UFC Vet Tank Abbott Challenges Ronda Rousey: ‘You’re Going To Get Bashed Up Good’

MMA fighter David “Tank” Abbott has a number of strong suits, but don’t count subtlety among them — or couth or sensitivity, for that matter. He recently took issue with the success of UFC women’s champion Ronda Rousey, who is currently the highest paid fighter in the business. On the Proving Ground podcast, Abbott ranted about male superiority, saying that for all of Rousey’s accolades and successes, she would never be able to beat him in a fight.

TMZ and other sources posted audio transcriptions from Abbott’s decidedly off-color musings. He started by referencing the ongoing war of words between boxing champ and Floyd Mayweather and Rousey, noting that some fans have suggested that the two meet in an intergender bout.

“Don’t think for a New York second that Pretty Boy Floyd wouldn’t knock the stuffing out of Ronda Rousey … She’s a girl! And it’s all about this emotional stuff.”

Things took an odd and dark twist when Tank Abbott said that he would be willing to fight any woman (including Ronda Rousey), adding bizarre stipulations to his open challenge. Indeed, Abbot sounded almost as if he relishing the opportunity to publicly fantasize about battering a female opponent.

“If I win, which is going to happen — and you’re going to get bashed up good — you have to make me a sandwich. If you win, I’ll give you $100,000.”

It’s a safe bet that Ronda Rousey will eventually respond to Tank Abbott’s “mansplaining” of the fight biz at one point or another, but even if both parties are willing, UFC likely won’t touch Abbott’s proposal with a barge pole. The company has already had to deal with a number of high-profile incidents in which male fighters have engaged in violence against women outside of the ring. As previously noted by Inquisitr, UFC’s Josh Grispi was arrested in 2014 for assaulting his wife. Jonathan Koppenhaver — known to fans as War Machine — is currently awaiting trial for allegedly inflicting potentially life-threatening injuries on ex-girlfriend Christy Mack earlier this year. And earlier this summer, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson was investigated by UFC after he posted a hateful rant about an unidentified woman that he had encountered at a gym. Rumble has been previously suspended from fighting over allegations of domestic abuse.

Further, as Rolling Stone points out, Ronda Rousey herself has also stated publicly that she will not fight a man because such a spectacle would bear unintended social consequences.

“I don’t think we should celebrate a man hitting a woman in any kind of setting.”

According to MMA website SherDog, 50-year-old Tank Abbott’s most recent pro fight occurred in 2013 in which he lost to Ruben Villareal. Ronda Rousey, who is 28-years-old, has a pro record of 12 wins and no losses. Her next fight — against a woman — will be against Holly Holm later this year. Regardless of the outcome, there will be no sandwich making afterward.

[Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images]