Insight with Chris Van Vliet - Ken Shamrock On That Chairshot From The Rock, WWE Hall Of Fame Snub, Refusing To Wrestle Chyna

Episode Date: September 19, 2024

Ken Shamrock (@ShamrockKen) is a retired MMA fighter and professional wrestler. He sits down with Chris Van Vliet at West Coast Creative Studio in Hollywood, CA to talk about his time in UFC and what made him transition to professional wrestling, being the special referee for the WrestleMania 13 match between Bret Hart and Steve Austin, his relationship with The Rock, whether a WWE Hall of Fame induction could happen, The Rock appearing on TNA as part of his TNA Hall of Fame induction, the scrapped MMA fight against Bobby Lashley, if he was ever planned to be in the Brawl For All tournament and more. Check out Ken Shamrock's Tru BK at http://trubk.com Quote I'm thinking of: “Do not wait. The time will never be just right. Start where you stand, and work whatever tools you may have at your command and better tools will be found as you go along.” — Napoleon Hill Complete this survey for your chance to win $500: https://bluewirepods.com/survey Sponsors: VUORI: Get 20% off your first purchase! Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet at https://vuori.com/cvv MANSCAPED: Get 20% off plus free shipping when you use the code CHRISVAN at http://manscaped.com FACTOR MEALS: Get 50% off your first box and 20% off your next month at http://factormeals.com/Insight50 ZOCDOC: Instantly book a top-rated doctor today at http://zocdoc.com/insight BONCHARGE: Use the code CVV to save 15% off your infrared sauna blanket at https://boncharge.com/cvv MAREK HEALTH: Get a 10% discount on Marek Health's Optimization Package with code CVV: https://marekhealth.com/cvv BLUECHEW: Use the code CVV to get your first month of BlueChew for FREE at http://bluechew.com ROCKET MONEY: Join Rocket Money today and experience financial freedom: https://rocketmoney.com/cvv PURE PLANK: The future of core fitness! Use the code CVV to save 10% on Pure Plank which was designed by Adam Copeland & Christian: https://gopureplank.com/ PLUNGE: Get $150 off your Plunge with the coupon code CVV150 at http://plunge.com For more information about Chris and INSIGHT go to: https://podcast.chrisvanvliet.com If you enjoyed this episode, could I ask you to please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcast/iTunes? It takes less than a minute and makes a huge difference in helping to spread the word about the show and also to convince some hard-to-get guests.  Follow CVV on social media:  Instagram: instagram.com/ChrisVanVliet Twitter: twitter.com/ChrisVanVliet Facebook: facebook.com/ChrisVanVliet YouTube: youtube.com/ChrisVanVliet TikTok: tiktok.com/@Chris.VanVliet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Yes, welcome back to another one here on Insight. It is I, CBV, Chris Van Fleet. How the heck you doing? Has it been a good week for you so far? Thank you for being with us on this one and on every single episode that you listen to. And thank you for helping to make Insight the number one wrestling podcast on the planet. And if you haven't already, slap an ankle lock on that follow button if you're listening on Spotify or Apple podcast or really wherever you're listening. There's tens of thousands of people who on every single episode just listen, but don't follow the show.

So if that's you, yeah, yeah, if that's you, I'm calling you out. Yeah, cutting a whole promo on you. No, but seriously, if that's you, just hit that follow button. That's it. Just hit that button. It seriously helps the show so much. This is a special one today because welcome, my friends, to the world's most dangerous episode. Yeah, it's been five years since Ken Shamrock was on the show.

and if you watched it or listened to it back then, that was one we did inside an impact wrestling ring in Las Vegas, September of 2019. So yeah, almost exactly five years. And what a legend. Someone who should absolutely be mentioned more when WWE talks about the attitude era. And it's just crazy that he's not in the WWE Hall of Fame. Of course, he's in the UFC Hall of Fame, but not in the WWE Hall of Fame. Yeah, his run was short, but it was so memorable. And outside of just WWE, he was also the first ever TNA world champion. And you know, it's funny. People talk about that legendary match,

WrestleMania 13, between Brett Hart and Stone Cold Steve Austin, blood pouring down Austin's face, he's refusing to give up. Who was the referee? Yeah. Yeah, Ken Shamrock. He's a former King of the Ring winner, former Intercontinental Champion, former tag team champion with the big boss man.

