To Beranes,

The reason why Tagami was chosen for the Urquidez bout was because there was no fighter in Japan who wanted to mess with the international rule. It was pretty much the same reason Kyoko Kamikaze was chosen for Kathy Long. Tagami was a student of Ishii in his seidokaikan system, and had fought as a muay thai fighter for a couple of years. I think Ishii wanted to seek some connection in the Nevada Athletic Commission for a possible promotion in near future for his K-1 organization. In my opinion, they were just too naive to understand what it takes to fight in the Chuck Norris friendly atmosphere. The referee for the bout, Cecile Peoples, had been a long time friend of Urquidez's since the childhood ( both had the same karate instructor). When I heard the rediculous decision for the first time, I was not surprised at all since I had known Urquidez exaggerated his record and exploits in the Far East. But I was impressed with his performance despite the fact he was over 40.

The Urquidez/Onuki bout was initially ruled as TKO loss for Urquidez. But, the Japanese officials did not know about the throws were legal in full-contact karate (only in those days), and the Urquidez's corner did not know the throws were illegal in Japan. So, in the end, the fight was officially ruled as a no-contest. But if you look at Benny's book, this one was listed as a victory for him.

Don Nakaya Nielsen was a former stable figher of Benny Urquidez's Jet Center. In the US, he was KOed by Brad Hefton and Jerry Rhome. He first gained fame by fighting against some pro-wrestlers in the so-called mixed matches(I mean, they were pre-determined). During his training days in Japan, he was so fascinated with the art of muay thai, along with the financial complication he had with the management department of the Jet Center, he was convinced to fight for the AJKF. He was very popular among those who believed pro-wrestling shows were real. As a person, outside the ring, he was a nice person and had a pleasing personality. Unlike Don Wilson , he seemed to embrace his Japanese background. There was a big hype of his chance of beating Rob Kaman in the ring. Hard-core kickboxing fans knew it was rediculous. He even flew to Thailand and trained with Dieselnoi and Chummuackpetch Harpalang. But in the real ring, he did not shine at all. He got beat by Kevin Rosier, Kaman, Satake. He was a mere beginner in the sport of muay thai.