History Wrestling / KenShamrock

* WrestlingFamily: Or MMA Family; his brother Frank is also a MMA fighter.

* TheUnfavourite: Wrestling/KarlGotch never liked Ken and Frank Shamrock, considering they were more streetfighters than wrestlers, and believed they should not have been pushed so much in Pancrase.

** (in SAPW): Wrestling/TheCorporation, and The Union, with Mankind, Wrestling/TheBigShow and Wrestling/{{Test}} after his face turn.

[[caption-width-right:300:The World's Most Dangerous Man.]]

-->''"I will get my respect or I will die."''

Kenneth Wayne "Ken" Shamrock (b. Ken Kilpatrick in 1964) is a retired American {{Professional Wrestl|ing}}er and UsefulNotes/{{Mixed Martial Art|s}}ist best known for his work in Wrestling/{{WWE}} and [[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship the UFC]]. He actually started as a pro wrestler, debuting in the South Atlantic Pro Wrestling promotion in 1989, under the name "Mr. Wrestling" Vince Torelli. This led him to Wrestling/AllJapanProWrestling, and he would go back and forth between SAPW and Japanese "shoot-style" promotions such as Wrestling/UniversalWrestlingFederation and [=PWFG=] until he walked away from wrestling for [=MMA=]. He competed for [=Pancrase=] and was on the first [=UFC=] event and would compete regularly for them until he returned to wrestling in 1997, this time for WWE. Over his time in WWE, he would hold the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title]] once, the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Title]] once with [[Wrestling/BigBossman the Big Bossman]] and win the 1998 ''King of the Ring'' Tournament. He returned to [=MMA=] in 2000 and went back and forth between the two. In 2002, he signed with the new Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA[=-=]Wrestling/{{TNA}} promotion, and was crowned the new [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/nwa/world/nwa-h.html NWA World Heavyweight Champion]] at ''NWA TNA #1''. He has also been a trainer and was a coach on ''The Ultimate Fighter''. His achievements in [=MMA=] include winning the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/mma/ufc/ufc-sf.html [=UFC Superfight=] Title]], the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/japan/pancrase/panc-ow.html King of [=Pancrasists=] Open-weight Title]] and, along with Royce Gracie, being one of the first inductees into the [=UFC=] Hall of Fame.

!!! "Ultimate, Dangerous Tropes":

* TheBigGuy
* BoisterousBruiser

* TheBrute: As a heel.

* UsefulNotes/CollegiateAmericanFootball: At Shasta College.

* {{Determinator}}

* FingerlessGloves

* HitMeDammit: During his Intercontinental Heavyweight Title match against Val Venis at ''WWF In Your House 27: St. Valentine's Day Massacre'', Ryan Shamrock was supposed to slap him but missed her cue, with Ken attempting to salvage the situation by audibly yelling, "SLAP ME!"

* HonorBeforeReason: His first fight with Royce Gracie ended after he tapped out and admitted it to the referee who didn't see it, instead of taking the opportunity to continue the fight.

* HotBlooded
* [[IKnowKarate I Know MMA]]: Specifically the Japanese shoot-style MMA, which is based around catch wrestling and other martial arts.

* [[WrestlingFamily [=MMA=] Family]]: His brother Frank.

* OvershadowedByAwesome: He defeated [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson the Rock]] to win the 1998 ''King of the Ring'' Tournament... the same night as the Hell In A Cell II match between [[Wrestling/MickFoley Mankind]] and Wrestling/TheUndertaker.
* {{Permastubble}}

** (in SAPW): Jones' Rangers (which included a young [[Wrestling/{{Tatanka}} Chris Chavis, later Tatanka]]) (face)
*** The Stud Stable (heel)
** Wrestling/TheCorporation
** The Union, with Mankind, Wrestling/TheBigShow and Wrestling/{{Test}} after his face turn.

* ScreamingWarrior: "GET OUT OF MY WAY!", after [[Wrestling/DaveyBoySmith the British Bulldog]] shoved dog food in Ken's mouth during their match at ''[=SummerSlam=] 97.''

* UnderwearOfPower

* UnstoppableRage

* WrestlingDoesntPay: Subverted. He took up pro wrestling because MMA was not paying enough.

