番付  Ranks & Promotion

Every wrestler in the sport appears on one sheet of paper, in order, and that order is rebuilt after every tournament. Once you can read it, an ordinary-looking bout between two men you have never heard of stops being ordinary.

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1. The Banzuke Explained: Sumo's Ranking Sheet Six divisions, one line that changes a life, and why the sheet is written by hand.
2. The Six Divisions of Sumo, Explained Six names, and the one gap between them that is worth more than the rest.
3. Yokozuna: The Rank You Cannot Be Demoted From Every other rank moves both ways. This one has no way down but retirement.
4. Ozeki and the Kadoban Rule: Sumo's Safety Net The one rank that gives you a tournament to fix a bad fortnight.
5. Sekitori: The Line That Changes a Life Five things change at once, and they change on the same day.
6. Sanyaku: The Three Titled Ranks Names instead of numbers, and the rank most careers are aiming at.
7. How a Wrestler Gets Promoted No published formula. A decision, and a vocabulary worth learning.
8. Reading a Real Banzuke, Column by Column Three facts under every name, and one numbering quirk.