War Machine talks about UFC & Evan Tanner---mmajunkie.com
War Machine: "UFC cut me over declined fight, Evan Tanner comments"
by John Morgan and Dann Stupp on Sep 12, 2008 at 1:20 pm ET

War Machine (5-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC), "The Ultimate Fighter 6" cast member
previously known as Jon Koppenhaver before he legally changed his name,
has been dropped by the UFC in the wake up a controversial web posting the
fighter made regarding the death of former UFC champion Evan Tanner.

War Machine said he recently turned down a fight -- one with an opponent
who had little name recognition -- and that the decision may have also
played a part in the UFC's decision to drop him from the roster.

"The UFC cut me," Koppenhaver confirmed with MMAjunkie. com (www.
mmajunkie. com).

Earlier this week, the mixed-martial-arts community learned that former
UFC middleweight champion Evan Tanner died while camping out in a
California desert. Initially, little was known about the situation other
than a body had been found and that it was believed to be Tanner.

Upon learning of the news, Koppenhaver posted a MySpace bulletin in which
he speculated that Tanner had committed suicide and that he may have been
depressed over the fact that his career might be over and that he had
little to show financially for all his greatness.

"What else is an underpaid fighter supposed to do at the end of his
career?" War Machine wrote in the posting. "Cash in his 401K? Collect
social security? Start to work some [expletive] job for 10 bucks an hour?
(This) [expletive] ain't boxing, and if you're not Chuck [Liddell] or Tito
Ortiz, you don't get paid dick.
"

When later reports suggested Tanner didn't kill himself, War Machine took
down the posting. However, he still believes there is more to the story.

"I still believe in my heart it was a suicide," War Machine said. "Whether
or not -- maybe he didn't shoot himself in the head, but I think he went
up there maybe with plans not to come back. I just think he was a great
fighter, he was a champion, and I guarantee you that he never made
[expletive] for money. I guarantee you that he was at the end of his rope.
There was no chance for a comeback. He was depressed, guaranteed. He had
just lost to Kendall [Grove]. He was getting older. He knows he has no
retirement plan. He had nothing, dude. That could be the outcome for a lot
of fighters, myself included. I for damn sure guarantee you that if I'm in
my 40s and I didn't make enough money and I don't have my own gym to
support myself or whatever, I'll probably kill myself too.
"

"I think he didn't maybe really want to kill himself outright and hurt his
family and the people around him. Maybe he just went on a one-way mission
and didn't plan on coming back, but he didn't kill himself outright. ...
He may have made it like an accident. I think he planned on not coming
back.
"

Of course, it's worth noting that California authorities believe Tanner
died of heat exhaustion (temperatures near his campsite reached nearly 115
degrees) and that he had, indeed, called his friends for help.
Additionally, a good friend of Tanner's who first confirmed the fighter's
death with MMAjunkie. com said she spoke to Tanner a week prior to his
death and that he didn't seem suicidal.

War Machine, who's no stranger to controversial -- and sometime strange --
online ramblings, said he decided to take down the posting after more
information came to light and after so many people reacted negatively to
his writings.

"I took it down because ... when I first wrote it, I didn't know the whole
story," War Machine said. "I had just heard that they had found his bike
and that they had found him in the middle of nowhere. I thought,
'[Expletive] man. He must've killed himself. He must've been depressed.
That's what I figured, so that's why I wrote that bulletin. The once I got
the [expletive] comments and they got the story out where he said he was
going on a quest and all that stuff and it was debatable on whether it was
an accident or not, I took it down.
"

UFC officials had caught wind of the posting, and the final straw came a
few days later when War Machine was offered a fight with Brandon Wolff.
War Machine said he was originally set to fight Matt Arroyo, but for
reasons he still doesn't know, the fight was scrapped. Instead, his
manager called him back with a new opponent's name.

"He said, 'They want you to fight Brandon Wolff,'" War Machine said. "I
said, 'Who in the hell if [Brandon] Wolff?' So, I looked him up and made
some phone calls. I've got a lot of friends in Hawaii -- 'Rude Boy' (Troy
Mandaloniz), Kendall Grove, my trainer. I got the same thing from
everybody. They all said the guy is savage, sick, tough as hell, a really
tough fighter and a really tough fight. Basically we all came to the
conclusion that I have nothing to gain from the fight. He has no name, no
fans other than the guys in Hawaii, and I thought that if I beat him, then
no one is really going to care because I beat someone with no name. And if
I lose, everyone is going to say I lost to a guy with no name, so I said
[expletive] that.

"I want to fight someone with a name. I said, 'Give me Josh Burkman. Give
me Dustin Hazelett. Give me someone with a name.
'

War Machine said that didn't sit well with UFC Vice President of Talent
Relations (and UFC matchmaker) Joe Silva.

"They went back to the UFC, and Joe Silva said, 'No. That's the best fight
I've got for him; take it or leave it,'" War Machine said. "It was kind of
threatening -- like if I didn't take it, they'd kick me out of the UFC.
So, I was kind of pissed off and decided to play hard ball too. I said I'd
wait for another opponent.
"

After learning that the UFC wanted a Mandaloniz vs. Matthew Riddle fight,
War Machine had his manager call Silva when he found out that Mandaloniz
wouldn't be ready for the bout.

"Joe Silva -- he was pretty much on a power trip," War Machine said. "He
was like, 'I already told you that I already have Wolff for War Machine. I
don't know who he is thinking he's negotiating with me. You know what? I'm
sick of this guy.' Then he brought up the Evan Tanner thing. 'He made a
dumbass comment on Evan Tanner. He's not supporting the UFC. You know
what? War Machine is cut.' And they cut me.
"

He found out just this past Wednesday.

Koppenhaver had signed a 10-fight deal with the UFC after appearing on "TUF.
"

However, War Machine is looking for the silver lining in all this. He's
already secured a main-event slot on a small show that takes place in
mid-October.

"I fought (in) some small shows, and then I was on 'The Ultimate Fighter,'
so, I never really got a lot of experience, so I'm still learning a lot,"
War Machine said. "I'm still new, and to be honest, I wasn't going to be a
contender in the UFC anytime soon anyway. This is a way for me to go out
there, maybe win a few smaller belts, get some more wins, get my skills up
better, and before I know it, after a few years have passed, I'll be ready
to fight anyone. ... Plus, I was really surprised by how much money they
offered me for a small show.
"

War Machine said it was a dream come true to fight in the UFC -- and that
he's open to the idea of returning there someday -- but he said he needed
to keep his integrity intact.

"I'm the kind of guy who's real independent, and I don't take [expletive]
from anyone," he said. "I don't care if it's Joe Silva or Dana White. I
don't care who it is. I'm not going to bow down to anyone. ... I'm not
going to be bullied by anyone.