Here’s where it gets insanely lucrative. Sumo wrestlers are not paid just by their stables. The real cash comes from a complex system of prize money called hoshomaru and sponsorship “envelopes” that are literally stuffed with cash. Imagine your boss handing you a fat envelope after a big project—except the envelope is called a happi coat, and the project is slamming a 400-pound man into a straw circle.
Top wrestlers can earn hundreds of thousands of dollars per tournament just from victory bonuses. For example, a yokozuna (the grand champion) who wins a tournament takes home over $100,000 in prize money alone. That’s more than most of us make in a year, and he did it by sweating and grunting for 15 days.