And I think if he stayed in WWE, he would have made a great, world champion. Snap a screenshot and let us know you're listening. Tag us. He's at Shamrock Ken on Twitter. He's at Ken Shamrock official on Instagram. I'm at Chris Van Fleet. And if you've been listening to the show for any length of time, you know that I love me a good black t-shirt. I mean, really any solid color t-shirt. There've actually been memes made about this. Well, I've now found the perfect t-shirt. Viori's Dream-knit collection is just unreal.

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on any orders over $75 and free returns. That's viori.com slash CVV for the absolute most comfortable clothes that you'll ever find. All right. Let's dive into this. Please welcome Ken Shamrock. I remember specifically you're saying, these are the only two weapons I need with your fists. And I was like, I'm definitely going to use that one day, but not actually mean it. When Ken Shamrock says it, you know, it means something.

thing. Now, I don't. Now these are resting. What was the last time you punched someone? Oh. That's how long it's been. I don't remember. I didn't do too much of that when I was actually fighting either.

I tried to take them down and submit them. It's true. It's true. I saw your stuff on WWE shop recently. Is there now a relationship with WWE? I've had a relationship with them for, ever, even since when I went away. We did a Legends contract, and so I've always been a part of them.

It's one of those things where, you know, I think I spent enough time there and did enough there that, you know, I feel like I'm a part of that family forever. So are you under Legends contract right now? I am. Okay. So that's why when we go to WWE shop, we see some of your T-shirts. Yes. Yeah.

And they're constantly always putting stuff out, you know. So it's been a good thing. Like I said, I feel like, you know, I spent enough time there and did enough things to where I feel like family. How are you not in the WWE Hall of Fame yet? Yeah, you know, that's a great question. And I get asked that a lot, which I guess is a good thing, right? Well, you're in every other Hall of Fame. Yeah, right?

I probably think I'm in four or five different ones, wrestling included. But no, you know, when people ask that, it's like it's not really. something that I think about, you know, a lot. I enjoyed my time in wrestling. I thought, you know, while I was there, it was enjoyable. I mean, I went into it because it was an opportunity for me because the MMA was struggling and I wasn't able to make the money I needed to to support my family. So I had to make a decision. And so I made that decision to go into wrestling, not knowing, you know, how that would turn out, obviously. It was risky. But I did it. And fortunately for me, I fell in love with it, man.

It was a great opportunity for me. And I enjoyed, you know, all the moments that I had there, you know, a lot of them with the rock. And a lot of people think it's crazy. But I enjoyed the chair shot. What are you talking about? Yeah. It's like everybody keeps looking at dead. And they say it over and oh, man, that must have hurt.

And I just, for me, it's funny because it would hurt so much more if I didn't see it coming, top of the head, back of the head. back of the head. You called for it. I wanted it. I was like, bro, you were not hitting me in the head, like the top of the head of back of head. I want you to hit me right in the face. He's like, shut up. He thought I was kidding.

And I was like, bro, come on, man. I go, I'm not taking it to the back and head of top of the head. I say, if you're going to swing, he swing from my face and I'll take care of the rest. I mean, I literally said that. Swing from my face and I will protect myself. And he looked at me like with this bewildered it. Like, where's the punchline? Where's the joke here?

And I looked, I said, no, I'm serious. And he's like, I'm not doing that. And I said, that's, I'm not taking it. I said, swing for my face. I'll protect myself. And he goes, sure. And I was like, yeah. I remember I looked right at him in the eyes.

And I go, you better swing it. And he says, oh, I'll swing it. How did you protect yourself? It's a straight shot to the top of your head. Well, actually it wasn't. It was to my face. It was like your forehead, right? Well, he swung from my face like I asked him to.

