STW - Ken Shamrock 1997-98 [Show Notes] (Patreon)

Ken turns 58 on February 11th!

The Ken Shamrock story in professional wrestling begins much like one of your good friends’ The Undertaker’s stories did - with Buzz Sawyer. He went for wrestling training but never got any of it. What was it about Buzz that just led to this trail of talents that went to him and got nothing out of it?

Ken ends up getting trained by Nelson Royal & Gene Anderson and makes his WWF debut in 1989! In Greensboro on July 29th he loses to Barry Horowitz and on July 30th he loses to Tom Magee. Yes, the same Tom Magee who had the classic match with Bret Hart. Do you remember hearing of Ken from his work on these house shows or is he not even on your radar at this point?

Ken ends up working more of a shoot style and ends up in Japan where that style was more accepted before he starts actually competing in MMA for Pancrase & the UFC. Shamrock had legendary fueds with the legendary Gracie family. With UFC exploding in popularity in early 1995 does anyone go - “hey do you remember that kid from 1989?” or is it more along the lines of seeing the UFC’s popularity and being like, who would fit into a professional wrestling ring?

When does the opportunity or idea of Ken Shamrock being in the World Wrestling Federation begin? Late 1996?

Ken is a legit draw between him fighting Gracie and eventually Dan Severn in the UFC and his Japanese commitments…and is named “The World’s Most Dangerous Man” by CBS. How big a marketing tool is this?

The UFC is struggling between issues with politicians and pay-per-view companies and it’s reported in the August 19th, 1996 Observer that Ken has had discussions with the WWF but his demands were too high. Who makes the contact to Ken?

Is the hope to pull in UFC fans to the WWF?

What were his demands that were stopping him from joining the WWF?

This is from the Observer in October of 96: “WWF reports are that Ken Shamrock's demands were much higher than what they're paying everyone else that's coming in new which is why negotiations went nowhere.”

It’s reported that Shamrock is looking for a $500,000 guarantee…was it just money that were the differences in the negotiations?

It’s also reported at the time that he was in talks with New Japan. Was that ever brought up in your discussions?

Shamrock’s last fight for the UFC is in December 1996 against Brian Johnston and gets a win but breaks his hand. Is Vince watching UFC? Is someone else watching UFC?

If Ken loses that match - is the WWF’s interest lessened?

Ken is in training to start 1997 to fight again in MMA if nothing happens between himself & the WWF and also New Japan. Was Ken trying to negotiate in an ability to fight in MMA if he signed a contract with the WWF?

It’s reported that Shamrock is at a house show in Stockton, CA on January 4th and he’s mobbed by fans looking for autographs. Is this a face to face meeting with WWF officials or him just being at the show do you think?

It’s reported in the Observer that Shamrock is in heavy negotiations with main eventing a Tokyo Dome show for New Japan for April 12th. Are you aware of this and does it lead to accelerated talks and the need to get the deal done?

Did you feel you needed Ken added to the roster?

Are you looking at him as a kick ass babyface or a top of the card destroyer heel?

On February 24th Shamrock signs with the WWF. From the Observer: “Shamrock, 33, signed a three-year guaranteed exclusive contract with the WWF for a low seven figure down-side guarantee and signing bonus. In addition, Vince McMahon has the option after three years to continue the contract for an additional three years without Shamrock having the option to test himself at that point on the free agent market. The contract is exclusive, ending Shamrock's participation in the Ultimate Fighting Championship or in any shootfighting events. At least at press time appears to kill what some Japanese insiders were expecting to wind up being the biggest money live match in pro wrestling history--a proposed 4/12 match at the Tokyo Dome against Shinya Hashimoto for the IWGP championship.

