** ken shamrock **

Ken Shamrock

Height: 5'11"

Weight: 235 pounds

Born: February 14, 1965.

From: Sacramento, California.

Nickname: The World's Most Dangerous Man

Finishing Move: The Ankle Lock Submission; The Belly-To-Belly Suplex

Favourite Saying(s):"I'm in my Zone!" "It's time to knucle up!" "Get outta my way!"

WWF Titles Won: WWF Intercontinental Championship, Tag Team Champion

Who would have thought that an accomplished shoot fighter would become a top star in the World Wrestling Federation? Although best known for his days in the no-holds-barred fighting world, Shamrock actually started his career as a wrestler in the late 1980s in the Carolinas. Shamrock (who had previous fighting training with his father Bob Shamrock) was trained in wrestling by Nelson Royal and the late Buzz Sawyer at Royal's ACW wrestling school, and started to wrestle for ACW. When ACW folded in 1988, Shamrock started to work for South Atlantic Pro Wrestling under the name Wayne Shamrock, and was managed by "Number One" Paul Jones. Shamrock won his first TV match in a few seconds with a belly-to-belly suplex. In September of 1990 Shamrock earned a spot with the second incarnation of Japan's UWF shoot fighting group. The group was on the verge of a breakup, but Shamrock made a lasting impression on UWF stars Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. When Shamrock returned to the states, he went back to SAPW, but this time as a heel and with a new name: "Mr. Wrestling" Vince Torelli. Shamrock's highlight as Vince Torelli in the wrestling industry was in February of 1991, when he defeated Chris Chavis (Tatanka) in a tournament final to capture the South Atlantic Pro Wrestling Title, but even then the fact was he was only a mediocre wrestler at best. When Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki moved on to Pro Wrestling Fujiwara-Gumi, Shamrock was also offered a spot. In this promotion, which emphasized on suplexes, mat work, and submissions, Shamrock was provided with a priceless training ground in which his skills improved. The entertainment that is pro wrestling was no longer Shamrock's forte, as he became a legit shoot fighter. When Funaki and Suzuki moved on again for the formation of Pancrase in September 1993, Shamrock was just behind them, ready to equal and surpass their superstar status. And that was exactly what he did, by defeating Funaki in the main event of Pancrase's inaugural show on September 21. Shamrock continued his victory streak in Pancrase by defeating Yoshiki Takahashi and Yusuke Fuke, before Shamrock also started competing for the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC). At the inaugural UFC show in November of 1993, Ken defeated Pat Smith before he fell to Royce Gracie in the semifinal. The defeat to Gracie affected Shamrock. Eventhough he won some matches in Pancrase he lost matches to Minoru Suzuki and to Frank "The Animal" Lobman in a kickboxing match. Shamrock returned to the UFC at UFC III, but had to withdraw from the tournament because of an injury. Back in Pancrase, it was time to crown the first King of Pancrase in a two day tournament, December 16-17, 1994. The first man to step in Ken's way was Alex Cook, who was defeated in only 1 minute and 31 seconds. Maurice Smith was the next victim, but Ken also squashed him. In the semifinals waited Masa Funaki, Ken's old friend and mentor. Ken defeated Funaki, who had defeated Ken some months before the tournament. From there it was on to the finals, where Shamrock went to a 30-minute draw with Manabu Yamada. Shamrock was awarded the match based on judges' decision (3-0), and thereby became the first King of Pancrase. Shamrock successfully defended his King of Pancrase Title against Leon Dijk and Bas Rutten, but lost the Title to Minoru Suzuki on May 13, 1995. At UFC V Shamrock fought his nemesis Royce Gracie in a great match to a draw that lasted 36 minutes and 6 seconds. Next up was the UFC VI where Shamrock went up against Dan Severn for the right to be called the first ever Superfight Champion. In only 3 minutes and 49 seconds Shamrock defeated Severn with a Guillotine Choke to be the first UFC Superfight Champion. With that victory, Shamrock began to devote most of his time to the UFC rather than Pancrase. He defended the Superfight Title against Oleg Taktarov and Kimo, but fell to Dan Severn at UFC IX by a split judges' decision (2-1). The defeat to Severn was a low blow to Shamrock, who started to look around for other opportunities. Shamrock's last appearance for Pancrase was June 25, 1996, where Masa Funaki won by default due to a Shamrock injury. Ken's last appearance for UFC was December 7, 1996, Ultimate Ultimate, where he defeated Brian Johnston. The end of 1996 saw Shamrock open up his own self-defense training school, The Lion's Den. He'd suffered a hand injury that needed time to heal, and his family wanted him to get out of the violent environment that is the UFC. Ken agreed it was time to move on, and on February 24, 1997 he signed a three-year multi-million dollar contract with