* RealMenLoveJesus: Is born-again Christian.

'''Kenneth Wayne "Ken" Shamrock''' (b. Ken Kilpatrick in 1964) is a retired American {{Professional Wrestl|ing}}er and UsefulNotes/{{Mixed Martial Art|s}}ist best known for his work in Wrestling/{{WWE}} and [[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship the UFC]]. He actually started as a pro wrestler, debuting in the South Atlantic Pro Wrestling promotion in 1989, under the name "Mr. Wrestling" Vince Torelli. This led him to Wrestling/AllJapanProWrestling, and he would go back and forth between SAPW and Japanese "shoot-style" promotions such as Wrestling/UniversalWrestlingFederation and [=PWFG=] until he walked away from wrestling for [=MMA=]. He competed for [=Pancrase=] and was on the first [=UFC=] event and would compete regularly for them until he returned to wrestling in 1997, this time for WWE. Over his time in WWE, he would hold the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title]] once, the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Title]] once with [[Wrestling/BigBossman the Big Bossman]] and win the 1998 ''King of the Ring'' Tournament. He returned to [=MMA=] in 2000 and went back and forth between the two. In 2002, he signed with the new Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA[=-=]Wrestling/{{TNA}} promotion, and was crowned the new [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/nwa/world/nwa-h.html NWA World Heavyweight Champion]] at ''NWA TNA #1''. He has also been a trainer and was a coach on ''The Ultimate Fighter''. His achievements in [=MMA=] include winning the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/mma/ufc/ufc-sf.html [=UFC Superfight=] Title]], the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/japan/pancrase/panc-ow.html King of [=Pancrasists=] Open-weight Title]] and, along with Royce Gracie, being one of the first inductees into the [=UFC=] Hall of Fame.

* DefeatMeansFriendship: Back in UWF, Ken once had to grapple for real with Duane Koslowski, a wrestler from the Olympic Team, in order to settle down who would win their impending worked match. After Ken made him tap out twice via heel hook, they became friends and Ken started to coah him in submission wrestling.

* BloodKnight: He loved to fight, since the first minute on his fight with Don Nakaya Nielsen to the last minute of the post-prime fight he should have not taken.

* ArchEnemy: Dan "The Beast" Severn, both in MMA and in WWF. In MMA, Royce Gracie, Tito Ortiz and Mark Hall.

* BallsOfSteel: Literally. Dan Severn tried to get out of a guillotine choke by low blowing Ken, but under his purple speedos Shamrock wore a muay thai metal cup, and all Dan did was hurting his hand. Felix Mitchell was supposedly more GenreSavvy and tried to stuck his hand in Ken's tights and remove the cup, but Ken didn't let him.

* DanceIsASeriousBusiness: Shamrock's apprentice Vernon White worked as a bartender and stripper while he was training under Ken, and according to him, Shamrock sometimes joined the show.

** The second fight against Masakatsu Funaki is believed to be a work in order to rebuild Funaki's reputation, which got damaged after losing to Ken at the first Pancrase event, and also to preserve Ken before his expected fights in the upcoming UFC 3.
** Ken was told to throw his second match with Minoru Suzuki in order to drop to him the King of Pancrase title, as Shamrock would compete later against Dan Severn (former UWF-i wrestler) in UFC and Pancrase could not take the risk of their champion losing to a wrestler belonging to a worked wrestling promotion.

* BallsOfSteel: Literally. Dan Severn tried to get out of a guillotine choke by low blowing Ken, but under his purple speedos Shamrock wore a muay thai metal cup, and all Dan did was hurting his hand.

* ArchEnemy: Dan "The Beast" Severn, in [=UFC=] and in WWE. In MMA also Tito Ortiz and Royce Gracie.
* AudienceSurrogate: Type 3. For the early era of UFC, Ken was the audience's most familiar figure. Not only he was American and had a action film hero build, he was the only fighter who knew what he was doing aside from the weird Brazilian guys who had came to break the ground of traditional martial arts. To increase the mystic value, Shamrock even came accompanied by an inscrutable Japanese mentor who had taught him mysterious fighting techniques just like [[Film/TheKarateKid Mr. Miyagi]], and he soon got involved in a real life martial arts feud motivated by revenge against the Brazilian fighters. At the time, Shamrock was basically the Film/AmericanNinja.

