Could This UFC Brawler ACTUALLY Bench Press 600lbs?

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[@Noonesbusiness]

That’s a “don’t fuck with me” kind of goatee.

[@judyogriobhan5762]

still have one .

[@kv7124]

Why was I waiting for " he was a pit fighter... he was my dad."

[@5055672439]

LMFAO, if Bromley wasn’t such a smart cookie I could totally see it

[@viklifts-zk8bl]

I remember him on rampage's podcast where he said he recorded the 600 just to prove a point to Ken Shamrock who also said he could do the weight. He said "the only time Ken Shamrock has been under 600 lbs was at a plus size whorehouse"

[@Rocko130185]

Tank wrestled and played football in high school and college. He was no stranger to the weights room. He was a NJCAA All American wrestler.

[@drip369]

Nicknames aren't claimed, they are given and that man was called Tank for a reason

[@TrayCaddyyy]

Rick De La Stick would approve of Tank’s horsing.

[@DragonGP]

He pretty much one-punched a 26-year-old Cabbage. That tells you a lot about his power.

[@Cas_anova]

Shoutout to THE BUGEZ

[@jd9119]

I hope he does a reaction to the videos that tank about put out

[@igelbeatz]

Bromley - I could listen to you talk about anything brother.

[@brianmeen2158]

It’s a very unique skill

[@alaskan_bergwanderer]

No wonder he hit so damn hard. 😳

[@caorosco83]

In a nutshell, the sport evolved. You saw that when Tank fought Maurice Smith and Pedro Rizzo. They destroyed him, but that was no reflection on his toughness. He fought two strikers who were outlandishly technical and strong hitters. Especially Pedro Rizzo who was frightening because of his leg kicks alone.

[@Rocko130185]

He had already lost to Dan Severn, Don Frye, Oleg Taktarov, Scott Ferroza and Vitor by then mate.

[@hamm0155]

Pedro rizzo was way overhyped. Still mad about the garbage decision over Coleman. 😤😁

[@caorosco83]

@hamm0155 basic striker by today's standards. But he knocked out Josh Barnett and Arlovski, which is impressive. His leg kicks were significant. Otherwise, people would not still bring them up when talking about him. If he wasn't a pure counter-striker and more aggressive, I feel we would have seen more from him, including a title run.

[@joeweisser]

He's technically right. An untrained silverback gorilla in the wild would have the strength to overpower even the most skilled fighter. There is a definite limit to how much skill can compensate for raw power and strength. However, the exact point at which this becomes true remains uncertain.

[@yoeyyoey8937]

It’s relative because even Abbot was an experienced fighter despite being formally untrained. There’s also a lot of factors to consider like a sufficient disparity in size and weight is almost impossible to overcome via skill alone

[@yoeyyoey8937]

Although I guess Abbot was kinda trained cause of his wrestling background

[@MrDjBanza]

There are men with a lot more muscle mass, even in their upper body than a gorilla. I believe it's possible for a man to beat a gorilla.

[@yoeyyoey8937]

@@MrDjBanza I think the main issue is no one knows how to train to beat a gorilla lol like what techniques even work?

[@ericrankin4666]

@@MrDjBanzano chance.. humans are one of the weakest and most fragile species on the planet especially considering we are predators by nature. A 60lb female chimp could kill any 250lb trained man if it really wanted to. The muscle tissue is completely different. Humans have very weak muscle tissue pound for pound than other hominids. They’ve done studies showing that small chimps with one arm reaching for food were able to generate upward of 4,000 lbs of force and gorillas are on a completely different planet. They then had a an athlete do the same movement using any body positioning he wanted and he was generating in the 300lb range. Moral of the story is our muscles are made for endurance and to do fine motor movements while apes muscle is for generating power and they aren’t as good for fine motor skills like threading a needle or playing the piano. A pound of ape muscle tissue is more like 5 or more pounds of human muscle tissue.

