 Managed by Freddie Blassie, he had two memorable matches with Bob Backlund when Backlund was on the brink of becoming the WWWF Champion.In the first, Kamata threw salt into Backlund's eyes, which set the stage for a televised Texas Death match, aired May 7, 1977.Again Kamata threw salt in Backlund's eyes, so Backlund merely used the referee's shirt to wipe it out.