He reached his highest rank of sekiwake in March 2001 and held it for two tournaments. He was runner-up in the January 2003 tournament, when he lost his first four matches but then rallied to win eleven in a row to finish three wins behind Asashōryū. He was also runner-up to Kaiō in September 2004, where he also scored 11–4.
In the world of sumo wrestling, he reached his highest rank as sekiwake in March 2001 and held it for two tournaments. However, he narrowly missed out on first place in January 2003 after an incredible comeback from losing four straight matches to win eleven consecutive ones, finishing three spots behind Asashōryū. He also came up short against Kaiō in September 2004 with a score of 11–4.