Shamrock debuted on Monday Night Raw later that evening at the Manhattan Center, portrayed as a celebrity in the audience attending the matches with his father Bob and wife Tina. They showed him early in the show in the crowd. He was put over as a major star with them talking about him as a superstar from the controversial Ultimate Fighting Championship events and called him a UFC champion and said he was called by ABC-television as the World's Most Dangerous Human being. About 45 minutes into the show, he was interviewed by Jerry Lawler who tried to claim they were best friends and he had taught him all his submission holds with Shamrock acting as if he didn't know who Lawler was. The segment really didn't work. Later in the show he was interviewed again, this time by Todd Pettingill, and asked about the two Wrestlemania main event matches. At this point Faarooq came out and got in his face and made a disparaging remark about UFC. Shamrock did a wrestling promo back. For some reason, the camera wasn't on him as he made his comeback and said he'd take him on one-on-one if Vince McMahon would sign the match. This segment didn't come off as either good nor bad. Shamrock is going to have to get the megapush from WWF to justify the contract, so it's pretty well acknowledged he's either going to wind up as a major superstar in American wrestling or a flop. There is no in between, and based on his first appearance, there is no hint at all of which it will end up being. It was a positive that the live crowd took to him like a star, popped big for him and the mentions of UFC, and chanted his name during his interview”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXpmUdKsAr0 Shamrock - Lawler

Ken Shamrock Interview. Farooq confronts Shamrock & challenges him to a match! 1997 (WWF)

How does the deal close? Is it for 7 figures as Meltzer says? The deal getting done and getting him on TV. How important is that as this is during the famed Raw with ECW invading and coming off the Shawn Loses his Smile Raw from the week before…

Lawler - Shamrock as a segment really didn’t work as Dave points out but the interview with him and Faarooq later on is much better. Is there a worry that Ken will have an issue acclimating to the world of professional wrestling as it’s been a long time since he was involved?

It’s so odd to hear UFC mentioned on WWF TV. This is really done because Vince isn’t worried about the UFC being competition at this time right? I mean they’re barely hanging on at this point let alone running a different business model.

It’s reported in the Observer that Shamrock had planned to take a meeting with WCW as well - did that play a part in this at all?

New Japan announced that Shamrock was going to be in the main event of the April Tokyo Dome we talked about earlier on the 19th - so 5 days later the WWF announces the signing. Any talk of allowing Shamrock do the show or was that New Japan jumping the gun do you think…or did Ken double cross them?

Any thought because of Shamrock’s popularity in Japan to be a way into that market?

Shamrock said in the Jonathan Snowden book, “Shamrock: The World’s Most Dangerous Man” that he didn’t necessarily wanted to be in pro wrestling but it was the comfort and security of the deal. Did you feel that way when he signed?

There’s got to be pressure to get Shamrock involved immediately and in a big way because of the contract but you also have someone who hasn’t wrestled professionally in years. Are there plans to get him trained back up but still utilize his name and TV value?

Jim Cornette has said before how excited he was about having him…are you excited to have Shamrock in the fold?

Was he Brock Lesnar before Brock Lesnar?

Any talk of his brother Frank coming aboard?

There’s speculation that he’ll be sent to work with your brother Tom in Connecticut or to head to Calgary and train with the Hart family. Who makes that decision?

Bret vs. Austin is announced as a submission match at WrestleMania 13 and we all know the impact of that match…but is the match made a submission match because of the plan to have Shamrock be the referee?

Who’s idea was it to put Shamrock as the referee of Bret vs. Austin?

Regarding creative for Shamrock Meltzer had this to say: “It's no secret what needs to be done, basically educating the audience to submissions with Shamrock portrayed as the master of that game. Will it work? Perhaps not immediately. So the question becomes patience, something pro wrestling promotions have lacked greatly in these days of a new head-to-head ratings battle every Monday night. For the short run, Shamrock is not going to be a guy who makes a difference in the ratings and a new style isn't going to be understood or over with the new audience for him by next Monday night. I don't know if any one person can be a one-man ratings changer, but certainly if there was, it isn't him. But with the right build-up and booking, and the right opponent, he should be someone who can draw money and interest on PPV for the right match with the right build. If this becomes the beginning of a new road with more emphasis on matwork, realism, and submission finishes, thus enabling wrestlers to get away with less acrobatic and risky high spots and save their bodies in a business where the injury rate and risks seem to get higher by the week, it's better for everyone. But a change like that can't happen overnight.”

