 This not only saw him win his third Fighting Spirit Prize, but also guaranteed him promotion to the "san'yaku" ranks for the first time, as all the "maegashira" above him on the "banzuke" had losing scores.His promotion to "komusubi" in the May 2014 tournament ended his record as the active wrestler with the longest career in "makuuchi" without ever making a "san'yaku" appearance (47 tournaments).He managed a 6–9 at this rank, and though this would lead to a demotion, it is considered relatively strong showing for a wrestler debuting at this challenging rank.