He recorded only one make-koshi or losing score on his way to elite sekitori status, which he achieved two years after his debut, upon promotion to the jūryō division in January 2007.

He won the jūryō championship in his debut tournament with a 10–5 record, and reached the top makuuchi division for the first time in July 2007.

He was one of seven wrestlers who NHK commentator Shuhei Nagao (the former Mainoumi) in 2008 called the "Seven Samurai" and identified as "holding the key" to a Japanese resurgence in sumo, which was dominated by foreigners in the top ranks.

His 5–10 score in the March 2008 tournament, after losing to his first seven opponents, sent him to the bottom of makuuchi and placed him in danger of demotion from the top division altogether.

In November 2008 he reached his highest rank to date of maegashira 2, but he had to sit out the tournament due to a detached retina in his left eye.

In the January 2010 tournament he broke a run of three consecutive make-koshi that had seen him slip to maegashira 16 by finishing joint runner-up (alongside Hakuho and Baruto) on 12–3, and he was awarded the Fighting Spirit prize for the third time.

[3] He largely alternated winning and losing tournaments during the period in which he was a makuuchi regular, and had one of the longest tenures among active members of the top division without ever making san'yaku.

He won promotion back to makuuchi after the March 2017 tournament where he took his third jūryō championship after winning a three-way playoff when he, Osunaarashi and Asanoyama all finished on 10–5.

[6] One of the heaviest men in the top division at 185 kg (408 lb), Toyohibiki was a wrestler with great power but he also had suspect footwork.

Sanshō key: F=Fighting spirit; O=Outstanding performance; T=Technique     Also shown: ★=Kinboshi; P=Playoff(s) Divisions: Makuuchi — Jūryō — Makushita — Sandanme — Jonidan — Jonokuchi