UFC Fighter Evan Tanner apparently dead .....

[wesman]

Evan Tanner (http://www.tmz.com/2008/09/08/ufc-fighter-missing-body-found)


He was always a little out there but he gave it his all in the cage.....RIP Evan

--wes

[Who Needs 8]

Tanner blogged last month he was going to the desert because of his friends talking about "treasure hunting and lost gold, and my own insatiable appetite for adventure and exploration." Tanner continued, "I plan on going so deep into the desert, that any failure of my equipment could cost me my life."


Sounds like a planned suicide to me.

[JKD]

A true veteran of the octagon, but he lived a very troubled life. He randomly roamed the country doing odd jobs for awhile and was never really comfortable in the spotlight.

RIP Tanner.

[ELVIS]

RIP i always liked the guy.

god bless.

[JKD]

Sounds like a planned suicide to me.


It's a very Evan Tanner move, typical behavior of him. He kinda reminds me of Hemingway with the way he lived his life.

[silvercobra03]

RIP did not know he had problems :(

[Osiris]

Damn.

[Sean88gt]

He looked out of place his last fight, like he just wanted to cash out.

[Unseen]

A legend in the sport, I have been a fan for years. May he rest in peace.

[Tyrone Biggums]

Sad to hear. I liked him as a fighter.

http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=7059&zoneid=2

"Former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight titleholder Evan Tanner was found dead near Palo Verde, Calif. on Monday. He was 37 years old. His management team at DFS Agency confirmed his death to MMAWeekly.com.

Tanner had trekked into the desert on a journey to “cleanse” himself, according to Douglas Vincitorio of DFS. “He went out to the desert to do a ‘cleansing’ as he called it. Kind of like ‘Survivor Man.’” These short trips were not new to Tanner, said Vincitorio. It is something that he has done numerous times over the years.

“What we were told is that (sheriff’s officials who found him) believe his motorcycle had run out of gas, so he went to walk out in like 115 to 118-degree heat,” said Vincitorio. “He was miles away from his camp. That’s where the helicopter found him. Right now, they just think that he succumbed to the heat.”

Tanner had apparently told friends before he left that if they hadn’t heard from him in a couple of days, they should contact officials, which is what happened. When he stopped responding to text messages, friends waited a couple of days and then notified officials at the Imperial County Sherrif’s Department on Friday.

A search ensued and Tanner’s body was found on Monday.

On Aug. 10, Tanner wrote a blog on Spike TV’s website, proclaiming his desire to start an adventure in the desert east of his new home in Oceanside, Calif. An avid outdoorsman and wandering spirit, he wanted to escape civilization for a while.

“I'm not just going out into the desert, I'm going out into the desert to hunt for lost treasure,” he wrote. “I'm going on a pilgrimage of sorts, a journey to solitude, to do some thinking, and to pay my respects to the great mysteries.”

On Aug. 16, Tanner wrote about collecting supplies for his journey, and wrote about the dangers he might face.

“I plan on going so deep into the desert, that any failure of my equipment, could cost me my life,” he said. “I've been doing a great deal of research and study. I want to know all I can about where I'm going, and I want to make sure I have the best equipment.”

Of course, this led followers of his blog to fear for his safety, as they often did when Tanner reported his frequent by-the-seat-of-his-pants adventures. In a blog dated Aug. 27, Tanner tried to calm his audience.

“This isn't a version of ‘Into the Wild,’” he wrote. “I'm not going out into the desert with a pair of shorts and a bowie knife, to try to live off the land. I'm going fully geared up, and I'm planning on having some fun.”

But he also affirmed that things could go wrong if his equipment wasn’t up to snuff.

“I do plan on going back pretty far, so I did mention in one of my posts that I wanted to make sure to have good quality gear,” he said. “Any failure of gear out in the desert could cause a problem.”

On Sept. 2, Tanner wrote his final blog entry, documenting a training session at a facility in Oceanside.

The Amarillo, Texas native was a high school wrestling stand out who won the state championships his junior and senior years despite only getting into the sport as a sophomore. He entered mixed martial arts in 1997 encouraged by friends.

Tanner rose to the top of the mixed martial arts world by winning the UFC middleweight title over David Terrell at UFC 51: "Super Saturday" Feb. 5, 2005. Tanner last competed in the UFC on June 21 losing to Kendall Grove by split decision.

“He will obviously be sorely missed,” said Vincitorio. Adding, “I think that Evan would want to be remembered as a very complex man with many layers, not just a fighter.”

Tanner was surely a unique personality. He’s eccentric spirit and competitive nature will be sorely missed in the MMA community."

[FRANCISCO308]

R.i.p Tanner :(

[Cooter]

Sounds like a planned suicide to me.

not to me

[Nate]

I always rooted for him.

[Sean88gt]

not to me

People that don't spend time in the mountains or a place that they really love and feel connected to don't understand getting lost so you can find yourself.

I could stand a few months of getting lost to clear my head.

[gloomleader]

RIP i always liked the guy.

god bless.

x2. Good guy RIP

[regaltip]

Yeah Evan was a good guy... RIP!

[96Cobra_Nate]

People that don't spend time in the mountains or a place that they really love and feel connected to don't understand getting lost so you can find yourself.

I could stand a few months of getting lost to clear my head.

Im with you on that! I've got a little vacation planned for this fall. :)

[Wario]

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RIP Evan.

[5.0_CJ]

man that's so sad. He was really a great fighter to watch, always had his corner.

[ELVIS]

damn wario, that damn near brought a tear to my eye.

god bless.

[onemeangixxer7502]

yah i talked to him semi frequently online and he sent me a hand full of stuff in the mail.He def seemed like a troubled guy but super ncie .Just sucks .RIP brother

[bullet*proof*GT]

not to me


Same here man. Rip tanner. He always made for a great fight.

[LIL_SLOW_RIDING_COUPE]

Damn that sux.... RIP Tanner

[sixtysevenfastback]

heard an interview with him on the radio in vegas a few months ago and he was really out there sounding, talking about his living in a van and going from city to city doing random small jobs to earn enough beer money and gas to get to the next city. He seemed really out of touch with reality.

[5.0_CJ]

heard an interview with him on the radio in vegas a few months ago and he was really out there sounding, talking about his living in a van and going from city to city doing random small jobs to earn enough beer money and gas to get to the next city. He seemed really out of touch with reality.

he's always been like that.

[BSmiff]

RIP Tanner