And I told him, you, it's not his resell. responsibility. It's mine. I'll take you swing it and I'll do the rest. And so he did. And all I did was just like I would in a fight. I tuck my chin. And it hit me right in the forehead. And anybody knows how the skull is, is put together. The thickest part is your forehead. And just like within football, and now they can't do it. But, you know, you hit, you usually hit with the forehead. And if you get punched, most of the time, if you hit somebody in the forehead, you break your hand. So, I just logically thought if I was going to get hit in the head, hit me in the hardest part. You're insane.

That was a great moment, though, because I didn't, I had no idea, you know, what it would look like or what the impact of that would be. It was just basically a thought in my head because I saw everybody else doing it. And I was like, man, that is just a dumb way to take a chair. Getting hit in the top of the head, back of it. I ain't doing that. Hit me in the forehead. The face. The sound of it.

is like it's loud. It sounded like a shotgun going off, man. When it actually happened and he hit me, it's just like nothing else really bothered me other than the sound. It started me like it felt like somebody just shot a gun off. Then, of course, then I went down. But I watched it over and over, and it's funny too, because you can kind of see how when I'm on the mat,

I kind of maneuver myself to make sure that he can get around where he needed to. So that's what I used for people to go, listen, I wasn't out, dude. It was a safe shot. He didn't hurt me. And so that's what I point to is just when I'm on the ground, just watch how I move. I was okay, you know. And again, mankind turned around and took it, what, three, four times the same chair shot after that? He's like, he had to outdo me.

Well, and then there was the match where he was like, I think, 20 chair shots to mankind. My goodness, man. While he's handcuffed. Okay, slow down, dude. You're the greatest. But when you think about the legacy you had, obviously UFC Hall of Famer, TNA Hall of Famer, you should be in the WWE Hall of Fame

just because of the lasting impact that you've had in pro wrestling. Yeah, it's, like I said, I, you know, obviously any athlete that goes through a career, and has made an impact obviously wants to be recognized. And I do want to be recognized. But it's not, and I don't think of it until it's brought up, right? It's not something that I dwell on because I felt like everything that I've done in my life, I've been blessed to have been in those moments.

What comes after that, man, is just, you know, icing on the cake. And if that happens, man, it's going to be a true thrill. But like I said, it's not something that I lose sleep over. I've really enjoyed my journey and very, very happy with the way my life has turned out. What's the biggest legacy that you think that the Ken Shamrock character has had in pro wrestling? Well, I think there's, I don't know about the biggest impact. I think it's probably moments of things that have happened that has impacted wrestling in a whole. And I can go back to, you know, obviously we talk about the chair.

shot that was an impactful thing. Quite literally. Yeah, right. It was a boom. You talk about the tapout. And I think a lot of times that goes a little bit under the radar because I don't think people really truly understand the impact that that had on wrestling, me coming in to pro wrestling and really making tap out a thing. because if you look back prior to Ken Shamrock,

you would see Brett Hart with the sharpshooter and Sting and other people that were doing these different submission holds. And guys were smacking the mat and screaming and yelling, and referee had to get down on their face and ask them, do you give up? And they had to verbally say, shake their head, I quit, or I give up, while they're smacking the mat or hitting the mat, but not one time prior to Ken Shamrock was a match ever stopped by a tap out.

It was stopped because guys were pounding on the mat in pain, but the last thing that had to happen was they had to say, Uncle, I give up, I quit, not the tap. So I think that kind of goes under the radar just because I don't think people know the true understanding of how the match has ended in those times. And when I came in, the tap out became a thing. It was literally you had to tap the mat in order for the match to be over. So that was one of those things.

And I think that being able to educate people on what MMA was coming into the mainstream audience because it wasn't mainstream back then. Yeah. And people going, well, who is Ken Shamar? Where did he come from? People that didn't know me. and I think it was a huge impact for people to start watching MMA and vice versa. You brought so much realism to wrestling.