This does hold some water here Bruce. Is this all something you’re thinking and talking about creatively at this time in 1997?

Is it important when you sign someone like Ken to a big contract - and his first big role is as a referee - to be able to sit there and listen to two Hall of Famers put a match together like this on the big stage?

In Shamrock’s first in-ring performance on Raw on March 17th Shamrock - who’s doing commentary - accepts a challenge from Billy Gunn to get into the ring and takes him down and uses an armbar and an ankle lock - before he lets him go. Does someone like Billy take exception to this or have issues or was Billy a team player?

There’s talk in the Observer at the time that Steve Williams is in discussions about coming in and working a program with Ken to get him over but Williams’ arrest in Japan for marijuana charges puts an end to that. Was that anything ever considered?

Were there any UFC fighters you were talking about coming in to put Shamrock over?

Speaking of you and the Observer … “Bruce Prichard called UFC up trying to get the rights to use Ken Shamrock UFC footage on WWF television.”

UFC footage does air on WWF TV - but is it you that called?

Was that a tough negotiation?

Bret vs. Austin takes place at WrestleMania and we’ve talked about that match a lot but what did Shamrock add to it do you think?

After the match Bret gets ripped off Austin and stands him down and that really immediately makes him a force to be reckoned with does it not? Is the plan to put Bret & Shamrock into a program together or is this something for farther down the line?

From the Observer: “They did a Ken Shamrock UFC video showing lots of UFC footage. There was more to this than meets the eye as it's part of a working relationship between the two promotions. Both groups are going to cooperate with each other in regard to footage (so you might see Ludvig Borga footage on UFC), they've promised not to say anything bad about the other promotion publicly (so UFC can't bury Shamrock publicly for going into pro wrestling if they were thinking in that direction) and WWF will advertise and push the 5/30 UFC PPV.”

Hell of a deal you put together Bruce!

The WWF brings in Vernon White for the exhibition and it takes place on Raw is War. From the Observer: “Ken Shamrock beat Vernon White (a former Pancrase fighter who took second in an NHB tourney in Brazil in November trained by Shamrock from the Lions Den) via tap out in what was called a no holds barred exhibition in 2:00. This was real bad. Shamrock has great charisma walking to the ring but they have no clue how to book him and this was a major step backwards. There is nothing that looks worse than a fake UFC match. Crowd didn't react and booed the tap out from punches since wrestling fans see that in almost every match as nothing but a transition spot. This needed a submission finish. White needed nine stitches since the glove punches, even with Shamrock holding back, actually opened his head up badly and they went to the finish before doing a lot of planned spots. The camera shot away from the blood since it wasn't planned, but the rest of the show there were two huge splotches of blood all over the mat and there was White's blood all over Shamrock's chest. Vince McMahon plugged the UFC PPV show on 5/30 and said that No Holds Barred fighting is really misunderstood by many Americans and talked of it incorporated tactics from wrestling, karate and Jiu "Jitso." Vader came out and had a confrontation with Shamrock. Vader then destroyed Frank Staletto in a style that Shamrock should be using--stiff blows, power moves and submissions.”

What do you remember of this? Why Vernon White? Do you agree with Meltzer that Shamrock should be doing what Vader was doing work wise at this point?

Was Vader the right first opponent for Ken?

Vader gets detained in Kuwait which is something we’ve covered in the archives before which you should go check out. Does this put a halt on the Ken - Vader story?

The Raw after Vader’s incident Ken Shamrock calls out Mike Tyson. This is before the 1998 Tyson angle with Austin…was there any talks at the time for Shamrock vs. Tyson?

