10 MMA stars who ruined their careers with drugs and alcohol
3. Tank Abbott
Considering himself as a bar-definition fighter complemented by a beer belly and tremendous KO power, and being one of the first stars of the UFC – Tank Abbott made it clear from the start that his world revolved around alcohol and fights .
The referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy once said, “Tank drinks like a damn racehorse.” And retired fighter Gary Goodridge wrote in his book entitled ‘Gatekeeper’ that “with Tank it sometimes seems like fights get in the way of your parties.”
In fact, for his fight with Maurice Smith for the heavyweight title at UFC 15, Tank joked that he literally left the bar and entered the Octagon, and that was noticeable when he surrendered from exhaustion after 8 minutes of the match.
It would not take long for him to return to drinking, and he was even known to drink in the cage after his fights, and his altercations at post-fight parties became a legend.
In fact it is difficult to remember a situation where Tank did not like a refreshing beer.
“He had a jar, and I could smell alcohol on his breath,” Bruce Beck said of the night Tank joined the UFC broadcast as a commentator.
That is not a recipe for a long and successful career at the top of the sport, and he would eventually retire after losing 8 of his last 10 fights.