[@xnexgax2477]

I will forever rewatch the early UFC events. They're great to put on with friends and get wasted.

[@tallmanjude]

💯 People who missed the early days of the UFC just don't understand the feeling Tank brought to the game.

[@johnp7739]

Tank's win/loss record (and most early fighters) is deceptive. (1) Fighters didn't win 10-15 fights in smaller organizations, then get another 5 or so easy fights on UFC prelims in the 90s. You got thrown into a tournament and there were always a few other top fighters (Oleg Taktarov, Don Frye, Dan Severn were some that Tank faced). (2) He had a winning record before leaving the sport for 5 years, doing pro wrestling, then coming back old and more injured than ever to a sport had evolved greatly by the mid-2000s.

[@wotdefookbruv]

Tank Abbot was featured in the Enquirer 2.0 channel as probably the only U.S. hardmen among U.K. Hardmen

[@Jusgoaway]

I lived in Huntington Beach and everyone knew the rules- drink and hangout and don’t cross Tank😎

[@CrashMetaReligion1996]

I think Tank has a good point regarding what he has to say about skill. Most guys who do BJJ or boxing or whatever are not good enough at it to really be super effective with it. There are plenty of accountants who weigh 180 pounds with blue and even purple belts who are in trouble if a big, strong, mean dude attacked them in the street. Because they don’t have the mentality. They can get another 180 pound guy with a 135 bench in a rear naked but when Jimbo who weighs 290 and can bench 315 for a set of 12 gets out of prison and goes after him he is getting hurt. You have to not only have the skill but also the physicality and the mentality to really be proficient in the ability to defend yourself. It’s like he said about Royce Gracie yes he was a great BJJ master. But he was also a man with a mentality that made him a killer. Those two things combined plus some level of physicality made for a dangerous person.

[@angmori172]

As a BJJer with about 18 months of experience, I can confirm. Since I am a lifter primarily, and a decently big Boi, I got about 30 kg of mass on the next biggest dude. The sheer size difference has me basically punching at least one belt above my level, now that I have some very basic skills. Sure, I don't get technical submissions on those guys. But I can use pressure to make dudes who are fitter than me gas out first. And I love the reaction they get when they think they have are about to submit me, only for me to foil the attempt with sheer power. My favorite is baiting them to try to get me in triangles. My size makes it much more difficult than they're used to and I love just pushing straight through at the right moment. So with all that said, in a fight with no rules, they wouldn't have fun when someone twice their size starts to pummel their face when they are 'safe' in guard.

[@VitalFacets]

​@@angmori172 this is the reason why most black belts are bigger, taller guys with an athletic history. It's just survivorship

[@fuckoff5893]

This is why I train with and carry a firearm lmao I am not fighting you

[@lukepike72]

Beautifull pfp

[@dannysmith9882]

@@VitalFacets thats not been my experience, most bjj black belts Ive know are less than average height and like 160lbs

[@blue_samurai_zero]

Recognized Abbott in the first 2 seconds of the video. Thank you for taking me back to when Tank was one of the few people I cheered back then. It was like suddenly being back in time.

[@whodat1884]

Heavvyyyy fuckin hands Abbott had.

[@mikes62soupcan]

Just imagine if Tank spent more time training and less time on a barstool.

[@user-hf8dc8xy1o]

Under rated comment. Very talented.

[@akul_cicajlkrb]

I just remembered a quote from Liam Neeson playing Ra's al Ghul in movie "Batman Begins".... Where he said "Training is nothing will is everything...A will to act"

[@rogermayne3372]

Alex, the problem is most people don't want it and can't do it because at the highest level monsters are born that way. You can train how you like, he was a genetic monster. If the monster trains you get Karelin

[@HenchPig]

Right that’s it. We need that strength training for combat athletes video now!!!!

[@MorethanGUNZ]

Tank was just on the Quinton Jackson podcast too; glad to see this pioneer is getting some attention.

