting from the presence of Kotozakura alone in the rank, which would allow him to be promoted with only ten wins, it was noted that his chances had become slim as he had yet to face either of the two . After suffering a sixth defeat to Kotoshōhō on Day 11, his promotion chances were ended. On Day 14, he suffered his eighth defeat, ensuring his demotion from for the November tournament. On the opening day of the March 2026 tournament, Wakatakakage, then ranked at Maegashira 1, defeated Yokozuna Ōnosato by for his first career . In his Day 13 match against Abi, Wakatakakage appeared to aggravate the right-elbow injury that he suffered prior to the tournament. Despite this, Wakatakakage won the match to secure his and return to the ranks in the next tournament. He withdrew on Day 14, giving Daieishō a default victory.

Second and injury Wakatakakage entered the May 2026 Tournament as a . During the first half of the tournament, aided by notable absences, including both , he opened up a strong record, looking dominant against several highly-ranked opponents. This included a victory over Kotozakura on Day 2. After a loss on Day 9 to Kotoshōhō, he returned to winning ways on Day 10, defeating Atamifuji by . However, on day 11 he would lose to tournament leader and defending champion Kirishima by . Despite this setback, he recorded four straight victories over the final four days of the tournament, beating surprise contender Fujiryōga on Day 15 to finish with a record, equalling the record of fellow contender, Kirishima. Kirishima had been the outright leader for much of the tournament, however he suffered a surprise loss on Day 14 against Hakunofuji, opening up the race for the title. The victory of Kirishima against Ura on Day 15 ensured a play-off final would be necessary between the two tournament leaders, while eliminating several other from the title race. In stark contrast to their bout on Day 11, Wakatakakage beat his opponent via to claim his second tournament victory, in addition to his seventh career Technique Prize.

After winning the title, hopes that Wakatakakage would solidify his path toward promotion to the rank of were dashed when he announced in early July that he would not be competing for the entire duration of the Nagoya tournament. His absence was due to an injury sustained during practice on 1 July. The injury subsequently worsened to the point that he had to be taken to the emergency room, where he was diagnosed with femoral compartment syndrome, requiring emergency surgery lasting several hours. Wakatakakage was discharged from the hospital on July 24. According to his coach, his professional career was not in jeopardy, and the date of his return has not yet been set. However, Wakatakakage is expected to miss the September tournament, making his relegation to the division highly likely.

Fighting style According to his Japan Sumo Association profile Wakatakakage prefers a (right hand inside, left hand outside) grip on his opponent's . His most common winning are (push out), (force out) and (push out from behind). He is below the average weight for a at and makes use of his speed and agility. Wakatakakage is also known for his effective use of the arm-blocking technique with his right arm, being able to employ it both as a defensive and offensive move.

Personal life Wakatakakage and his wife Sana are parents to three daughters and a son. He credits his family's support with enabling his comeback from injury culminating in a second championship victory.

Career record