At just 170 cm (5 ft 7 in) tall he was accepted by passing the secondary exam for promising recruits who do not meet the primary height requirement.

He won the makushita division championship or yūshō in September 2011 with a perfect 7–0 record and this performance saw him promoted to the elite sekitori ranks for the first time in the November 2011 tournament.

[1] In 2017 Asahishō narrowly failed to get a majority of wins against losses in three straight tournaments, and his third 7–8 in May 2017 cost him his place in jūryō, as only he and Takagenji had demotable records and Abi and Iwasaki were both deserving of promotion.

[7] During this tournament he was reprimanded on Day 2 by the ringside judge Minato Oyakata, the former Minatofuji, for giving Takagenji an extra shove after the match was already over.

[8] Asahishō apologized for the "educational slap" afterwards, explaining that he was annoyed at Takagenji (then just 20 and in his first jūryō tournament) for disrespecting his opponents by not bowing properly.

Asahishō had a habit of throwing unusually large amounts of purifying salt into the ring before his bouts, previously the trademark of Mitoizumi and Kitazakura.

Asahishō is known for his sense of humour and love of practical jokes, which has made him a regular on the chat show circuit despite his relative lack of success in the top division.

[3] In December 2014 he appeared in a commercial with three other wrestlers as part of a heavy metal band, promoting Docomo's Moveband activity tracker.