[@JakeSemeniuk]

Tank was a 🐴 🐔

[@_munkykok_]

horsekok

[@TheLockon00]

Basically what would have happened if Dave Tate went into MMA.

[@karlmodry716]

That training montage is crazy

[@user-pz6hs6wi6f]

Tank was on Rogan just recently. Got pretty emotional towards the end. Great dude.

[@jon.a]

Hey Bromley! Would you please do a video reviewing Dr Squat, Fred Hatfield's, "Heavy Iron"? I feel his programming is quite interesting and no one really talks about it.

[@darkness1293]

Any tips for combining powerlifting and Olympic lifting workout programs?

[@Flakzor123]

"refined and edited to where it sounds intelligent" Oh man 😆

[@devriestown]

He wasn't a self-proclaimed (pit fighter) That was just made up by the ufc . Tank said it himself 😂

[@Weighthunter]

for everyone who disrespects tank: for my opinion, he had the potential to be one of the greatest mma fighters ever. if he had the knowledge of these days! and for sure more discipline, but we can't find it out 😉 i love his crazy brute force 😂 it's enough for 99,9999% of the mankind who ever lived on this planet.

[@DCJayhawk57]

Only remember this dude from WCW when they used to talk about his bench press lol. Didn't even know UFC existed back then, as an early teen in the late 90s.

[@matthewmoeller2784]

Just a beast

[@williamholmstrom489]

I wonder how many fighters that could have taken the shots he landed on Don Frye, its like he was crying blood in the end.

[@emoski1235]

The Tank was a great subject. You described his feats with clarity, impressive , very impressive. Reflective bench with 600lbs. Yaw! That beats the gym bro who reflectively benches 225 into his chest 7 times. 😆. Puts Tank into perspective!

[@azulsimmons1040]

I remember Tank. Never had the endurance for fighting very long, but if he landed something early he could put a fighter out. I miss those brutal, no time limit days where it felt like Bloodsport had become a reality. When it first came out, all I thought was Kumite? Awesome. Those early fights were brutal with no weight classes, no time limits, style versus style until you tap out or get knocked out. I loved it.

[@patrickhodgson361]

Went from “stay away from that guy” to “ya I’ll go fishing with you”

[@tbarber863]

Strong is Strong!

[@bestwesterner]

Great video Brom

[@angmori172]

Damn brommeister, you're starting to look great!

[@rafaeladrian1510]

that upright row was ridiculous

[@user-yq3wi6gb9n]

Men like tank abbot created the good times that have made so many modern men weak.

[@MrAnamchara]

Tank v Lenny Mcleam would have been a wicked fight. Two fighters from different eras but both street fighters

[@briansmith397]

I thought I was having a stroke @14:47 until I realized what I was looking at 😂😂

[@freakied0550]

Seeing Tank Abbott's 600lbs bench was my inspiration back in the day (as I benched with a similar bounce press form circa 2008ish). I benched 300lbs the first time and started a chase for 600 based off seeing his bench. Came up 50lbs short, but it was a fun chase.

[@Goremachine]

Video or it didn't happen

[@dennisnordlund902]

@@Goremachineyou gotta be joking? Freakie Dennis Arnold is one of the most, if not the most, merited natty lifter on youtube.

[@dannysmith9882]

@@dennisnordlund902 Id never heard form him and thought it sounded like BS

[@cenauge]

I kinda get what Tank was saying; when he says all those guys in the cage were tough, it was because they got in the cage and fought. You could be a skilled fighter, but it was because you were a fighter who was skilled. You weren't someone who gained skill and became a fighter because you reached a certain skill level. The "thumb in the eye" stuff from Tank is his street fighting days talking, but we used to say "you don't know who you are until you've had your bell rung." Mike Tyson famously said "everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth." All of it comes back to how you react and push through something you didn't train for. At the end of the day, Tank was a freak and he used his attributes to compensate for his deficiencies, but as the combat sport becomes a more refined sport, the level of overwhelming advantage you need to have to paper over your vulnerabilities becomes untenable.

