 He came through with nine wins against six losses in his top division debut, and a 10–5 mark in January 2008 saw him move into the upper "maegashira" ranks for the March 2008 tournament.Fighting all the top-ranked wrestlers for the first time, he defeated "ozeki" Kaiō and secured his "kachi-koshi", or winning record, on the final day.During the May 2008 tournament he was reprimanded by the Japan Sumo Association after he smashed a door in the dressing room following a defeat to Ama by the technique of "utchari."