Evan Tanner Found Dead in California Desert
Former UFC middleweight champion Evan Tanner has been found dead in the desert near Imperial Valley, California.
He was 37 years old.
According to the Imperial Valley Press an unidentified body was found on Monday in the Palo Verde mountain area near Imperial Valley.
The body was confirmed on Monday night to be that of Tanner, who quietly went missing last week.
Tanner has not had contact with his friends since Wednesday and was officially reported missing on Friday. Authorities began searching for Tanner on Saturday as temperatures in the area exceeded 114 degrees. On Sunday Tanner’s motorcycle was discovered at an abandoned campsite in the area and on Monday a body was located in the vicinity of the camp.
“I plan on going so deep into the desert, that any failure of my equipment, could cost me my life,” wrote Tanner on the adventure in August. “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.”
Tanner was 32-8 in his professional career including a 10-6 mark in the UFC. He debuted in the UFC in 1999 at UFC 18 and won the vacant UFC middleweight title with a first-round TKO victory over David Terrell at UFC 51. He would lose the 185-pound title to Rich Franklin in his very next bout and after losing to David Loiseau and rebounding for a victory over Justin Levens Tanner took nearly a two-year break from the UFC before returning in early-2008. The return would prove unsuccessful as Tanner was defeated by Yushin Okami via second-round knockout at UFC 82 in March and by Kendall Grove via split decision at The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale in June.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Evan’s family, friends, and fans. RIP.
Man…Rest in Peace…..
thats unbelievable…
I’m shocked. Rest in peace.
A tragic ending but all due respect to a guy who explored life and the world without holding back.
This is pretty strange even for a strange guy like him.
Kinda like that movie Into the Wild.
he died way too early, sad to see him go. R.I.P
Man, not good. Not good at all.
RIP Evan - thanks for all the great fights.
I will remember him for the story of studying tapes in order to learn the game. It showed the world not everyone had to be a Div 1 Wrestler or get off a plane from Brazil a world champin BJJ. Favorite fight(s)—The match with David Terrell . OR the fights with Baroni.
Justjoe,
Do you think that movie is what gave him the idea to go out there?
r.i.p. even tanner was fun to watch. he s a legend. sucks.
I had a feeling this was going to happen when he announced he was going out there. With his…diminishment of sanity lately, it was just too likely.
tragic loss for his family and friends…RIP, our prayers are with the family.
man this is horrible…he knew it was a life threatning voyage…but he chose to do it…
i have much respect for him…
rest in peace tanner!!!
Maaan, That is sooo sad. I wasn’t a big fan of his, but he seemed like a good guy to me. RIP.
I watched Tanner from UFC 18 on, he really was one of those amazing guys who just absoultely went for it every time. He was a self-taught Champion and no matter what, you have to respect him as he lived life to the fullest with honor and integrity.
REST IN PEACE.
thats horrible….
heaven just gained a great warrior
We all hope you find peice in the next world
thanks for the fights and the memories
damn he was a scrapper and an regular guy and i think thats y people liked him favorite fight the one against franklin for the mw title he lost but it showed he had a heart the size of a boulder RIP
I don’t think so dietrich, I think he was just one crazy dude. I just thought of that movie when I read the article.
i think he committed suicide
R.I.P Evan Tanner
rip evan tanner
thank you for all the great fights
His song on his myspace page is the song from the movie Into the Wild, eery, but all in all I’m sad. R.I.P.
wow, my brother and i were talking about how deadly and risky his adventure was gonna be when they first started talking about it after his last fight. this is really sad, i hope he wasn’t depressed out there and this was just accidental. RIP
it is truly sad to see such a great fighter leave us.
There was a guy that lived and died on his own terms. He was fearless and not even the prospect of death could stop him from doing what he wanted to do. He will be sorely missed. My heart, my prayers and my condolences go out to his loved ones. We share your pain in Evan’s loss.
“Smitty says:
i think he committed suicide”
Why the hell would you jump to this conclusion? I have known Evan since before he was a fighter back in Amarillo. He loved life way too much to end it himself. He was out in the desert with minimal equipment and the tempeture was over 114 degrees but you think he committed suiside Dude get a life.
R.I.P evan you will be missed greatly.
We’ve been talking since Saturday about whether or not Liddell is washed up… This sure has a way of putting things in perspective.
WE LOVED YOU. RIP EVAN TANNER!!