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.
He reached the peak of his career as sekiwake in March 2001 and held it for two events. In January 2003, he narrowly missed out on first place after an impressive turnaround from losing four consecutive matches to win eleven straight ones, finishing three spots behind Asashōryū. He also lost to Kaiō in September 2004 with a score of 11–4.