[@simonize251]

Brom the only dude I can’t play 2x and still understand

[@NoMoTheUFO]

Tank was a force in the ring back in the day. One big hit and it's lights out. Remember watching his highlight videos. Would've enjoyed watching him in bare knuckle boxing if it existed back then because I believe he would've been great at it. Great video! 🔥🔥🔥

[@SuperhumanUnchained]

Great video thanks for the upload hit that like button

[@jd9119]

I don't think he was knocking at specialized training. He was saying in order to have success in fighting you have to be right. And then Tank put over the specialized fighters in his era ti say they're though. Being strong and tough are traits independent of specialized training. Just being good at a specialized style won't you make strong and tight. So the lesson to learn is you need to still work on being strong tough man along with learning special disciplines

[@johnp7739]

Tank had at least some boxing training and was a junior college All-American before the UFC. Add that to his size/strength, and he had pretty good credentials for the early UFCs. That's why only the best guys beat him early in his career (Oleg, Taktarov, Frye, Severn). What's more, he almost finished Frye before he got KO'd, Severn couldn't finish him and Oleg needed 17 minutes and had to be carried out on stretcher afterwards (they had 3 fights in the high altitude of Wyoming that night).

[@littlemoo52]

i knew some guys growing up that weren't necessarily skilled but they had what he was talking about. they didn't mind getting hit and were quick to throw hands. most people don't want to get into a knock down drag out brawl. some people enjoy it. I knew a guy that was just outright tough as nails, he had a huge gas tank and was bull strong but i've seen his face bloodied so many times and so many times he would wear down these guys and turn the tables on them. he had a fucked up childhood and was always looking to get his anger out.

[@anthonyluisi7096]

Now wouldn’t be something if he did a legit rep with those weights 😂

[@maxwellbrill8001]

Tank very well spoken

[@waldenolff4126]

I lived in huntington beach and remember him always fighting in bars and with tito all the time

[@maxwellbrill8001]

Who the hell would fight with him??

[@Good.shepherd420]

“World of scalpels” come on buddy..

[@Natefirethemagnets]

I have always wondered how much booger sugar some of the early pros may have used. I know some of the local to me fighters of the Tank era liked it pre fight. (not accusing Tank). One of the local guys who was a friend of a friend did fight in relatively early UFC twice.

[@duckslayer11000]

Imagine being asked to solo spot that much weight. Ok, dude but if you lose all force, i won't be able to stop this weight from pinching your head off.

[@weekendnachos_2049]

He was the Anti-Hero As Fuuuuuuuuuck

[@lewiswhatley687]

No Goon cave this time, Bromley?

[@kaz5150619]

Tbf he worked for WCW after the 1st time he left UFC and he went fought elsewhere like PRIDE EliteXC Cage Rage etc.

[@Rolzhey]

Why was the interview with the guy rogan did cut every .2 seconds

[@LiquidfirePUA]

The sound is slightly off

[@marsrod831]

And listening to depeche mode

[@_munkykok_]

He would have done well today, cause he would have adapted, same as today's fighters do. Just because he says/thinks that toughness is the basis for fighting, doesn't mean he thinks that adding skills on top of that basis is wrong.

[@dannysmith9882]

Now do Larry Allen

[@lordsneed9418]

tank was a wrestler wasn't he? surely he didn't scoff at all martial arts

[@leedutch5155]

Roman Greco wrestling and boxing aren’t always considered martial arts

[@bevangovender2224]

After doing Kong. What yall suggest?

[@QuickStrikes84]

Being tough with little skill = Tank Abbot. Being tough with skills = Mike Tyson. He could have gone soooo much further, but I feel his arrogance kept him from seeking out new ways to improve. Sure, back in the day mma was very much experimental. But within the first couple of shows there were hints for those who paid attention for sure. Vale Tudo was already a thing.

[@junichiroyamashita]

Heey ,my fandoms are merging here. Are you starting to dip your toes in martial arts?

