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Tank Abbott Bio
David Lee Abbott (born April 26, 1965) is an American mixed martial arts fighter and former professional wrestler. He has described his fighting style, which he developed brawling in the bars and streets of Huntington Beach, California, as "street fighting". Abbott was the first fighter to regularly wear what would be known as traditional MMA gloves in the UFC.
Mixed martial arts career (1995–1998)
Abbott was a frequent participant in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Abbott made his mixed martial arts debut in 1995 at UFC 6 Clash of the Titans in Casper, Wyoming. In his opening fight, he knocked out John Matua, who weighed 400lb, in 18 seconds. Later that night he fought Oleg Taktarov for over 17 minutes before succumbing to a rear naked choke.Both men collapsed in exhaustion after the fight, and Taktarov had to be carried out of the cage. In his first 4 UFC tournament appearances, Abbott advanced at least 1 round in all of them. Around the same time the UFC began switching away from the tournament format, his fortunes declined, as he won only 2 of 5 bouts in '97-'98 before retiring from MMA.
Acting career
In 1997, Abbott appeared as a UFC fighter in the TV show Friends, defeating Jon Favreau's character, the billionaire Pete Becker, who was dating Monica at the time.
Professional wrestling career (1999–2001)
Abbott worked as a professional wrestler with World Championship Wrestling (WCW); initially he was brought in as an opponent for Goldberg, 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. This feud, however, never developed.
Mere days prior to the Souled Out pay-per-view in 2000, WCW head writer Vince Russo was given the responsibility of booking a match to crown a new WCW World Heavyweight Champion. This came at the news that both WCW Champion Bret Hart and Jeff 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 albeit 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. Abbott instead faced Jerry Flynn, a legitimate black belt in taekwondo and defeated him at the pay-per-view.
He was then featured in segments with the boy band parody stable, 3 Count as their "biggest fan". He began feuding with the stable after they would not let him join the band; the feud ended when Abbott was released from WCW.
Mixed martial arts career (2003 - present)
Abbott waged an unsuccessful UFC comeback in the mid 2000's, losing fights to Frank Mir, Kimo Leopoldo and Wesley "Cabbage" Correira. He later defeated Cabbage by K.O. in a rematch. Abbott would lose several more matches in regional shows.
In February 2008, he had a first round knockout loss to Kimbo Slice at Elite XC's Street Certified event.
His next fight against Mike Bourke on February 13, 2009 at The Selland Arena in Fresno, California—was a part of the Valentine's Eve Massacre Event. Abbott knocked out Bourke in the first round and secured a victory for the first time in nearly four years.
Nickname
Abbott claims his nickname of “Tank” was given to him by UFC officials after the character of “Tank Murdock“ from the 1978 Clint Eastwood movie Every Which Way but Loose.
Championships and accomplishments
Mixed martial arts
- Ultimate Fighting Championship
- UFC 6 Tournament Runner-Up
- Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Tournament Runner-Up
- Ultimate Ultimate 1995 Semifinalist
- Viewer's Choice Award
Amateur wrestling
- NJCAA All American
Mixed martial arts record
Further reading
- Boone, Matt (February 13, 2003). "Tank Abbott Speaks On His WCW Career, UFC Return, & More". WrestleZone Radio. http://www.lordsofpain.net/news/2003/articles/1045115235.php.
External links
- Professional MMA record for Tank Abbott from Sherdog
- Professional wrestling record for Tank Abbott from The Internet Wrestling Database
- Tank Abbott at the Internet Movie Database
MMA Shirts
