Professional sumo divisions

Professional sumo is divided into 6 ranked divisions. Wrestlers are promoted and demoted within and between these divisions based on the merit of their win/loss records in official tournaments. For more information see kachi-koshi and make-koshi. Wrestlers are also ranked within each division. The higher a wrestler's rank within a division is, the stronger the general level of opponents he will have to face becomes. According to tradition, each rank is further subdivided into East and West, with East being slightly more prestigious, and ranked slightly higher than its West counterpart. The divisions, ranked in order of hierarchy from highest to lowest, are as follows:

Makuuchi

Makuuchi (幕内), or makunouchi (幕の内), is the top division. It is fixed at 42 wrestlers who are ranked according to their ability, as defined by their performance in previous tournaments. At the top of the division are the "titleholders", or "champions" called the san'yaku comprising yokozuna, ōzeki, sekiwake and komusubi. There are typically 8-12 wrestlers in these ranks with the remainder, called maegashira, ranked in numerical order from 1 downwards. This is the only division that is featured on standard NHK's live coverage of sumo tournaments and is broadcast bilingually. The latter part of the lower divisions is shown on satellite coverage.