[@BoeserWolf1977]

I found it stunning how "weak" some of the actual pro fighters are. There were a couple of videos recently, where some pro strength athletes meat up with some pro fighters. There was a MMA heavy weight pro, barely able to bench 120 kg... On the other hand, I have started kickboxing a couple of months ago, for conditioning. At the time I go all out on fighting (with my actual shape, "all out" is not very impressing) and do little lifting to keep my muscles - within my range of recovery. I tested my 1RM last week and I got a stunning over 30% loss in all main lifts. This high intensity cardio training seems not to match with strength very well....

[@therealdestructicus]

But then you have Don Fry, every bit as tough as Tank, but was a skilled boxer, judoka (back when that meant something) and continued learning wrestling and other MMA, who beat the tar out if Tank.

[@BUK7550]

Thats nowhere near an accurate description of their fight. Tank knocked Frye on his ass right out the gate with a stiff jab; and was beating the piss out of Frye until Tank slipped throwing a punch and Frye capitolized and took Tanks back and choked him. And Frye cheated by having his second opponent of the tournament (Mark Hall) throw the fight since he'd already beaten Hall before and was most likely to win again, and they had the same management at the time, who pressured Hall into throwing the fight so Frye could come into the finals fresh. This is confirmed by both Mark Hall, and John McCarthy in addition to Tank.

[@devriestown]

RONG

[@jimjam1719]

he was my all time favorite fighter back then, still love his style, just brute force. animalistic. bull dozer and a half. imagine meeting him in a bar,,,,, yikes.

[@kaz5150619]

He was also a Community College All American in wrestling apparently u yanks have that

[@vaneast411]

at about 50 years of age Tank required both a liver transplant and a kidney transplant almost dying and at one point 120 days in ICU as he said on Rogan's recent podcast...

[@MeanBeanComedy]

2:00 wtf is he dead?!? 😬😳😳🤯

[@904strengthclub]

Tank really was a victim of his own mentality. Compare him to Don Frye who was every bit the tough son of a bitch that Tank was who just took the sport seriously and see the difference. Tank had all of the ingredients to be a great fighter and ended up being an overhyped letdown. As far as his record, the 10 wins is more of a testament to how early in its infancy the sport was in that it hadn’t matured to have a deep talent pool at that point. Even in that era though, you’re talking about a guy who was 50% more likely to lose than win. I wouldn’t have put money on him. And none of that is to say I’d ever have a shot against him… but in a world of professional athletes, he was forgot about the professional part.

[@dannysmith9882]

Nah, that was just his character. No one gets that strong with lack of discipline.

[@904strengthclub]

@@dannysmith9882 it’s not a lack of discipline at all- it’s direction and specialization. It’s Severn vs Gracie. It’s not a lack of discipline, ability, or anything else- Severn was a wrestler and didn’t have the training to close an MMA fight. He dominated Gracie the entire match but didn’t have the skill set to close. Imagine if Tank had any ground skills when he fought Don Frye, he might have lasted longer than a minute and a half. He was limited by his mindset- not discipline or ability which may be one of the biggest tragedies.

[@devriestown]

Well, let's see, you take on the (400POUND) BONE BRAKER BUDD

[@devriestown]

​@904strengthclub well, why didn't he rematch Severn????

[@luane.j.frantzen7175]

He was great but when more high lvl fifhters starting to appear in the ufc. It was clear that the brute strength and thougfnes dit not hold. Like when 19 year old Vitor blasted him.

[@JanRiffler]

Tank destroyed his liver and kidneys abusing alcohol. Do you think he was also abusing oral steroids?

[@leedutch5155]

Obviously he was on steroids all athletes abuse steroids and back in the early days off MMA they never drug tested and athletes where encouraged to hop on as much gear as possible

[@maxxsstrengthandpowerlifti188]

The 600 pound bench wasn’t real. Haven’t watched the video yet so not kill me if you talk about it lol

[@maxxsstrengthandpowerlifti188]

Dont get me wrong he was bery strong. But the 600 wasn’t real it was a marketing ploy he was around a 500 bench

[@AlexanderBromley]

Is there a source for this? I'm not about to bet my mortgage on it, but there is more than one video and they look like boring ass workouts. A plate could be fake but it doesn't fit with other promotions he's done.