When Vader finally returns to America he gets into it with Jim Ross like he did in Kuwait with the commentator and Shamrock makes the save. It’s important to continue portraying Shamrock as a killer and babyface is it not?

There’s a video of Shamrock that airs that shows him with his family and training Lions Den fighters and even Meltzer puts it over as a great video. Shamrock does commentary for Vader vs. Goldust and Meltzer points out how his character improvement by the week was really noticeable. At this point Shamrock has been doing a great job in getting himself over. Are you worried that’s all going to go away when the bell rings?

From the Observer: “Shamrock has also been training learning ring psychology from Bret Hart while Hart recuperates. Everyone realizes there is a lot on the line in the Shamrock-Vader match as far as it going at least okay, so I suspect they'll be working extra hard laying out and the match this week.” How important is Shamrock vs. Vader in the long run?

How does Vader feel about being in this position as obviously his role is to get Ken over?

Cold Day in Hell is kind of the Ken Shamrock show. He impresses in the match with Vader. From the Observer: “ They did an exceedingly stiff and more of a semi-shoot than most people would realize in what was very close to a UWF-style before fans who didn't quite understand the meaning of a lot of what they were seeing.”

Is this a success in your eyes? How about Vince’s?

Meltzer criticizes the booking saying Vader should’ve been someone he was built to face instead of doing so right away and he should’ve killed a bunch of prelim guys in the run up to it. Do you agree?

How beat up is Vader after the match? Does that worry some of the guys of working with Shamrock or was that just because those two felt comfortable with it?

We’ve always heard stories like of Hulk Hogan saying “No Stiffo” about Kurt Angle - does anybody go out of their way to say they’re not interested in working Ken?

Shamrock gets food poisoning and is pulled from the house shows. How important is it to get Ken as much work as possible?

Shamrock is announced as working the FMW show in late September against Vader. Do you put this deal together?

In the Observer it’s reported there are negotiations with Dan Severn about coming in to work with Ken. How serious are these talks in 1997?

Shawn Michaels fights with Bret Hart and Ken Shamrock is scheduled to be his replacement as part of the Canadian Stampede 10-man tag. This is a big deal for Shamrock at this point is it not?

Shamrock begins being married up with Davey Boy Smith after this. Why Davey?

There’s an interesting angle on Raw on June 9th. Mankind is being beaten up by the Hart Foundation when Austin & Shamrock run out for the save…but Austin also drops Shamrock with a Stunner. This is the first time Shamrock has been shown to be weak…any issues with Ken doing this?

Do you see a heel Shamrock against Austin being a big time program later on?

Raw on June 16th features Austin & Shamrock agreeing to a singles match but it never happens. Would this had been too soon?

In something that probably wouldn’t happen with today’s Forbidden Door…Dan Severn appears on the June 23rd Raw and comes out to have a face to face confrontation but ends up shaking hands with Ken. But it’s written in the Observer no deal is made. Who makes the call to put Severn on TV without a deal and how come you couldn’t get him to sign?

Did Shamrock or Severn talk about any hesitancy in working together?

Shamrock does TV against Hunter and gets the win and Meltzer would write that, “It's amazing both how quickly Shamrock is developing into a solid American style worker and how quickly they're ruining him as an attraction who can draw money because he can work.”

Does Ken’s turn to working a more traditional professional wrestling style hurt his chances of being a draw?

Shamrock is part of the 10 man at Canadian Stampede but doesn’t get a lot of time which is probably by design is that correct?

Being in a match with those other guys Shamrock can learn by osmosis really right?

After the 10-man it’s setup that Shamrock will take on Bulldog at SummerSlam - if Bulldog loses he’ll eat dog food. Guy goes from being the Ultimate Ultimate to wrestling to make a man eat dog food. What a difference huh?

