手上投

Uwatenage is the most commonly used throwing-technique in sumo. "Uwate" is an outside grip (the attacker's arm goes on the outside of the opponent's arm), usually in mawashi. "Nage" is the throw. The throw will be initiated while the rikishi are - more or less - facing each other. The winner will have a good outside grip on his opponent, and will, while turning away from him, throw him to the ground.

Uwatenage is seen rather often, but it can be hard to spot if the grip is an outside or an inside one. The names of the different ways to throw the opponent vary with the grip: outside or inside, holding mawashi or not, and so on.

It's an interesting fact, that some of the very large sumotori (wrestlers) - e.g. Akebono, Musashimaru, and Takanohana - very rarely used throws. Push- and thrust-out techniques were frequent, though. Sekiwake Kotooshu, tall and almost slim - and a very accomplished yotsu-zumo rikishi - used throws in 12 of his latest 23 wins. Of these, 7 were uwatenage. One of the greatest yokozuna in modern history, Chiyonofuji, was known for his throws and uwatenage was one of his favourites.

If the winner pulls the loser forward in the throw, it is uwatedashinage ("dashi-nage" is a throw where "no main bodyparts are touching each other").

Of 1729 bouts in the Makuuchi division, 120 (6.94%) were won by uwatenage.¹

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1. Statistics from the March, May, July, September, and November Basho, 2005, and the January Basho, 2006.