taking the back of the Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist. After returning to the standing position by the referee's order, Tamura captured the back again by reversing a takedown and locked crucifix, which he used to pursue a choke until the end of the time. Tamura was awarded the unanimous decision, being the second Japanese in defeating a Gracie after Kazushi Sakuraba did it with Royler earlier in the year. At the semifinals, Kiyoshi fought Brazilian luta livre exponent Renato Sobral, 40 pounds heavier than the Japanese. The stronger Sobral attacked with knee strikes and took his back in some occasions while Tamura landed leg kicks and looked for an opening. Going to the ground, both attempted several kinds of submissions, including an armbar by Sobral and a figure four toehold by Tamura, but they were unsuccessful. Ended the battle, two judges ruled a draw and a third one (Jon Bluming) ruled in Sobral's favor, thus eliminating Tamura from the tournament. On April 20, 2000, Tamura put in the line his RINGS Openweight Championship (won against Tariel Bitsadze in a professional wrestling match) in a mixed martial arts fight against RINGS Holland fighter Gilbert Yvel. The best wrestler of the two, Tamura was able to take dominant position on the ground multiple times, but the rule against punches to the face on the mat, the referee's quick standups, and Yvel's own defensive grappling acumen impeded him from gaining the advantage. Yvel, the best striker, landed several knees and punches through the match, and towards the end of the second round landed a series of strikes, making the referee stop the match in his favor. Tamura bounced back from his title loss representing RINGS in the Colosseum 2000 event, where he was pitted against Jeremy Horn. The bigger American managed to difficult Tamura's takedowns, but the Japanese gained dominance with striking despite not wearing gloves (which forced him to use only open-handed strikes). At the second round, action slowed down in Tamura's butterfly guard, and although the American passed it at the last minutes and sought to establish a submission, time went out for a decision win for Tamura. In August 2000, Tamura fought as well Pat Miletich, Horn's teammate. Unlike the previous match, Tamura controlled the striking, landing several leg kicks. The contenders exchanged takedowns at both rounds, but Tamura achieved positional control more often, thus winning a majority decision. In October