There are house show lineups for after SummerSlam which feature Bret vs. Shamrock. Was Bret pushing for a program with him?

There’s an arm wrestling contest between Bulldog and Shamrock that ends with Bulldog headbutting Shamrock and killing him with chair shots and poured dog food all over him. How is Ken when these ideas are presented to him?

Shamrock vs. Bulldog takes place at SummerSlam and while the match isn’t memorable after the match is when he destroys the referees, Gerald Brisco and Pat Patterson. Does Pat put this all together?

It’s the first time Ken gets that type of superstar reaction and it’s really an iconic clip of him yelling, “Get out of my way!” Did everyone look at each other backstage and go - yup - that’s it!

Shamrock took a bump in the match that resulted in bruising his kidneys and ended up coughing up blood. How serious is it after the fact?

One Night Only is coming up in England and this is Ken’s schedule. From England to Madison Square Garden for Raw, to Albany, NY for a Raw taping then Kawasaki Baseball Stadium in Japan for FMW. This is not the schedule he’s used to. Do you remember any growing pains with Ken during this?

Shamrock loses for the first time while on a house show tour in Canada to Owen Hart. Any issues that you remember or did Ken get it?

Ken defeats Faarooq on an edition of Raw in the Intercontinental Title Tournament since it’s vacant from Austin’s injury and is attacked by the Nation before the Legion of Doom save him. Is Ken positioned at this point to be mid carder?

Shamrock doesn’t end up wrestling Owen at One Night Only because of a lung infection. But he still flies to England and ends up putting Rockabilly in an ankle lock. Isn’t…that dangerous to have him flying with a lung infection?

Shamrock is removed from the IC title tournament due to the injury and also was heavily fined for missing a shot in Albuquerque. What do you remember of Ken missing the shot and JR fining him?

Ken still wrestles at FMW and it’s said in the Observer that he takes a power bomb from Vader and immediately coughs up blood and… “According to reports, both Vader and WWF representative Bruce Prichard appeared very concerned in the ring at that point and they went right to the finish with Shamrock being unable to get up by the count of ten and the referee stopping the match at 7:17. Vader in the cage was screaming to get a doctor into the ring.”

How scary is this Bruce?

Is there legit concern for Ken at this point?

Shamrock returns and is put in the main event with Shawn on Raw on November 3rd which sees Shamrock beat Michaels via DQ when Rude and HHH interfered but Michaels tapped before that and the ref missed. This is a big step up for Ken to be in the main event and getting Shawn to tap even though the referee missed. Does this kill the narrative Shawn didn’t want to lose?

Then of course Hunter hit Shamrock with a pedigree but we’ll move on.

Survivor Series happens and Shamrock tags with Ahmed & Legion of Doom to take on the Nation and the purpose of the match is to get Ken over. Considering what’s going to happen to Bret later on…is the plan as you know of Ken against Shawn at the next In Your House?

The match closes with Shamrock and Rocky Maivia and Shamrock gets the win with the ankle lock. What a future these two will have against each other won’t they?

There’s always been rumor and innuendo that Bret said he would put Shamrock over for the title and that Cornette even said put Shamrock in the ring with Bret and he’ll get the job done. Do you think there was ever any consideration to have that happen?

What’s Shamrock’s reaction to the Screwjob? I only ask because it’s mentioned in the Observer that “Hart was probably more responsible than anyone else in getting Shamrock into the WWF as he was the one who sought Shamrock out and basically recruited him and helped train him.”

The next night on Raw Shamrock is immediately positioned as the next challenger - when him and Hunter are in the main event. But there’s a screw up. The match was supposed to end with Michaels interfering and then Shamrock pinning him and the ref counting to three, and as Meltzer speculates it’s to take some heat off Michaels - but the show goes off the air with Shamrock down apparently being pinned after Michaels hit him with the briefcase. How does this type of thing happen? Was Ken pissed afterwards?

