Why ranks have numbers, sides, and gaps
Banzuke (the ranked list) is built every two months from the previous tournament's results. Each rank has an East and a West slot; East is slightly more prestigious. The number after the rank ("Maegashira 3") is just a position - it's filled bottom-up depending on how many wrestlers are eligible. There are always exactly 42 spots in Makuuchi.
For each rank, two wrestlers are placed in parallel - East on the left, West on the right. East gets the better dressing room and is listed first on the official banzuke poster. There is no functional difference in scheduling.
"Yokozuna 1" simply means the first yokozuna slot. If there are three yokozuna, you'd see Yokozuna 1 East, Yokozuna 1 West, and Yokozuna 2 East. With 2 yokozuna right now, both sit at "Yokozuna 1" - one East, one West.
Yokozuna, Ozeki, Sekiwake, and Komusubi together are sanyaku. After the titled spots are placed, the remaining slots in Makuuchi get numbered Maegashira 1 through ~17, East and West. This basho: 32 Maegashira filling out the division.
Kachi-koshi (8+ wins out of 15) means you keep your rank or get promoted. Make-koshi (8+ losses) means you drop. The bigger the win or loss margin, the bigger the rank movement next basho.
- Cannot be demoted. Once promoted, the only way out is retirement.
- Promotion requires the Yokozuna Council's blessing - typically two consecutive yusho (or equivalent dominance) at Ozeki.
- If a yokozuna has a poor basho, the expectation is voluntary withdrawal or retirement, not demotion.
- Promotion: roughly 33 wins across three consecutive bashos at sanyaku - usually with at least one strong performance at Sekiwake.
- Demotion: a kadoban system. One losing basho puts you on probation; a second consecutive losing basho drops you to Sekiwake.
- An ex-ozeki demoted to Sekiwake can re-promote with 10 wins in their first basho back - a mercy rule.
- Promotion: typically kachi-koshi at Maegashira 1-2 earns the next open Komusubi slot.
- Demotion: make-koshi here drops you to upper Maegashira immediately.
- These two ranks are the toughest to hold - you fight every yokozuna and ozeki in the first week.
- The numbered tier. Numbers shift every basho based on the win-loss margin: +1 rank for each win above 8, roughly.
- Bottom-of-Makuuchi make-koshi may drop you to Juryo (the second division) - a meaningful pay cut.
- Top-of-Makuuchi (M1-M2) wrestlers face the same brutal sanyaku-week schedule as Komusubi.