[@maxxsstrengthandpowerlifti188]

@@AlexanderBromley theres a possibility i am wrong. I couldn’t find anything but at this point its been probably over a decade since but im a big fan and saw some early UfC footage/ documentaries and i believe Tank himself admitted the 600 was fake. It was closer to the high 4s to 5. The lift im specifically talking about is the bench press the ufc showed for the build up to one if his fights. It was for example part of the pre fight introduction for the broadcast. But no i cant site the source. But i was the same way growing up as you described so i was a little bummed out when i heard that. But regardless he was definitely strong. Unless i am mistaken

[@RBC0405]

Stop hating guys. It's legit.

[@AlexanderBromley]

@rbc0405 lol people lie about weights all the fucking time; its not hating to question ridiculous feats. "Stop hating" just means "buuuut guuuuys, I reeeeaaally like this guuuuuy"

[@Rumble225-qe7fy]

Tank Abbot was fodder for better talent. Got koed and choked by damn near everyone good lol

[@squatcurldeadlift7346]

I thought his bench was fake to be honest, guess I was wrong

[@Lubet0TheGreat]

Bromley's word is not a gospel, it's still in the air, many people are calling BS to this day, I remember reading in forums back than, that it was 405 and he faked it to freak out the other competitors.

[@3ncore706]

“Its about manhood! Only the strongest survive!!” *proceeds to lose 60% of his fights*

[@5dollarshake263]

I still remember seeing him do that 600lb bench as a kid, then as an adult I watched the footage and thought "I bet there's 1 fake plate on each side" and that he was probably benching 500lbs but was still open to the idea that he could be a freak and the lift could be 100% legit.

[@kman9884]

It’s funny tank puts so much stock into toughness, because you never want to be praised in martial arts for being tough; if you are, that just means you’re out there getting your ass kicked but not being KOd. GSP wasn’t tough, but he’s one of the best of all time. Same with Silva. Tough guys lose to skilled fighters

[@robertmiller2367]

Bullshit flag you missed the biggest point he was making the the same point Mike Tyson has made and that's every one has a plan until you get punched in the face and the "fighter" is the one who can take the eye gouge, bite, broke hand, pain of the arm bar and "fight" through it, that killer toughness...

[@brockstar1311]

His style wasn't pretty it was pretty aggressive though.

[@user-mi5op4si9b]

He never used steroids and benched 600lb so that proves that it can be done

[@AlexanderBromley]

Lol I would bet my house he was eating dbol like candy

[@user-mi5op4si9b]

@AlexanderBromley no seriously he was always a very staunch anti steroid talker infact he used to have a go at people who where known to take drugs, brock lestner for one, totaly true.

[@RBC0405]

I knew one guy like that. You're talking about someone who could bench 100kg as a 14 year old. Just a genetic monster. These people exist.

[@user-mi5op4si9b]

@RBC0405 yes you are right, there are too many people listening to idiot guru's on line. I bet there are thousands even more who don't even train could do it if they tried.Just look how many people are in Russia, USA, China,africa etc who don't even see civilisation and don't do it

[@user-mi5op4si9b]

​@RBC0405 yes you are right.

[@brentdawgs8905]

You have red spots on your face and head. Thank you for the video

[@Rhetorical346]

that's the tan

[@bearfootsteve6104]

Hopefully you don’t watch too much of Rogan’s shitty podcast. Alien, Conspiracy, Alternate reality, Mushroom headed 😅

[@BuJammy]

Yeah, he started off nuts, then went pretty normal, now he's back to nuts again.

[@dmacrolens]

Who gives a f*ck? "Don't recommend channel"