the World Wrestling Federation and appeared that very night on a live telecast of Monday Night Raw. Ken's final shoot fighting stats were very impressive. He had a record of 13-2 in the Pancrase Assocation, 10-1 with the Fujiwara Gumi promotion, and 5-1-2 in the UFC. But the opportunity presented to him by the WWF was too good to pass up, and he chose to go back to his pro wrestling roots. Ken Shamrock started with the WWF by doing interview segments before being assigned as the special guest referee for the Wrestlemania 13 match between Bret Hart and Steve Austin. A short time later on Raw, Shamrock was doing commentary at ringside when he was challenged by "Rockabilly" Billy Gunn. Shamrock entered the ring and in a matter of seconds had Billy tapping the mat courtesy of his ankle lock submission. Shamrock's first match was on Raw is War, where he squashed Vernon White (one of his students from the Lion's Den) in a UFC style match. This brought out Vader, who also has fighting experience, and this immediately started a feud between them. At In Your House: A Cold Day in Hell, Shamrock and Vader clashed in a no holds barred match, where Shamrock came out on top with the ankle-lock submission. The match showed that Shamrock had some difficulties re-adapting to the world of wrestling, since he broke Vader's nose in four places and injured his knee. Because of the injuries that Vader sustained during the match, it was said that some of the other WWF wrestlers wouldn't work with "The world's most dangerous man." Ken began working with the Hart family in Calgary, and in August of 1997 at Summerslam the much-improved Shamrock challenged the British Bulldog for the European title. Despite coming out without the gold, Shamrock dominated the Bulldog and left him laying in the ring.Ken Shamrock's skills continued to improve with each match. He added aerial wrestling to his powerful and submissive style, mastering the hurricanrana. He was the sole survivor for his team at the 1997 Survivor Series, and earned a shot at the WWF championship ( held by Shawn Michaels) at IYH: Degeneration X in December of 1997. Shamrock put on a great performance before Michaels' DX partners interfered, prompting a disqualification finish. Shamrock was scheduled to compete at the UFC PPV on December 21, 1997, but his opponent, Takada backed out of the deal. Next came the 1998 Royal Rumble where Shamrock challenged The Nation's Rocky Maivia for the Intercontinental title after Maivia issued the challenge. Ken won the match but was then robbed of the title after Maivia slipped brass knuckles into his trucks and talked the referee into believing that Shamrock had used them, causing a disqualification. The two fought in a rematch at Wrestlemania XIV, and again Shamrock won the title, but refused to release his finishing hold and had the decision reversed and turned into a disqualification. Shamrock's feud with the Nation has continued for several months. He once teamed with strongman Mark Henry, and had Henry turn on him in favour of the Nation. The same happened in the case of Owen Hart, who also turned on Shamrock during a tag match and joined the Nation. Shamrock was put on the shelf for several weeks with an ankle injury following the attack by Hart, and the two have engaged in a bitter feud. Ken Shamrock's former UFC rival Dan Severn signed with the WWF in 1998. The two had countless staredowns, and have even come to each other's aid during attacks by the Nation. Shamrock and Severn finally locked up one-on-one in August of 1998 on Raw, in a match that ended with outside interference on the part of Owen Hart. Shamrock has waged war with Hart, with the two doing battle across North America in Submission Matches. At IYH: Fully Loaded in July of 1998, Owen defeated Ken in a Stu Hart Dungeon Match in Calgary. Then at Summerslam '98, Shamrock returned the favour by bringing Hart into his element, a "Lion's Den Match" that saw Shamrock come out on top. With his feud with Owen settled, Ken began to focus on the WWF title, nearly beating Steve Austin for the gold on more than one occasion. Unable to wrestle the belt away from Austin, Ken next competed in a triple threat cage match at IYH: Breakdown in September of 1998 against Mankind and The Rock. The winner of the match was to be named the top contender for the WWF title. Shamrock was pinned by The Rock after being struck with a chair by Mankind. The match led to a brutal feud between Shamrock and Mankind that saw them do battle on many occasions. Then on October 12, 1998, Ken won an Intercontinental title tournament on Raw to become the new IC champion. Shamrock displayed an even more viciousness in the tournament than ever, brutally defeating his now former friend Steve Blackman in the first round en route to beating X-Pac in the finals. \par Following two disappointing losses on Raw and at the 1998 Survivor Series to Mankind and the Rock respectively, Shamrock appeared on a live Raw telecast on November 16, 1998 and accepted Vince McMahon's offer to join the "corporate family".