Evan Tanner

Evan Lloyd Tanner (February 11, 1971 – September 5, 2008) was an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. He was a former UFC Middleweight Champion and was the first American to win the Pancrase Neo-Blood tournament in Tokyo, Japan.

Tanner won the UFC Middleweight Championship at UFC 51, stopping David Terrell with strikes in the first round. He is considered a pioneer in the sport of MMA and one of the first fighters to use elbows as an effective striking method in the ground and pound position.

Tanner is unusual among MMA-fighters, as he began his professional career with a large degree of success despite primarily learning the sport via instructional videotape. He was also one of the first MMA fighters to use social media as a platform to connect with fans.

Tanner earned notable career victories over former UFC Welterweight Champion Robbie Lawler, former King of Pancrase Middleweight and Welterweight Champion Kiuma Kunioku, Heath Herring, Paul Buentello, Phil Baroni (x2) and Ikuhisa Minowa, among others.

Background Tanner was born in Amarillo, Texas, and graduated in 1989 from Caprock High School, where he won the Texas state championship in Greco-Roman wrestling as a junior and senior despite only entering the sport in his second year of high school. He attended Simpson College in Iowa, but dropped out when he was 19. He worked various jobs around the country as a bouncer, cable television contractor, framer building beach houses, dishwasher, baker, ditch digger, and slaughterhouse worker. He attended the University of Oklahoma for one semester before returning to Amarillo, where he entered a mixed martial arts tournament.

During his UFC career, Tanner lived in Portland, Oregon and Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2008, he relocated to Oceanside, California.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career Tanner, with a wrestling background, began fighting in 1997 when he was convinced by friends to enter a local MMA tournament hosted by the now defunct Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation. He won the tournament by defeating three fighters in one night, including future UFC heavyweight contender Paul Buentello.

After his initial success, Tanner taught himself submission and grappling techniques using instructional videos created by the famous Gracie family. He continued to fight in local shows and tournaments in Texas and Iowa before traveling to Japan to compete in the Pancrase organization. He won five fights overseas and competed in the USWF once more before being asked to join the UFC.

Tanner made his UFC debut in 1999 at UFC 18, submitting fellow Amarillo native Darrell Gholar by rear naked choke in the first round. His next UFC fight was at UFC 19 against Valerie Ignatov, who was known for leg submissions. Because of this, Tanner decided to fight barefoot for the first time in his career.

Tanner fought once more in Pancrase and defended his title two more times in the USWF before deciding to take the first of multiple breaks from fighting in his career. He returned in July 2000 and remained undefeated in the USWF, successfully defending his heavyweight belt with wins against Raoul Romero and Vinny Nixon. His next appearance was at UFC 29, where he defeated Lance Gibson by TKO.

A new outlook on fighting With three victories in the UFC, Tanner received a title shot against UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz at UFC 30. He was knocked unconscious 32 seconds into the first round by a high level slam by Ortiz.

Tanner was invited to compete in the −88 kg division at the 2001 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship April 11–13, 2001 at the Abu Dhabi Combat Club in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. He was defeated by Sanae Kikuta on points (6–0) in the first round.

Tanner began training with Oregon-based Team Quest. He returned to the Octagon at UFC 34, defeating Homer Moore in the second round with an armbar. At UFC 36, he defeated Elvis Sinosic by TKO (cut). At UFC 38, he won a unanimous decision over Chris Haseman in an undercard bout. At UFC 42, he lost to Rich Franklin by TKO (strikes) in the first round. After his defeat by Franklin, Tanner moved to the middleweight division, where he would be more physically imposing than many of the opponents.

Baroni I and II Tanner faced Phil Baroni in consecutive fights at UFC 45 and UFC 48. In the early minutes of their fight at UFC 45, Baroni was in control, but Tanner took Baroni to the ground and landed a series of unanswered punches and elbows. After a brief verbal exchange between Baroni and referee Larry Landless, the fight was stopped and Tanner was awarded the victory. Immediately after the fight, Baroni contended that he did not submit and in the confusion struck Landless twice in the face. Baroni maintained that it was a verbal miscommunication and he never asked for the fight to be stopped. To quell the controversy, the UFC agreed to give Baroni a rematch at UFC 48, which Tanner won.