To build for Shawn vs. Shamrock - Shamrock cuts this weird promo where he says he’s friends with Bret and would defend his honor against Shawn at In Your House DX. Bruce…who…what…why would anyone clear that?

This is interesting from the Observer in early December - “Dan Severn had another negotiation session with Jim Ross. It appears WWF wants to go with Michaels vs. Austin, Undertaker vs. Kane and Shamrock vs. Severn at Mania. Severn doesn't want to come in to just be a guy to put Shamrock over and they offered him a program besides the Shamrock program.”

Was this the plan at this point? Did you really see Severn vs. Shamrock that high up on the card?

It’s announced that Ken Shamrock will be taking on Nobuhiko Takada for the UFC pay-per-view on December 21st. It’s rumored that SEG offered the WWF $100,000 for the right to book Shamrock. What do you remember of this?

Did you think this was a good idea?

Shamrock does the pay-per-view with Shawn in the main event. “8. Ken Shamrock beat Shawn Michaels via DQ in 18:29 so Michaels retained the WWF title. Michaels hit an elbow off the top but Shamrock kicked out. Shamrock came back using his belly-to-belly and put on the ankle lock, and HHH and Chyna interfered for the DQ. Match was pretty good at times and just so-so at other times, and the finish for a PPV main event was really weak. After the match all three threw Shamrock over the top, and as Michaels was celebrating, Owen Hart ran in and knocked him off the apron taking his monthly bump through the Spanish language announcers broadcast table. Hart jumped on him and was pounding away and ripping at the nose, apparently to draw blood to give the illusion that the punches themselves were real, before disappearing into the crowd. ***”

The show is more well remembered for the Owen attack but how do you think Ken did in his first … and only … singles main event for the WWF?

Right from that show Ken goes to begin training for the UFC. If Ken doesn’t do that deal is there any thought of putting him over Shawn?

The UFC deal falls apart pretty quickly and Ken is right back on TV. Did this show at the time that UFC really didn’t have their shit together?

Shamrock is scheduled to be in the main event in Oklahoma City with Danny Hodge as his second against Triple H with Shawn Michaels but the crowd gets unruly and Michaels walks off and the match is canceled starting a riot.

Shamrock does slide down the card as he’s positioned to start working with the Rock. Shamrock is one of the few guys who gets one main event shot and then never again. Why do you think that is?

When Mike Tyson makes his deal with the WWF is there any consideration of marrying up Shamrock and Tyson for anything?

Shamrock starts feuding with the Rock but still cuts a promo on Austin to meet him at the Rumble. Do you know what’s going on here?

Mark Henry joins the Nation and turns on Ken Shamrock in a tag match. It’s obvious how quickly Ken has fallen down the card here right?

Shamrock loses to Rocky by disqualification at the Rumble after he originally gets the pin but Rock had put brass knuckles in his tights and the decision is reversed. Is this a miss on the behalf of Shamrock?

Also Shamrock gets thrown out by Rocky in the Rumble as well.

At No Way Out it’s an 8-man match between Shamrock, Ahmed & DOA against the Nation. Before we get there on a Raw the Rock kills Shamrock with a steel chair shot to the face. It’s one of those that stands out in everyone’s mind. Did Ken and Rocky get along?

Shamrock gets the tap out win over Rocky at No Way Out but it’s more of a backdrop to the problems with the Nation.

The rematch between the two is scheduled for WrestleMania. I know what you’re going to say Bruce. Ken didn’t need the belt. But didn’t he? He hadn’t really beaten anyone of note outside of Vader when he first debuted and only beat Rocky in an 8-man.

Goldberg at the time is rising through the ranks of WCW and as much as there’s comparisons between him & Austin…the comparison between him & Shamrock is hard to ignore. Could Shamrock had been as big as Goldberg if he was booked the same way?

