Among
yokozuna, the great Taiho is considered one of the best. The greatest of the
yokozuna are called
dai-yokozuna [大横綱] (literally "Big
Yokozuna"). There have been only a few
dai-yokozuna among the 72
yokozuna that have ever walked the Earth and they are a once-in-a-generation phenomenon. How great was Taiho? At the time of his promotion, he was the youngest-ever to hold the rank....a mere 21 years old. The
dai-yokozuna Kintanoumi and Takanohana eventually "surpassed" Taiho with the latter attaining
yokozuna when he was only 20 years and 5 months. Taiho won a total of 32 championships, but was eventually surpassed by the
dai-yokozuna Hakuho who has a total of 41 championships...and counting. He holds one of the longest winning streaks of 45 bouts.... he is accompanied on this list by other
dai-yokozuna: Futabayama, Hakuho, and Chiyonofuji. Taiho won 83.4% of his bouts, the highest percentage of any
dai-yokozuna. At the time of his retirement, he held the record of most tournaments competed in as a
yokozuna. He has since been bumped down the list by three other
dai-yokozuna. And maybe as a final testament to his status, he died at the age of 72 years old....older than any
dai-yokozuna that has ever lived. Seven years ago, Sport Kings issued card #248 to honor the great Taiho. A beautiful card all around.
List of Dai-Yokozuna:
Futabayama - 35th Yokozuna (1937-1945)
Taiho - 48th Yokozuna (1961-1971)
Kitanoumi - 55th Yokozuna (1974-1985)
Chiyonofuji - 58th Yokozuna (1981-1991)
Takanohana - 65th Yokozuna (1994-2003)
Asashoryu - 68th Yokozuna (2003-2010)
Hakuho - 69th Yokozuna (2007-current)