Road to the UFC Middleweight title Tanner defeated Robbie Lawler at UFC 50 in October 2004, submitting Lawler with a triangle choke. Afterward, Tanner began training on his own.

He fought for the vacant UFC middleweight championship against David Terrell at UFC 51 in February 2005. He defeated Terrell to become the first UFC middleweight champion since Murilo Bustamante held the title before leaving for PRIDE Fighting Championships in 2002.

Tanner fought Franklin again at UFC 53 in June 2005. Franklin won when the fight was stopped by the ringside doctor due to multiple cuts and swelling on Tanner's face. With the win, Franklin was named as a coach for The Ultimate Fighter 2 reality television show, along with then UFC Welterweight champion Matt Hughes. While Franklin and Hughes did not fight at the conclusion of the show, Hughes said he would have challenged Tanner for the UFC middleweight title if Tanner had been a coach on the show.

After losing the title, Tanner began training with American Top Team, but lost his next fight to David Loiseau at Ultimate Fight Night 2 in October 2005. Tanner was ahead on points until the fight was stopped in the second round due to a cut received from a Loiseau elbow.

Shortly after this fight, Tanner appeared as himself on an episode of Beyond the Glory on FOX Sports that chronicled the history of the UFC. He also became a member of the Chute Boxe team.

Tanner returned to the UFC in April 2006 at UFC 59, defeating Justin Levens in what was Tanner's last victory in MMA. Levens was a late replacement for Jeremy Horn, who was forced to withdraw after a training injury.

2006–08 On December 29, 2006, Tanner unveiled plans to set up a mixed martial arts training camp at his house in Gresham, Oregon for disadvantaged athletes and young men at risk. In February 2007, he announced that 12 athletes would reside in the house from six different weight classes. In a March 2007 interview with MMA Weekly, Tanner was asked about the possibility of fighting again, but said he wanted to focus on developing his foundation. He said he would be training year-round with the athletes he was coaching and that it might only be a matter of time before he returned. UFC president Dana White was interviewed by CBS Sportsline one week later and said Tanner would be welcomed back whenever he was ready.

On May 11, 2007, further foundation development was put on hold by Tanner, citing his own training and a bad experience with the first fighter that was invited to the house. Tanner announced through his official website that he would return to active competition and attempt to regain the UFC middleweight title.

Speculation arose that Tanner would return to the UFC in December 2007 at UFC 79 against Dean Lister. Tanner dismissed the report as he was battling an alcohol addiction. He left Chute Boxe and began training at Hard Knocks Kickboxing in Las Vegas.

On November 8, 2007, Tanner announced the signing of a four-fight deal with the UFC. He chose to accept no corporate sponsorships and instead started "Team Tanner," an exclusive fan club for his upcoming fights.

In what would be his final fight, Tanner lost to Kendall Grove in a split decision at The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale on June 21, 2008, the fifth loss in his last ten fights. In a post-match interview, he said he felt "flat" throughout the fight and that he had begun wondering if his two years of serious alcohol abuse had damaged his body past the point of which he could compete at the level he once had.

Death In the summer of 2008, Tanner announced plans for a solo trip to the Imperial County, California desert. After concerns were raised, he responded on August 27, 2008. "It seems some MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) websites have reported on the story, posting up that I might die out in the desert, or that it might be my greatest opponent yet, etc. Come on, guys. It's really common down in Southern California to go out to the off-road recreation areas in the desert about an hour away from LA and San Diego. So my plan is to go out to the desert, do some camping, ride the motorcycle, and shoot some guns. Sounds like a lot of fun to me. A lot of people do it. This isn't a version of 'Into the Wild.'"

He purchased a dirt bike and on September 3, 2008, rode into the desert region west of Palo Verde, California to go camping. According to his manager, John Hayner, Tanner called that afternoon to say that his bike had run out of gas and that he would walk back to his camp. This conflicted with a later report that his bike was found at his camp. The Imperial County sheriff's office gave an official cause of death as heat exposure. and premiered in competition at the 2011 Los Angeles Film Festival as an official selection. It was nominated for "Best Documentary Feature". The film was also an official selection at the 2011 Dallas Video Festival and the inaugural Arclight Documentary Film Festival in November 2011. It won the "Best Documentary Audience Award" at the 2011 Bel Air Film Festival. In March 2014, English film director and producer Bobby Razak released a documentary about Tanner titled "1" which looked at the circumstances surrounding Tanner's death. On June 19, 2019, Variety reported that a biopic about Tanner's life and career titled "The Power of 1" was in the works, slated to go into pre-production at the end of 2019 with principal photography planned for early 2020.

