“I won a Spam and some rice, and that’s all I was in sumo,” said Mr. Willie said in a post. 2016 interview With Sherdog, a YouTube channel dedicated to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
In the same interview, Mr. Willie also discussed why he was billed as Deila Tuli for his UFC bout. “They didn’t want me to come up with such an English name,” he said. “So I called Taylor and pronounced it how we pronounce it in Polynesia, teela, and removed the willy using my middle name, Tuli.”
He said with a smile that he hoped the admission bill would not send the collectors on their way.
For two years, he competed as a sumo wrestler in Japan under the name Takamishu. He won several championships, eventually reaching the Makushita division, the third highest in the league, and becoming the first wrestler born outside of Japan to win the title.
Citing knee injuries, he retired from the sport in 1989 and turned to mixed martial arts. Mr. Willy Struggled at first Ultimate Fighting Championship, 1993, where he lost by technical knockout.
He first appeared on television in a 1982 episode of “Magnum, PI” and has made several guest appearances on shows including “Marker” and “North Shore.”
His survivors include his wife, Halona Wiley, and two children.
A 2014 interview With Hawaii News Now, Mr. Willie discussed his appreciation for his role on “Hawaii Five-0” and what the experience meant to him.
“It’s the best job in the world — you can play in Hollywood but be here in Hawaii,” he said. “House.”
