UFC Hall of Famer and MMA pioneer Ken Shamrock received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 15th Annual World MMA Awards last month, seven years or so onward from his final fight in the sport.
Shamrock, the inaugural UFC superfight champion, is widely recognized as a pioneer in mixed martial arts, with a career dating back to Pancrase and later UFC 1.
Being recognized at the 2023 awards show thirty years on from the start of his career had Shamrock feeling blessed, he told Cageside Press. “Any time that you get recognized especially after the career I’ve had — I was very blessed to be in it for a very long time. I really really enjoyed it, hate to leave it, but it always comes to an end sooner or later. But to be able to come back and be kind of noticed for an award, I’m just grateful.”
Blessed is also how Shamrock feels when watching the modern rendition of MMA. The ruleset, for one, has evolved considerably since the early days of the UFC, which banned biting and eye gouging, but little else. But there’s more to the evolution of the sport than just the rulebook.
“For me it’s really intriguing to watch what these guys have accomplished. Because when you start and you kind of build something, to see it grow and to see all the different moves and different setups and the training and the conditioning, the diets, everything just get dialed in, so dialed in, man it’s just perfect,” stated Shamrock. “When we started there was none of that. So it’s just being able to see that growth and know that you were part of something in the beginning. To see where it’s at right now, I feel really truly blessed to be a part of it.”
Watch our full interview with Lifetime Achievement Award winner Ken Shamrock above.
