Did Tank lay down against Pedro Rizzo?

[Newbie]

I know that Tank was very tired and was definitely hurt, except I'm not sure that he was actually knocked out during that fight.
I know that he quit on his feet against Maurice Smith. Even though I think Tank Abbot is a great fighter and one of the most impressive physical specimens to ever compete in MMA, I find it interesting how he has never been criticized to anywhere near the extent that Ken Shamrock and Vitor Belfort have for quitting.

[Ronin]

I think it might have had something to do with the right hook Rizzo landed square on his jaw.

Anyone can be knocked out.

And yes, Tank quit against Mo, but he was fighting on like two days' notice.

I can't believe I'm sticking up for Tank, but he has earned some respect over the years for his "Anyone, Anytime" attitude.

[Evilution]

I don't think he was quite all the way out. But he had taken so much punishment that it took the fight out of him. It's also possible that even though he wasn't totally knocked he couldn't stand. I've been hit hard enough to knock me stupid, stupid enough to not be able to defend myself, but I didn't fall down. It's hard to talk about the "what ifs" of a fight when you're not the one fighting, but even if Tank hadn't gone down he would've pretty soon, he was no match for Rizzo.

[Lacrymosa]

I didn't know that FAT SLOBS qualified for "physical specimens".......maybe it's just me.

[Hawk]

First, I don't recall Vitor quitting against anyone. He fought Randy C. until he was KO'd and broke his hand early against Sak, but finished the fight. I don't think Tank laid down against Rizzo. I've always thought his finals match in the 2nd Ultimate was a little strange.
Hawk

[Stuart S. Igarta]

I didn't know that FAT SLOBS qualified for "physical specimens".......maybe it's just me.

Lacrymosa, that was one funny post!

[Newbie]

-Lacrymosa

"I didn't know that FAT SLOBS qualified for "physical specimens".......maybe it's just me."

Tank Abbot is an exceptionally gifted fighter. That "FAT SLOB" bench presses 625 pounds, which is well over twice his body weight. That "FAT SLOB" knocked down Maurice Smith and Don Frye in the initial standup part of their fights and was competitive against both of those elite A level fighters. Considering his comparitive lack of martial arts training, the way that "FAT SLOB" has dominated many opponents, most of whom had bodies that people like yourself would likely judge to be more athletic LOOKING, is very impressive and is largely attributable to his innate physical attributes. With the exception of Scott Ferrozo, his only losses have been to absolutely elite level MMA fighters. I believe his only other losses are to Oleg Taktarov, Dan Severn, Don Frye, Vitor Belfort, Maurice Smith, and Pedro Rizzo.

A lot of people have called George Foreman a fat slob as well because he is not exceptionally lean. George Foreman had a quote in his book, which I do not have on hand, that went something like 'The next time you see one of my opponents staring up at the ceiling after getting knocked out, take a look at all the ripples on his stomach.'

In short, not only do I consider Tank Abbot an impressive physical specimen, I also view him as a very good ROLE MODEL for young martial artists because of his straightforward philosophy towards fighting in that he doesn't try to pretend that fighting is about anything else except fighting.


-Hawk

"First, I don't recall Vitor quitting against anyone. He fought Randy C. until he was KO'd and broke his hand early against Sak, but finished the fight."

I agree with you about the Randy Couture fight. I have never seen the Sakuraba fight. However, that does not change the fact that Vitor Belfort is constantly criticized for having "quit". I mean "quit" as in "given up" "curred out" etc.

"I don't think Tank laid down against Rizzo. I've always thought his finals match in the 2nd Ultimate was a little strange."

Did Tank Abbot fight Don Frye in the finals of the Ultimate Ultimate II? If so, I have to disagree with you here. No offense, except I would have to assume that if Tank was going to throw the fight, he could think of something better than just falling down out of nowhere. I realize that it could be argued that the punches he hit Frye with were an attempt to make it look good, except those bombs could have knocked Frye out and almost did.