At Mania Rocky beats Shamrock again via DQ and reverse decision. Shamrock got the win in 4:49 via tap out but he put the move back on again after the match and the referee reversed the decision. There’s something to be said about babyfaces who never actually win. Was it time at this point to turn Shamrock and get him heated up now that Austin needs challengers?

Well you don’t do that as he continues with the Nation as Faarooq gets kicked out the Nation and Shamrock helps make the save. At Backlash it’s scheduled to be Shamrock, Steve Blackman & Faarooq against Rocky, D’Lo & Mark Henry. Is Ken just stuck in 6-man hell?

Is someone negative on him? For the amount of money he’s getting paid why did he never advance up the card? Is he too stiff?

Dan Severn finally signs and debuts on TV and the tease is on. Did anyone think this was going to be a big money match?

Shamrock gets hurt in a brawl with his ankle so it makes his work in the 6-man very limited and Rocky beats Faarooq for the win. Is it hard to trust Ken at this point because there’s a lot of injuries?

Owen Hart turns on Ken Shamrock in a tag match as he becomes the second person to do it to Ken and join the Nation so Ken and Owen are now going to be married up for the summer. Was this a plus or negative to Ken?

Owen hurts Shamrock to let him heal his ankle…and in that time Ken releases a book regarding his life story and focused on the UFC. The WWF did very little to promote it. Was this something done against the WWF wishes or just something they wouldn’t be promoting?

Owen Hart ends up destroying Severn too and it’s speculated in the Observer that there’s talk of putting together a group called “The Shooters” with Shamrock, Severn & Steve Blackman. Is this real?

Ken comes back in time for the King of the Ring Tournament and he gets the biggest win of his career up until that point defeating the Rock in the finals. Was this the hopeful jumpstart Ken needed?

The Brawl for All begins to take shape around this time. This is one of my favorite episodes ever in the archive to check out but Bruce - was Ken ever considered for it? It’s reported in the Observer that he was asked to be in it and Ken turned it down? Do you know that to be true?

Dan Severn does an interview on the internet where he talks about how Ken didn’t get his body just by working out. Does Ken hear about this and how much heat is there about this?

Shamrock works the summer house shows in submission matches with Owen and it’s announced for Fully Loaded that Shamrock vs. Owen will take place in the Dungeon of Stu Hart’s house with Dan Severn as referee. How does this idea come to be and who asks Stu to use the house?

Was this a way to get back at Bret?

From Fully Loaded: “Owen Hart beat Ken Shamrock in 4:53 in a match taped in the basement of Stu Hart's home in Calgary a few days earlier. It's hard to pull something like this off because of the limitations of not having a ring, and it seeming to be dead with no crowd, but they worked very stiff and believable, at least by WWF standards, and it was real good for what it was. Both banged each others' heads into the wall hard. Hart, holding onto a ceiling pipe, took Shamrock over in a huracanrana. At one point Hart smashed Shamrock's head through the low ceiling, which clearly had many heads smashed through it over the years. They did their house show finish, with Hart getting the sharpshooter but Shamrock with a nice reversal into an ankle lock. This time Hart got out of the ankle lock. Shamrock went to kick Hart, but instead kicked ref Dan Severn. Hart then KO'd Shamrock hitting him upside the head with a dumbbell. Hart got behind Shamrock and began tapping Shamrock's hand on the mat and when Severn staggered to his senses, he saw the tap and ruled Hart as the winner. ***”

What did you think of the concept and how these two did with it?

Now Severn and Shamrock are going to be built to face each other…but it only happens in a 3-way on Raw from August 17th that ends when Severn chokes out Shamrock. Why is that?

There’s talk in the Observer that Shamrock has agreed to meet the winner of the Brawl for All tournament under Brawl for All rules. Is that true?

SummerSlam is announced as Owen vs Shamrock in a Lion’s Den Match which is really just in a UFC cage and Dan Severn will be in Owen’s corner as his trainer. Who’s idea is the Lion’s Den Match and did you think this type of match could work in the WWF?

