SMACK! Flesh meets flesh as two colossal wrestlers smash into each other - half a ton of muscle and fat collide. Sumo. More than a sport in Japan, it's a religion. Its history goes back 2000 years, with time-honoured Shinto rituals and ceremonies originating from the ancient martial art called "Tegoi". Crashing into this tradition-bound world is Mongolian "outsider" Asashoryu. He's a rule-breaker, a rebel. And much to the chagrin of the sumo-crazy Japanese, he's their reigning champion. To add insult to injury, the Americans are even beefing up to join the sport. And now, for the first time in nearly 15 years, Japanese Grand Sumo is coming to ground-zero of the outsider invasion. Hawaii - birthplace to Sumo's first foreign-born grand champion, Akebono. Asashoryu. He's not just any Sumo wrestler. He's the "yokozuna" or highest ranked…the Muhammad Ali of Sumo. With permission from Asashoryu to film his inner sanctum, we'll penetrate the hidden culture of this ancient sport. Where men built like mountains devote their lives to just two things: muscling up and chowing down. We'll decode the rigid hierarchy where newbies are hazed on a daily basis - cleaning toilets and cooking the champion's food. We'll capture the champ as he's put through paces in the Sumo "stable" in preparation for the face off in Hawaii. With a line of lower-ranking fighters waiting to defeat him and the Japanese fans waiting to see him disgraced, will Asashoryu fall? Interwoven with Asashoryu's fight build-up, we'll explore a growing group of Americans that are packing on the pounds and balancing the scales with the day job, in their quest to be the Rocky Balboa of Sumo. We'll profile American wrestler Dan Kalbfleisch as he prepares for the next Sumo event. Part of the United Sates Sumo Federation - a U.S. amateur league - he's currently ranked fourth, and hell bent on capturing first. Far from the ancient rings of Japan, US Sumo is a land of spandex, 6-egg breakfasts, and 5:00 AM gym run