* BullyingADragon: Back when they were in PWFG, Kazuo Takahashi broke the script in a match and shot on Shamrock. Perhaps predictably, the matter ended in ninety seconds with a soccer kick to the face of the Japanese. Ironically, they turned into VitriolicBestBuds when they later became sparring partners in Pancrase.

[[quoteright:200:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kenshamrock_7502.jpg]]

'''Ken Shamrock''' (b. Ken Kilpatrick in 1964) is a retired American {{Professional Wrestl|ing}}er and UsefulNotes/{{Mixed Martial Art|s}}ist best known for his work in Wrestling/{{WWE}} and [[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship the UFC]]. He actually started as a pro wrestler, debuting in the South Atlantic Pro Wrestling promotion in 1989, under the name "Mr. Wrestling" Vince Torelli. This led him to Wrestling/AllJapanProWrestling, and he would go back and forth between SAPW and Japanese "shoot-style" promotions such as Wrestling/UniversalWrestlingFederation and [=PWFG=] until he walked away from wrestling for [=MMA=]. He competed for [=Pancrase=] and was on the first [=UFC=] event and would compete regularly for them until he returned to wrestling in 1997, this time for WWE. Over his time in WWE, he would hold the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title]] once, the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Title]] once with [[Wrestling/BigBossman the Big Bossman]] and win the 1998 ''King of the Ring'' Tournament. He returned to [=MMA=] in 2000 and went back and forth between the two. In 2002, he signed with the new Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA[=-=]Wrestling/{{TNA}} promotion, and was crowned the new [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/nwa/world/nwa-h.html NWA World Heavyweight Champion]] at ''NWA TNA #1''. He has also been a trainer and was a coach on ''The Ultimate Fighter''. His achievements in [=MMA=] include winning the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/mma/ufc/ufc-sf.html [=UFC Superfight=] Title]], the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/japan/pancrase/panc-ow.html King of [=Pancrasists=] Open-weight Title]] and, along with Royce Gracie, being one of the first inductees into the [=UFC=] Hall of Fame.

* AudienceSurrogate: Type 3. For the early era of UFC, Ken was the audience's most familiar figure. Not only he was American and had a action film hero build, he was the only fighter who knew what he was doing aside from the weird Brazilian guys who had came to break the ground of traditional martial arts. To increase the mystic value, Shamrock even came accompanied by an inscrutable Japanese mentor who had taught him mysterious techniques just like [[Film/KarateKid Mr. Miyagi]], and he soon got involved in a real life martial arts feud motivated by revenge against the Brazilian fighters. At the time, Shamrock was basically the Film/AmericanNinja.

* ArchEnemy: Dan "The Beast" Severn, in [=UFC=] and in WWE. In MMA also Tito Ortiz & Royce Gracie.

* BadassTeacher: He owns the Lion's Den MMA Gyms and has trained fighters like Vernon 'Tiger' White, Guy Mezger, Frank Shamrock, Maurice Smith, Jerry Bohlander, Tra Telligman, Pete Williams, Mikey Burnett, Oleg Taktarov, Mark Coleman, Jason Delucia, Roy Nelson, Joe Hurley and many others.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: During his first fight against Royce Gracie on UFC 1, Shamrock got two iterations of the trope. The first one was that he dropped backwards to leglock Gracie without knowing he had Royce's gi wrapped around his hand, which accidentally pulled his opponent on top of him. And the second and worst one was that he insisted on locking the hold without figuring he had to defend gi chokes, which let Gracie to do exactly that and submit him.

* LightningBruiser: Aside from a great technical worker trained by Funaki and Suzuki, Ken was incredibly strong, which made his game more dangerous than the accustomed slim grapplers.

* OvershadowedByAwesome: He defeated [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson the Rock]] to win the 1998 ''King of the Ring'' Tournament...the same night as the Hell In A Cell II match between [[Wrestling/MickFoley Mankind]] and Wrestling/TheUndertaker.