-Ronin

"Tank quit against Mo, but he was fighting on like two days' notice."

I believe Tank Abbot had been scheduled to fight on the undercard for months before the fight. SEG cancelled that match because they needed him to fill in as a last second opponent for Maurice Smith. I know he mentioned the short notice in his interviews regarding the fight, except I believe he had been scheduled to fight in the event much earlier.


[Edited by Newbie on 09-29-2000 at 07:03 AM]

[Lacrymosa]

Newbie, my friend...

Tank Abbott is the classic Bully. Pedro Rizzo was simply not intimidated....and why should he? Tank Abbott is a FAT SLOB who decided to step off the bar stool, put on his little gloves, and try his hand at hurting people in a professional venue. Typical of such a bully, once Pedro took the fight to him and refused to back down, the Tank folded.

He has not and will not accomplish anything in this sport because he doesn't have the perserverence to keep his weight down and his endurance up.

Tank is strong and talks trash. Maybe that's why he ended up in the WCW because he sure as hell isn't bringing home any belts in the UFC.

Send all death threats to lacrymosa007@yahoo.com

[Newbie]

Lacrymosa

"once Pedro took the fight to him and refused to back down, the Tank folded."

Are you expressing the opinion that he Tank did lie down to avoid further punishment?


"Tank Abbott is a FAT SLOB who decided to step off the bar stool, put on his little gloves, and try his hand at hurting people in a professional venue."

Tank Abbot HAS hurt many people in a professional venue. As I said before, the only people that have ever beaten Tank Abbot are A+ level fighters(with the exception of Scott Ferrozo, who is a pretty decent fighter in his own right). He has been in the finals of the Ultimate Fighting Championship twice and barely lost to Oleg Taktarov and Don Frye in those appearances. I find it amusing that a man such as Tank, who could probably PHYSICALLY OVERWHELM 99.9% of the general male population is frequently referred to as a "fat slob". I don't know about you, except I would never call anyone that could kick my ass a "fat slob". There is a lot more to athleticism than having nice-LOOKING definition to your muscles. I personally believe in the old saying "The proof is in the pudding." Who knows though, maybe it would be a more accurate measurement of one's physical attributes if we determined the winner of MMA fights on the basis of who looked better with a layer of oil on their body while flexing their muscles. Then again, if you wanted a less disputable method of quantifying victory, perhaps we should just hand Big John McCarthy a calipers.





[Edited by Newbie on 09-30-2000 at 04:52 AM]

[Ryu (non-working password]

a role model for young fighters??? Let's not go nuts here

funny thing is, Tank would probably hurt anyone who called him a role model.

The ability to hurt is present in any animal, it doesn't impress that many people. To truly be impressive you have to have the definate ability to take action, but have an above sense of thinking and value. Actually this might be a reason that Tank loses to those A fighters...A fighters have that blend. They're intelligent as well as dangerous.

just my 2 cents.

Ryu

[StrongerThanDeath]

against Rizzo, Tank was floored 3 times and was just to beat up AND tired to go on.....that final crack to the jaw put the nail on the coffin.....he was hurt, beat, KOed, folded, whatever you wanna call it....bottomline he was DONE

Belfort, well against Couture he roided up and lost all his wind and got KOed......against Sak he tried to finish him ala early UFC days and was unable to do so (breaking his own hand in the process) and then he got the ass whoppin.....I dont think the hand played a MAJOR role in the fight like some people think.....I mean Vitor was already getting tired and once Sak reversed him and put him on his back and landed some GOOD shots, I think all the fight went outta Vitor.....however, Vitor has made an IMPRESSIVE comeback and I think he will be a FORCE in the months and years to come....

Ken Shamrock, well he made the same mistake against Fujita that he made at UU2 (although he beat Johnston, he broke his hand and wore himself out) except Fujita wasnt about to quit like Johnston did, forcing Ken to throw in the towel.....KEN QUIT plain and simple......I dunno if he can ever be a TOP heavyweight unless he changes his gameplan.....

