David Lee "Tank"Abbott (born April 26, 1965) is an American retiredmixed martial arts fighter,professional wrestler, and author. He currently hosts his own podcast series titled "The Proving Ground with Tank Abbott."^[2] Abbott is perhaps best known for being an icon in the early stages of mixed martial arts and theUFC, but has also competed in thePRIDE Fighting Championships,Strikeforce,EliteXC, andCage Rage, challenging for theUFC heavyweight Championship once in 1997. His fighting style, which he developed brawling in the bars and streets ofHuntington Beach, California, was described by his future manager Dave Thomas as "Pit Fighting". He also authored a novel titledBar Brawler.

Abbott was born and raised inHuntington Beach, California. Abbott began practicingamateur wrestling when he was nine years old, and continued through high school where he also played football. He then continuedwrestling in college atCypress College, where he was aCCCAAAll-American.^[3] He then attendedCalifornia State University, Long Beach where he graduated with a degree in history.^[4] During this time he was trained inboxing by Noe Cruz who also trained world champion boxerCarlos Palomino at the Westminster Boxing Gym.

However, Abbott was mainly known for the manystreet fights that he had engaged in, rarely losing. While working at a liquor store to help pay for his college tuition, Abbott encountered a "smart-ass" customer. Abbott beat the customer severely, and the customer, who turned out to be the son of a detective, pressed charges for assault. Abbott was sentenced to six months in jail, the judge saying "Mr. Abbott, you are a maniac. I'm surprised you haven't killed somebody."^[5]

Abbott started his career in mixed martial arts when he applied to theUFC for its eventUFC 6 inCasper, Wyoming.^[6] He was introduced to the UFC management by his future manager Dave Thomas, who credited him as a veteran street fighter who lifted 600lbs inbench press and had knocked out four men in his last brawl. Upon this description, the management compared him to the character "Tank Murdock" from the 1978Clint Eastwood movieEvery Which Way But Loose, which encouraged them to give David the nickname of "Tank Abbott" and bill him as a "pit fighter" with over 200 street fights.^[7]

According to Abbott, this wasn't the first time he applied to the UFC. Inspired byKimo Leopoldo's participation inUFC 3, he had tried to enter the promotion as soon as September 1994, but the UFC management only allowed him to fight fromUFC 6 onwards, afterRoyce Gracie had ceased fighting in UFC.^[8]Art Davie would later confirm theGracie family used its input in the management to limit fighters withamateur wrestling backgrounds, like Abbott himself, from entering the first events.^[9]

Abbott made his debut at UFC 6 in July 1995 as scheduled. He actively cultivated the tough character he had been given, firstly by giving a rude interview in which he deridedmartial arts and then by knocking out the HawaiianKapu Kuialua fighter John Matua, who weighed 400 lb, in the first 18 seconds of his opening fight.^[10] Abbott further solidified his reputation by mocking Matua's convulsions after the KO while the ring doctors rushed the cage.^[11] Abbott advanced to the next round and was pitted against a similarly heavier adversary,Paul Varelans. After returning to the cage in midst of strong cheers, Abbott knocked out Varelans byground and pound andknee strikes, all while mockingly smiling at his opponent laying beneath him. His post-fight interview also contained the notorious "sexually aroused" comment.^[12]

At the finals of the tournament, Abbott faced the RussianOleg Taktarov in a fight that the announcers touted as a "skill vs. power" bout.^[13] Just as described, the match saw Abbott blocking Taktarov's artful grappling attempts and damaging him in turn with hard punches anduppercuts. With both men becoming increasingly tired due to their previous fights and the high altitude of the location, the action moved to Taktarov'sguard, where Abbott avoided multiple submission attempts and punished him further. The fight was restarted standing, which would give Abbott the advantage, but by this point he was exhausted enough for a slightly better conditioned Taktarov to pull him down and lock arear naked choke, thus winning the fight at the 17 minutes mark.^[14][1] Both men collapsed in exhaustion after the fight, and Taktarov had to be carried out of the cage.^[14] Although Abbott had failed at winning the tournament, refereeJohn McCarthy considered him the next big star of the promotion afterRoyce Gracie.^[6]