* {{Badass}}

* ReligiousBruiser: Is born-again Christian.

* WorkedShoot: Ken had a long career in Japanese shoot-style promotions, which mean matches designed to look like MMA fights, and eventually a longer career in Pancrase, a MMA company famous for its relaxation at the time of host worked fights to promotional purposes. Shamrock has stated he fought those predetermiend fights for the business's sake.

'''Ken Shamrock''' (b. Ken Kilpatrick in 1964) is a retired American {{Professional Wrestl|ing}}er and UsefulNotes/{{Mixed Martial Art|s}}ist best known for his work in Wrestling/{{WWE}} and [[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship the UFC]]. He actually started as a pro wrestler, debuting in the South Atlantic Pro Wrestling promotion in 1989, under the name "Mr. Wrestling" Vince Torelli. This led him to Wrestling/AllJapanProWrestling, and he would go back and forth between SAPW and Japanese "shoot-style" promotions such as Wrestling/UniversalWrestlingFederation and [=PWFG=] until he walked away from wrestling for [=MMA=]. He competed for [=Pancrase=] and was on the first [=UFC=] event and would compete regularly for them until he returned to wrestling in 1997, this time for WWE. Over his time in WWE, he would hold the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title]] once, the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Title]] once with [[Wrestling/BigBossman the Big Bossman]] and win the 1998 ''King of the Ring'' Tournament. He returned to [=MMA=] in 2000 and went back and forth between the two. In 2002, he signed with the new Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA-Wrestling/{{TNA}} promotion, and was crowned the new [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/nwa/world/nwa-h.html NWA World Heavyweight Champion]] at ''NWA TNA #1''. He has also been a trainer and was a coach on ''The Ultimate Fighter''. His achievements in [=MMA=] include winning the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/mma/ufc/ufc-sf.html [=UFC Superfight=] Title]], the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/japan/pancrase/panc-ow.html King of [=Pancrasists=] Open-weight Title]] and, along with Royce Gracie, being one of the first inductees into the [=UFC=] Hall of Fame.

'''Ken Shamrock''' (b. Ken Kilpatrick in 1964) is a retired American {{Professional Wrestl|ing}}er and UsefulNotes/{{Mixed Martial Art|s}}ist best known for his work in Wrestling/{{WWE}} and [[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship the UFC]]. He actually started as a pro wrestler, debuting in the South Atlantic Pro Wrestling promotion in 1989, under the name "Mr. Wrestling" Vince Torelli. This led him to Wrestling/AllJapanProWrestling, and he would go back and forth between SAPW and Japanese "shoot-style" promotions such as Wrestling/UniversalWrestlingFederation and [=PWFG=] until he walked away from wrestling for [=MMA=]. He competed for [=Pancrase=] and was on the first [=UFC=] event and would compete regularly for them until he returned to wrestling in 1997, this time for WWE. Over his time in WWE, he would hold the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Title]] once, the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Title]] once with [[Wrestling/BigBossman the Big Bossman]] and win the 1998 ''King of the Ring'' Tournament. He returned to [=MMA=] in 2000 and went back and forth between the two. In 2002, he signed with the new [[Wrestling/{{TNA}} NWA TNA]] promotion, and was crowned the new [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/nwa/world/nwa-h.html NWA World Heavyweight Champion]] at ''NWA TNA #1''. He has also been a trainer and was a coach on ''The Ultimate Fighter''. His achievements in [=MMA=] include winning the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/mma/ufc/ufc-sf.html [=UFC Superfight=] Title]], the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/japan/pancrase/panc-ow.html King of [=Pancrasists=] Open-weight Title]] and, along with Royce Gracie, being one of the first inductees into the [=UFC=] Hall of Fame.

* BullyingADragon: Back when they were in PWFG, Kazuo Takahashi broke the script in a match and shot on Shamrock. Perhaps predictably, the matter ended in ninety seconds with a soccer kick to the face of the Japanese. Ironically, they turned into VitrolicBestBuds when they later became sparring partners in Pancrase.

* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: According to Maurice Smith, Ken was one of the strongest guys from his time, even more than dominant wrestlers like Mark Coleman.