Earlier this evening, The San Jose Mercury News reported that a body, possibly believed to be that of former UFC middleweight champion, Evan Tanner was found near a remote desert campsite near the California/Arizona border.
The UFC has confirmed that it was indeed Tanner’s body. Thomas Gerbasi of UFC.com reported that Evan Tanner has passed away at the age of 37.
Here’s part of his article.
Tanner, on a camping trip in the Palo Verde mountain area, was found by an Imperial County Sheriff’s Department Deputy on Monday. The cause of death is not known at this time. He had not answered friends’ text messages since last Wednesday, and was officially reported missing on Friday.
Tanner was best known as the former UFC middleweight champion, who beat David Terrell for the vacant championship in 2005. He would lose it to Rich Franklin in his first title defense. The last bout of his career was a loss to Kendall Grove at The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale.
TMZ says that he texted friends that he was out of water and needed help at one point. It’s really sad that a young man with such potential is gone and it was so needless. He, himself, said that this trip could be life threatening if things went wrong. 🙁
Yep.
I read that he texted friends that he was out of water and gas for his motorcycle. They sent help immediately, but he wasn’t found. I think there was about a 3 or 4 day delay until they finally found him.
What a shame. He was truly a free spirit and a man that followed his heart.