[Ronin]

Newbie:

"The proof is in the pudding."

In Tank's case, literally.

Stronger:

Yeah, I like Ken as a fighter, but I don't know what made him decide to turn himself into Peter Aerts for his comeback. Has he forgotten how to grapple?

[Newbie]

---Ryu

"a role model for young fighters??? Let's not go nuts here"

I believe that watching someone like Tank Abbot fight and defeat traditional martial artists keeps us reminded of the fact that for the average person, one of the best ways to train is to eat a lot, lift weights, possibly take steroids, learn the basics of boxing and wrestling as well as defenses against basic submissions, and combine all of this with an aggressive attitude. When an average adult male bulks up and learns the basics of boxing and wrestling, he will usually be able to pound the shit out of the average bumm off the street if neccesary, and that is what the martial arts are all about for the average person. Becoming a world class fighter is simply not what the majority of us should strive to become. Even the level of proficiency Tank Abbot has obtained as a fighter is out of the reach of the majority of the male population. For one thing, most of us are never going to be that strong. The average adult male can, however, become a decently proficent fighter by doing what I stated earlier, bulking up and learning the basics of Boxing and Wrestling.

"The ability to hurt is present in any animal, it doesn't impress that many people. To truly be impressive you have to have the definate ability to take action, but have an above sense of thinking and value."

I don't know about you, except when it comes to judging one's ability to fight, I am impressed by one thing and one thing only, and that is the ABILITY TO FIGHT. As far as the importance of intelligence is concerned, some of the most impressive fighters in the animal kingdom are some of the least intelligent. For example, the Rhinoceros is one of the most fromidable fighters on the face of the planet and is certainly not one of the most intelligent.

"Actually this might be a reason that Tank loses to those A fighters...A fighters have that blend. They're intelligent as well as dangerous."

If you watch Tank in interviews, he comes across as being reasonably intelligent. In addition to this, he is also well educated from what I understand. I believe he has a college degree in History.

---StrongerThanDeath

"he was hurt, beat, KOed, folded, whatever you wanna call it"

You use the words "hurt", "beat", "KOed", and "folded" to describe Tank's loss to Pedro Rizzo. Then you write "whatever you wanna call it" as if they all mean the same thing. Well, let's see, I'm pretty sure we are all in agreement that he was "hurt", the fact that he got "beat" is pretty well documented, and the whole point of the thread was regarding whether he was "KOed" or if he "folded".

As far as Vitor Belfort and Ken Shamrock are concerned, I only brought them up to show the contrast in the way they were verbally crucified at the first oppurtunity when it appeared that they may have "quit" as opposed to Tank Abbot remaining verbally unscathed for doing the same thing.



[Edited by Newbie on 10-01-2000 at 11:57 PM]

[Shimora]

?

Their is a strong rumor that Tank was in fact DRUNK the night he fought Rizzo. He had been partying in Rio and turned up smashed to the fight. He said he was fine and they let him fight. The rest is history.

Doesnt say much for Rizzo that he still had such a hard time against a drunk. Tank would have creamed him if he'd been in the same shape as he was in UFC17.

[Ryu (non-working password]

Well you're entitled to your opinion.
All I'm saying is that througout history the most influential military (fighters) have been ones who had exceptional strategy, brains, and values to compliment immense fighting skill.

Nothing wrong with bulking up and learning the basics of boxing and wrestling (hell I do it too )
But I think that you can influence people a lot more with your ability to show more than just how much you can hurt someone.
The thinkers are the ones who are most prized by us humans. I'm not saying that will save your butt in the ring, but if you possess Tank's prowess AND a strong sense of charisma, integrity, and humaneness, people I think will tend to want to talk about you more. And would rather have that type of person as a "role model".
When all you do is beat people up and have nothing else other than that, people will forget about you when you can no longer do it.

As far as myself, yes you're right. I am not impressed by just prowess alone, I am only impressed by a strong mixture of both.

Take care,
Ryu