Ken Shamrock Gives His Take On Why He's Been Snubbed By The WWE Hall Of Fame
Ken Shamrock, a former WWE tag team champion, intercontinental champion, and King Of The Ring, recently spoke with Wrestlingepicenter.com about his persisting love for pro wrestling. Shamrock vows that he is coming back to sports entertainment and he has his sights set on winning World Titles.
"I do [still love pro wrestling]. I made my commitment," Shamrock said. "I told people that I was coming back, and I'm not coming back for a short time. I'm coming back for the Heavyweight belt. Whether it is the NWA Heavyweight belt, the Impact Heavyweight belt, or the WWE Heavyweight belt, I told them I was coming back and I haven't backed off from that. I'm making a run at it. I've gone to BCW and won tag team gold there and had an opportunity at the World Title. I've had opportunities in Germany, I've had opportunities in South Africa, and back here in the States there is trembling about some things that I might do here. So the statement I made about being back in pro wrestling is something that I am interested in chasing for quite some time until I can't do it anymore. But I'm going to be doing that right alongside putting on great shows with VALOR Bare Knuckle."
Despite his previously mentioned accolades, Shamrock has never been inducted to the WWE's Hall Of Fame – something he hopes to correct soon. Ken believes he had a great influence on the way pro wrestlers use submission holds nowadays, and he thinks that that impact itself should be enough for him to be considered for the HOF.
"You know, there is a lot of speculation, and I have my own thoughts too. But all they are are thoughts and speculation because no one has come out and made a statement... They've been asked, but nobody's [responded]. I'd like to think that someday, I'll get in. Hopefully sooner than later," Shamrock admitted. "I think I did enough.
"If you look at being a Hall of Famer, it is about changing the way people have to do things when you're in the ring," Ken continued. "You look at it now – you know, nobody ever tapped out. It was a verbal, 'I give up!' There were a handful of submission holds. Now, it is in every single match, people are doing different kinds of submissions with ankles, arms, and chokes, and different things. In my time there, I changed the landscape of professional wrestling. To me, I should be the first one... If they are going to induct someone that is a cross-over from MMA to pro wrestling, I should be the first one that goes in."
VALOR Bare Knuckle presents its debut event featuring a championship tournament on September 21st on pay per view live from North Dakota. The event will be available on DirecTV, Dish Network, InDemand pay per view on cable providers, and streams on FITE.