How is David Tank Abbot remembered

[11bravo1789]

For those of us over 30 years old, who remember when Tank was wrecking guys left & right - though he lost to Vitor / Frye/ Mir and others. How do you remember him - Legend? Pioneer? Alchoholic beer brawler?
For me, he was a major star in his prime. When he walked out, you knew he was KO'ing somebody - or going down in the process. A regular guy who could throw bombs. Sad to see him broke and fighting in a back yard. What say you?

 

[savemgs]

Pioneer.

 

[Blanqa Blanqua]

Legend.

 

[TCE]

Spoiler

 

[noizer]

certainly a pioneer and one of the most dangerous fighters of that time.

i personally wouldnt call him a legend but he is verry underrated on these boards and deserves more respect for the early part of his career.

 

[Darwinambrosius]

I remember him fondly. Definitely a pioneer.

 

[TheBulletwithWings]

Fat guy that rolls outta the bar into the cage and hits hard as fuck.

 

[Kryptt]

Legend? Pioneer? Alchoholic beer brawler?

Pretty much.

 

[NHB7]

I see him as a pioneer, but his contribution was important. While he was a bit more trained then people let on, he was for all intents and purposes a bar room brawler. Based on Kung Fu movies, he shouldn't have won a single fight. But he was winning and in more brutal fashion than most. As an early fan, it made me question TMAs. But as people began to extensively cross train, the Tank Abbotts became irrelevant, but a nonetheless interesting footnote.

He is MMAs Two Ton Tony Galento.

 

[Robert Perry]

The Tank! Now this brings back memories. I remember him as the kind of guy who if you smart you never get to be on the receiving end of one of those rocket launcher left hands!

a Pioneer.

 

[Kryptt]

He is a Legend based on his legacy and reputation - his name is well known amongst the MMA community for generations.

 

[aashmore]

He was a pioneer. Fought back in the day when street fighting tough guys could win in the UFC. Without brawlers like him the sport might not have gained as much popularity. We think of him now as a joke but when you watch his fights people in the crowd had signs that said "TANK"

He helped the sport grow

 

[NHB7]

For the record, I think Prime Tank would have KOd Kimbo in less than a round.

 

[Tony_Clifton]

First UFC fight I ever watched was Tank vs Matua. I'm a sucker for nostalgia in my old age.
Definitely a pioneer.

 

[11bravo1789]

Agree. Any fan who cant respect Tank needs to piss off. He was not a "A level Athlete". Just a guy who could take your damb head off. He was so close to taking out Frye - but the fact that Frye is the toughest SOB on Planet Earth prevented it, and he choked out Tank. Helluva fight though.

certainly a pioneer and one of the most dangerous fighters of that time.

i personally wouldnt call him a legend but he is verry underrated on these boards and deserves more respect for the early part of his career.

Man

 

[Haj01]

I'm a 90's kid. I remember him from WCW, when he kept coming out to Goldberg's theme. Everyone thought it would be Goldberg but it was tank.

 

[whougonnacall]

Fat guy that rolls outta the bar into the cage and hits hard as fuck.

The funny thing is that was largely an image
The guy wrestled in school,boxed most of his life,lifted serious weights and ran marathons but acted like he just rolled off a barstool and went to war

His contribution to mma is underrated
He brought tito in who in turn brought chuck into mma plus his own popularity helped boost the fledling ufc

 

[BNC]

Beer guzzling pioneer

 

[Steve-French]

My first favorite fighter. I never really liked Royce, because I found grappling boring back then. I wanted to like Shamrock, but he would put on some snoozers. Tank on the other hand was awesome. He would go in there looking to fuck people up. I also found his bad attitude entertaining as a teenager.

Out of the guys that I could first remember by name. Oleg, Shamrock, Severn, Gracie, Varlens, Hackney, and Tank. Tank was my favorite. Even though he wasn't as grizzled as he is now Frye was awesome too when he hit the scene.

 

[Dead Kennedy]

The first thing I think of when I think of Tank, is his fight with Severn. Dude literally took countless punches and elbows to the back of the head. Took that shit like a man.