Although Ryūhō won his first two top division matches (against Kasugao and Kakuryū) he could manage only two more wins in September 2006 (against Hakurozan and Toyonoshima) and was demoted back to the second division after only one tournament. By July 2007 he had fallen to "jūryō" 11 and a loss to Ichihara on Day 12 left him with only three wins against nine losses. Demotion to "makushita" seemed certain, yet he managed to win his last three bouts, and his 6-9 score was just enough to preserve his "sekitori" status. However, in the next tournament in September 2007 he could only manage 5-10 at "jūryō" 14 and was demoted from "jūryō", replaced by Ichihara.