Abbott returned the same year as part of theUltimate Ultimate event, which saw runners-up and champions from the previous UFC tournaments gathered together. He first foughtUFC 3 winner andninjutsu practitionerSteve Jennum, whom he outweighed by 80lbs. Although Jennum proved capable of avoiding Tank's strikes, Abbott submitted him with an improvisedneck crank. However, his next opponent wasDan Severn,UFC 5 champion and a much more decoratedfreestyle wrestler than Abbott. Tank initiated the action strong, but he was overpowered and eventually kept on all fours while Severn rained elbows and knees on him. After fifteen minutes of absorbing strikes, Abbott managed to free himself, but Severn kept dominance until the end of the fight, which gained him the judges's unanimous decision.^[15]

Abbott's next UFC appearance would be in September 1996, atUFC 11. Accompanied by a youngTito Ortiz and dragging a knee injury without its adequate surgery,^[8] Tank entered the cage to fight professionalboxerSam Adkins, an affair he ended quickly in the first round by forearm choke against the cage wall. This tournament venture was cut short, however, byScott Ferrozzo, a contender fromDon Frye's entourage who was billed as a "pitfighter" like Abbott himself. Ferrozzo was also fresher, as he came to replaceJerry Bohlander, who was injured in the previous round.^[8] The two fought evenly in theclinch for minutes, with Tank coming closer to a stoppage by opening a cut in Scott's face, but Ferrozzo eventually gained the advantage with knees to the body and a heavy uppercut. At overtime, now with the crowd cheering for Ferrozzo, the latter controlled the action with knees and punches to win the judges decision.^[16] According to Abbott, Ferrozzo had to go to the hospital after the match, while he did not.^[8]

As the first time, Abbott was invited back to the next edition ofUltimate Ultimate at December 1996. His first opponent was Cal Worsham, a formerU.S Marine whom Tank disposed of swiftly via wrestling and punching. A short brawl happened after the bout when Worsham suddenly tried to attack Abbott, as Abbott had kept hitting him while the referee stopped the bout. Abbott's next fight met an even more brutal ending, as his opponent,Steve Nelmark, fell against the fence upon being knocked out and got his neck folded in a dangerous position. Despite the incident, Tank remained calm, and he was later quoted as "If that man weren't in the octagon, I would have kicked him about five times in the face. And I have, and I've done it many times."^[17]

At the end of the event, Abbott met his final adversary inDon Frye himself, with the winner of the fight gaining a title shot against Dan Severn. Despite Frye being a superior wrestler like Severn, Abbott caught him with a hard leftjab and dominated the match onwards with wild strikes, appearing as if he could win by KO at any moment. However, by capitalizing on a punch in which Abbott overestimated and slipped down, Frye managed to capture his back and lock arear naked choke, winning the fight.^[18] Abbott claimed he made a mistake by letting Frye got his hooks in, as he would have been planning to use them to snap his ankles.^[8] For his part, Frye praised Abbott, going to say the match featured the hardest hits he received in his entire career.^[19]

Ultimate Ultimate 1996 was the last UFC tournament in which Abbott partook, as around the same time the UFC began switching away from the tournament format. Abbott's fortunes declined with the arrival of better trainedmixed martial artists, who posed a much bigger challenge than the previously inconsistent opponents from the earlier UFC events.^[10] His debut in this new format was atUFC 13 in May 1997 againstVitor Belfort, whose fast-hitting boxing style had been criticized by Abbott while doing special commentary atUFC 12. Abbott scored an early takedown, but moved back to trade hits with Belfort standing; this proved to be an error, as Vitor immediately overwhelmed him with punches and dropped him to all fours. The Brazilian kept attacking Abbott until the match was stopped.^[20]

In October 1997, Abbott was contacted to fight in the JapanesePride 1 event againstKimo Leopoldo, but he was unable to do so, having to be replaced byDan Severn.^[21] Ironically, shortly after Abbott replaced Severn himself with four days notice in a title match for theUFC Heavyweight Championship againstMaurice Smith atUFC 15, a circumstance he described as "literally falling off the barstool into the octagon."^[17] Trying hard to press the action, Tank shockingly dropped the kickboxing champion with an early shot, but Smith controlled him through his defensive guard and aKimura attempt. The action was restarted standing, but by this point Abbott was exhausted and offered little resistance to Smith'slow kicks, prompting the referee to stop the match.^[22]

