A Scholar and a Warrior

That valuable experience, as well as the spiritual lesson, appears to have accompanied Tamura during his difficult road to the title. Until mid-2007, he was best described as a solid fighter in Shooto's 143-pound division but not necessarily championship material. It was a status that appeared to doom him to the ever-unwanted position of gatekeeper.

"Until two years ago, my Shooto results were five wins, five losses and two draws, and I admit that I was a gatekeeper guy, where I was matched up with strong fighters, even though I was a lower ranking fighter," Tamura said. "But I am proud to say that since then, I have defeated them and have turned things around."

Tamura's rise through the rankings last year has the markings of a rousing comeback story. Though he'd defeated the unspectacular Yohei Nanbu (Pictures) in 2003, having lost in 2005 and 2006 to Takeshi Inoue (Pictures) and Tenkei Fujimiya (Pictures), it appeared at the time that Shooting Gym Yokohama's top prospects had Tamura's number.

However, in late 2006 Tamura defeated STG Yokohama's latest rookie champ and then 154-pound prospect "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura (Pictures) in a one-sided affair that saw Tamura dominate Nishiura on the canvas.

Not wasting any time, Tamura next took a unanimous decision victory in a rematch with Fujimiya, which earned him another rematch and a title shot against Inoue three months later. This time Tamura controlled Inoue through three rounds, taking a solid decision and the Shooto 143-pound world title -- a fitting end to his comeback against STG Yokohama's best fighters.

"I have fought with Shooting Gym Yokohama's fighters six times, and they are all great," Tamura said. "As long as I am a fighter, they will always be good rivals for me."

Whether or not there is a rivalry, it was at least expected that Tamura would have a rematch with the dethroned Inoue as soon as he had worked his way back to the top of Shooto's 143-pound world rankings. Inoue went on to win the Pacific Rim 143-pound championship and move into the No. 1 spot just below Tamura in November, but fans were left wondering why Inoue was overlooked as an opponent for Tamura's first title defense.

"Due to a new rule in Shooto, rematches cannot be set up consecutively for a title match anymore," explained Tamura. "And at this point, I don't want to fight ‘Lion.' As time passes, when both of us have grown more and when momentum for this fight increases, I would like to fight him again."

One man Sustain had wanted to challenge Tamura was Antonio Carvalho (Pictures) -- a surprising revelation given that Carvalho had lost a hotly contested bout in Shooto just months earlier. However, a prior commitment to GCM's Cage Force featherweight tournament apparently nixed the Canadian featherweight's participation and set up the showdown with Kadowaki.

Of course there are other challengers and other promotions overseas. The promise of bigger paydays and facing tough tests outside of Japan has spurred many Japanese fighters to pursue opportunities in the United States, but Tamura is apparently content to remain at home.

"If I get an offer, I will think about it, but I will not be blinded by something that is not there," he said. "My number one priority is to defend the championship."

With that, Tamura remains a Shooto fighter. Though Shooto does not pay particularly well -- as evidenced by the sheer number of fighters in Japan who hold jobs outside of fighting -- Tamura feels secure in his position in life.

"I work at a hospital as a physical therapist, providing rehabilitation for injured people and for people who suffered from strokes," he explained. "Work and MMA are both priorities for me. I do not slack off in either one of them. My motto is Monbu Ryoudo -- being a good scholar and a good warrior."

Nicknamed "Tetsujin" or "Ironman," Tamura's moniker expands upon his personal axiom: "It is because I have been doing Shooto from when I was a teenager and because I am able to balance between work and Shooto and because I am tough. These are all of the reasons why I got this nickname, and I like it. I want to continue to be a fighter that can live up to this name."