Shamrock does defeat Owen at SummerSlam and the match is held at the Theater at MSG which is adjacent to the arena. Was the plan always to have the match there and sell more tickets?

Severn walks off from Owen and it seems like we’re back to building Dan and Ken again. Did they have any issues at this time that stopped them from having the match?

Shamrock challenges Austin to a match on Raw but Vince McMahon stops it from happening. Could you had seen Austin vs. Shamrock being a WrestleMania main event?

Austin vs. Shamrock does happen coming off the two week hiatus from the US Open on USA to combat Nitro running Goldberg vs. Sting for the first time ever. Goldberg vs. Sting get the ratings win but Raw wins the show overall. The match ends with Taker giving Shamrock a choke slam. Right after this Mankind, Shamrock and Rocky form a mini trio. What’s the thinking behind this combo?

All of a sudden the trio is forced into a triple threat match at Break Down by Vince McMahon and it’s a cage match. Rocky gets the win after Mankind hits Shamrock with a chair and instead of pinning him Foley goes to escape and Rock just crawls over and pins Shamrock…this finish makes Foley look moronic does it not?

Raw has a main event with Shamrock, Mankind and Rock taking on Kane and Taker and Shamrock gets this gigantic face pop when he puts Taker in an ankle lock. It seems like the wheels are in motion for Shamrock to turn heel but does that give anyone any pause?

Shamrock wins the IC title in a one-night tournament and is a badass heel at this point. He goes through Steve Blackman, Val Venis, and X-Pac to get the win. Are you looking at Ken as a top heel?

Shamrock gets the win over Mankind to retain his IC title at Judgment Day with a very innovative finish. Shamrock has Mankind in the ankle lock and to block the pain in the ankle, Foley starts punching himself in the head, pulling out his hair and then finally puts the Mandible Claw on himself to pass out. Shamrock goes nuts when Finkel announces it’s the claw that gave him the victory and he hits all the refs until Foley puts him down with Mr. Socko. Meltzer gave it ***¼. Shamrock in this role really is tremendous don’t you think Bruce?

Shamrock vs. Austin is put together on the night that Shane McMahon turns babyface on his father and it’s an I Quit match. Mankind puts the claw on Shamrock and Austin hits Shamrock with a chair and uses Shamrock’s hand to tap out and give himself the win. Did you just not see Shamrock and Austin as a top program?

There’s talk of Shamrock wanting to return to the UFC. Was this part of what stalled him on the card?

Rock and Shamrock renew their rivalry on Raw but in opposite roles and they have a great TV match on November 2nd in Houston. It’s amazing to see the progression these two had made, isn't it Bruce?

Ken Shamrock is actually in the first ever hardcore title defense by Mankind and loses the match when Bossman interferes under Vince McMahon’s orders. This is to setup everyone thinking Foley is with Vince when it’s really Rocky. Is this the best work Ken did during his WWF run?

Rock defeats Shamrock in the semifinals of the WWF Title tournament at Survivor Series…but the next night the Corporation is formed around the Rock & Boss Man and Shamrock. Was Ken needed in this group?

Al Snow costs Ken Shamrock a three-way Hardcore title match when he hits Shamrock with Head and Mankind gets the pin. This…seems like a quick drop on Shamrock. What the hell happened here?

Was Shamrock really built for the heel lackey role? Or was he supposed to be Arn Anderson in the Four Horsemen?

At Rock Bottom the New Age Outlaws defeat Shamrock & Bossman to retain the tag team titles when Michaels helps interfere but it backfires and Gunn gets the pin. Should Bossman had taken the pin here?

They win the tag titles on Raw after DX does its parody of the Corporation so Shamrock is a double champion now. Is this going to be the highest Ken was going to be placed?

That’s how he ends 1998. We’ll cover Shamrock’s exit from the company in a later podcast!