Abbott bounced back from his losses with his performance at the first UFC show on Japanese soil,UFC Japan, where he was pitted againstshoot-style wrestlerYoji Anjo. The American dominated the match with takedowns and right hands, avoiding submission attempts with short bursts of ground and pound every time they hit the mat, which eventually gained him the unanimous decision win. The event featured a tournament format, but Abbott forfeited due to a broken hand acquired while punching Anjo.^[23]

Back in the United States, atUFC 17, he followed with an impressive victory over renownedluta livre fighter Hugo Duarte, who was famous for hisvale tudo fights againstRickson Gracie. Duarte had previously criticized Tank and his fighting skills, and he came close to proving himself right by almost locking a rear naked choke and anarmbar in the first few seconds. However, Abbott blocked them successfully and captured Duarte's back, landing heavy punches from there, completely knocking the Brazilian out.^[24] At the same event, Tank was suspended by UFC for verbally fighting withAllan Goes, which according to Abbott happened because he had cheered for the opponent of Goes's teammateWallid Ismail atUFC 12.^[8]

In October 1998, Tank visited Brazil next as part ofUFC Brazil, facing another luta livre fighter,Pedro Rizzo, who came on a 5–0 record. The Brazilian proved to be a dangerous opponent when he stopped Abbott's early barrage with several hard rights, but Abbott answered with acounterpunch that opened a cut near Pedro's eye. Rizzo then adopted a more evasive approach, avoiding Tank's overhands and grinding him with low kicks and his own counterpunches, which Tank counteracted himself again by taking Rizzo down and besieging his guard. However, the match had drained Tank's energy, and Rizzo was able of dominating him with strikes from the bottom and more kick and punch combinations while standing. At the end, the Brazilian knocked Abbott out for the win, becoming the first opponent to do so.^[25] Abbott praised Rizzo after the match, although he claimed to believe the cage canvas had been greased to hinder the footing of wrestlers like him.^[17]

After his match with Rizzo, Abbott retired from MMA.

After his stint in professional wrestling, Abbott returned to mixed martial arts in 2003.

Abbott's return fight was on February 23, 2003, atUFC 41, againstFrank Mir. He lost his return bout via toe hold submission less than a minute into round one.^[26]

His next fight would be against fellow UFC veteran,Kimo Leopoldo atUFC 43. Abbott was taken down seconds into the fight, and was submitted viaarm-triangle choke.^[27]

Abbott then facedWesley "Cabbage" Correira atUFC 45. After a back-and-forth brawl, Abbott lost the fight via TKO after the ringside doctor determined he was unable to continue after suffering a cut over his right eye. Abbott and his corner got into a minor brawl with Correira's team after being angered by Correira's taunting when being declared the winner.^[28] Abbott was released from the UFC afterwards.

Abbott later had a rematch with Correira, at Rumble on the Rock 7.^[29] Abbott secured his first victory since his return, knocking Correira out with a hard right hand in the first round, becoming the first person to knock Correira out.^[30]

Abbott's next fight was on August 28, 2005, against highly decoratedjudokaHidehiko Yoshida atPride Final Conflict 2005. Abbott lost via single wing choke submission in the first round.^[31]

Abbott's next fight was againstPaul Buentello, headliningStrikeforce: Tank vs. Buentello on October 7, 2006. Abbott lost via knockout 43 seconds into the fight.^[32]

Abbott then foughtGary Turner at the main event ofCage Rage 21 on April 21, 2007. Abbott lost via TKO after a barrage of punches from Turner early in the first round.^[33]

Abbott's last high-profile fight was againstKimbo Slice in the main event ofEliteXC: Street Certified.^[34] Abbott was knocked down early, but the fight was restarted after Kimbo landed shots to the back of Abbott's head. Abbott would lose the bout via knockout seconds later.^[35]

His next fight was against formerPRIDE veteran Mike Bourke on February 13, 2009, at theSelland Arena inFresno, California, as part of the Valentine's Eve Massacre Event. Abbott knocked out Bourke with a punch that inadvertently landed to the back of Bourke's head, securing a victory for the first time in nearly four years.^[36]

In 2011 Abbott participated in an unsanctioned "backyard brawl" againstScott Ferrozzo, whom he previously fought atUFC 11.^[37] Abbott knocked down Ferrozzo early with a punch, before taking his back and holding dominant position for over 15 minutes, occasionally landing punches. He was declared the winner via unanimous decision.^[38] Bouncing back with a win following his loss to Slice, AtKing of the Cage: Fighting Legends, on April 13, 2013,^[39] Abbott fought for the Superfight Champion ship. He was defeated by longtime veteran Ruben "Warpath" Villareal by way of a 2nd-round TKO.