Championships and accomplishments Amateur wrestling Texas University Interscholastic League 1988 UIL State Champion (167 lbs) 1989 UIL State Champion (167 lbs)

Mixed martial arts Pancrase Hybrid Wrestling 1998 Pancrase Neo Blood Tournament Winner First non-Japanese fighter to win the Pancrase Neo Blood Tournament First American to win the Pancrase Neo Blood Tournament Ultimate Fighting Championship UFC Middleweight Championship (One time) UFC Encyclopedia Awards Fight of the Night (Four times) Knockout of the Night (Two times) Submission of the Night (Two times) UFC.com Awards 2005: Ranked #7 Fight of the Year Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation USWF Heavyweight Championship (One time) Seven successful title defenses First and only USWF Heavyweight Champion Undefeated in USWF (11–0) Extreme Challenge Heavyweight Tournament Championship (Gladiators 2)

Mixed martial arts record Loss

Kendall Grove Decision (split) The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs. Team Forrest Finale

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Yushin Okami KO (knee) UFC 82

Columbus, Ohio, United States Win

Justin Levens Submission (triangle choke) UFC 59

Anaheim, California, United States Loss

David Loiseau TKO (doctor stoppage) UFC Ultimate Fight Night 2

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Rich Franklin TKO (doctor stoppage) UFC 53

Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States Win

David Terrell TKO (punches) UFC 51

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Robbie Lawler Submission (triangle choke) UFC 50

Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States Win

Phil Baroni Decision (unanimous) UFC 48

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Phil Baroni TKO (punches) UFC 45

Uncasville, Connecticut, United States Loss

Rich Franklin TKO (punches) UFC 42

Miami, Florida, United States Win

Shannon Ritch Submission (triangle choke) FCFF-Fighting Against Cancer

Portland, Oregon, United States Win

Chris Haseman Decision (unanimous) UFC 38

London, England Win

Elvis Sinosic TKO (doctor stoppage) UFC 36

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Homer Moore Submission (armbar) UFC 34

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Tito Ortiz KO (slam) UFC 30

East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States Win

Lance Gibson TKO (punches and elbows) UFC 29

Tokyo, Japan Win

Travis Fulton Submission (triangle choke) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 18

Amarillo, Texas, United States Win

Raoul Romero TKO (punches) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 17

Amarillo, Texas, United States Win

Vinny Nixon Submission (keylock) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 14

Lubbock, Texas, United States Loss

Leon Dijk TKO (knees and palm strikes) Pancrase: Breakthrough 4

Yokohama, Japan Win

Mike Cizek TKO (submission to punches) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 13

Amarillo, Texas, United States Win

Valeri Ignatov TKO (elbows) UFC 19

Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, United States Win

Darrel Gholar Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC 18

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States Win

Ryushi Yanagisawa Submission (arm-triangle choke) Pancrase: Advance 12

Chiba, Japan Win

Gene Lydick Submission (rear-naked choke) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 12

Amarillo, Texas, United States Win

Kiuma Kunioku Decision (lost points) Pancrase: 1998 Anniversary Show

Tokyo, Japan Win

Justin McCully Technical Submission (kimura) Pancrase: 1998 Neo-Blood Tournament Second Round

Tokyo, Japan Win

Kousei Kubota Submission (arm-triangle choke)

Win

Ikuhisa Minowa Submission (arm-triangle choke)

Win

Tony Castillo TKO (knees) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 9

Amarillo, Texas, United States Win

Dennis Reed Submission (triangle choke)

Win

Wade Kroeze TKO (knees)

Win

Rusty Totty Submission (arm-triangle choke) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 8

Amarillo, Texas, United States Loss

Heath Herring Submission (rear-naked choke)

Win

Jesse Gonzalez Submission (ezekiel choke)

Win

Joe Frailey TKO (submission to punches)

Win

Heath Herring TKO (exhaustion) Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation 7

Amarillo, Texas, United States Win

Paul Buentello Submission (rear-naked choke)

Win

Gary Nabors Submission (keylock)

Win

Mike Kennedy TKO (submission to palm strikes)