Abbott was expected to face fellow MMA veteranDan Severn for the upstart UR Fight promotion on March 20, 2016.^[40] The contest was cancelled the day prior to the event as Abbott could not pass the required medical tests per the Arizona Fight Commission.^[41]

Abbott worked as a professional wrestler withWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW);^[42] initially he was brought in as an opponent forGoldberg,^[42] on the understanding he was a "legitimate" fighter—who could render any opponent unconscious with a single punch, which became his wrestling finisher, 'The Phantom Right'—and could boost Goldberg's reputation. Thisfeud, however, never developed.

Mere days prior to theSouled Out pay-per-view in 2000, WCW head writerVince Russo was given the responsibility of booking a match to crown a newWCW World Heavyweight Champion. This came at the news that both WCW ChampionBret Hart andJeff Jarrett, two of the company's top performers, were injured and could not participate at the event. To the dismay of company officials, Russo suggested having the mid-card Abbott win the Championship, but only to hold it briefly. The scenario would not take place, and Russo was consequently released from WCW while other bookers composed the Souled Out card, choosingChris Benoit to win the belt. Abbott instead facedJerry Flynn, a legitimateblack belt intaekwondo and defeated him on thepay-per-view.

At theSuperbrawl pay-per-view in 2000, Abbott was taking on Big Al in a leather jacket on a pole match. During the match, Abbott pulled a knife on Big Al, holding it to Al's throat and shouting "I could fucking kill you" The cameras cut away as Mark Madden shouted "I think he is trying to skin him!" Abbott would win the match, but his push virtually ended at point.

He was featured in segments with theboy band parodystable,3 Count as their "biggest fan".^[43] He began feuding with the stable after they would not let him join the band; the feud ended when Abbott was released from WCW.^[43]

After being released from WCW, Abbott made an appearance forNWA Wildside on December 14, 2000, teaming withKevin Northcutt losing toBob Sapp and Stone Mountain in Cornelia, Georgia.^{[citation needed]}

Abbott returned to the ring one last time on August 15, 2008, forInoki Genome Federation in Tokyo, Japan losing to UFC fighterJosh Barnett.^{[citation needed]}

In 1997, Abbott appeared as himself in the TV showFriends,^{[citation needed]} defeatingJon Favreau's character, the billionaire Pete Becker, who was datingMonica at the time. He appeared as himself in the 2013 web seriesBlack Dynamite Teaches a Hard Way!, where aBlack Dynamite mannequin teaches him what to do in case of an earthquake.^[44]

In December 2018, Abbott revealed that due to his lifestyle his liver had to be replaced. Despite suffering several strokes during the surgery, Abbott survived and the transplant operation was successful.^[45]

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • UFC 6 Tournament Runner-Up
  • Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Tournament Runner-Up
  • Ultimate Ultimate 1995 Semifinalist
  • UFC 11 Tournament Semifinalist
  • UFC Japan Heavyweight Tournament Semifinalist
  • Viewer's Choice Award^[46]
  • UFC Encyclopedia Awards
    • Fight of the Night (Three times) vs.Oleg Taktarov,Scott Ferrozzo andDon Frye^[47][48][49]
    • Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. John Matua^[47]
  • 1xUFC Heavyweight Championship Contender
  • Record for most tournaments competed in, inUFC history (Five)

• CCCAA All-American

^[51]

• Boone, Matt (February 13, 2003)."Tank Abbott Speaks On His WCW Career, UFC Return, & More". WrestleZone Radio. Archived fromthe original on September 29, 2007.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toTank Abbott.

• Professional MMA record for Tank Abbott fromSherdog
• Professional wrestling record for Tank Abbott from The Internet Wrestling Database
• Tank Abbott atIMDb
• Tank Abbott atUFC

• 1965 births
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• California State University, Long Beach alumni
• Professional wrestlers from California
• Professional wrestlers who competed in MMA
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