Yes. And also the thing that was so great about you is you just took one look at the way you were built. And you're like, I'm not messing with that dude. Because you just, you look like a bad dude. Well, like I said, in my prime and the journey that I took, I chose that path to put myself in a position. to where I could be the baddest man on the planet. Yeah, you were the world's most dangerous man.

Yes. What a moniker. Yeah. Yeah, and, you know, a lot of that nickname or moniker or whatever you want to call it, there's this unwritten rule in whatever sport you're in. You cannot name yourself. Like, you can't give yourself that name. And fortunately for me, I got it through an NBC or ABC.

I don't remember which one it was of the world's most dangerous things. So that was, and when it actually came out, it was one that I, I didn't think I would like just because of the nature of what UFC was in 93. People didn't look at it like it was a normal thing. And they kind of looked down on it. There was this kind of a cult following. And it wasn't until probably UFC 5 or 6 where they kind of humanized, the individuals and who we were, and we were no different than anybody else.

We just chose a different job. Would you think of that term human cock fighting? Like, I've seen that. And it has no resemblance to what we were doing. But I guess the imagination runs wild. I think you're talking about something totally different. Yeah, like, wow. Interesting.

Well, now if we brought knives in there, it could be close. But in the early days of UFC, it was like no weight limits. Wasn't the tagline like no weight limits, no rules or something like that? Yeah. I think that the Gracie's basically, you know, summed it up anywhere, anytime, you know, any place. It was like no fish hooks, no groin shots. And even then, if you did it, it didn't stop the fight. Actually, there were groin shots early on.

They did, but they find you. They didn't stop the fight. But there was that very early UFC where the guy's just pounding on the dude's nuts. You know what I'm talking about? That was Joe Son. He literally got smashed. I don't know how many times.

And I think it was Keith Hackney, if I'm not mistaken. I could be wrong. It's been a long time ago. But they didn't stop the fight. And Josan ended up losing the fight. So it was wild. There was literally when they said no rules. They had rules, but the rules didn't stop the fight.

All they did was fine you. And I think the winner got like three grand or something, and the loser was like 1,500 or something like that. So even if you got fined $1,000 and you did it over and over again, you got more out of it by winning the fight. Because if you owned a dojo or you owned a gym, which most of them did, you made more money at your gym by winning a fight than losing. So people didn't care that they cheated.

they lost their money because they'd make it back at their gyms. What was the first UFC payday you ever got? Oh, I think it was, I can't, I don't even know, man. 20, 20 grand or something like that. That's pretty good. There's guys now that aren't even making 20 grand in UFC. I ain't going there. Yeah, no, but you just didn't buy that one.

No, it was, like I said, it was, it was a last-minute thing. when I first jumped into it, I didn't believe it was going to happen, but... The UFC 5? No, I was in one. One? I was in the very first one. I'm thinking of your super fight then.

Yeah, that's when they started doing super fights, but I was in the very first one. I was in the beginning when it first started, and man, what a journey to see where it is. But, you know, back in the day, like I said, it was the... I was already over in Japan, and I was a champion over there,

and it was mixed martial arts, like what we see today, pretty much. but the UFC in the very beginning was I mean it was literally a street fight like it didn't matter you went in two guys went in and one guy came out what was the idea of what would happen if a boxer took on a wrestler

if the karate guy took on the whatever jiu jitsu guy or whatever and where would that go what would that fight look like what's that one you'll know the name is better than me the sumo guy that just got beat by the much smaller guy and it's like the

idea of like these are the matchups we never thought could happen and what would happen well and think about this and as as as a ufc Denver colorado and these people came into this arena never seeing anything like this before and the first thing they see it's a 400 pound sumo walking into this cage and standing there and they're like oh my goodness they see tarar godot walk into that same cage and they don't know who he is and they're like oh my goodness lord to help this guy talking about gerarchas they're thinking he's going to get hurt and that was a reality i mean people just didn't understand technique over power and it was literally showcased in the ufc and which is what hoi and gracy was trying to show people that a little guy training in the jiu jiu jitsu system could

defend themselves against bigger people if they knew the skill sets. And that's literally what they were trying to do. And I'm telling you that first fight, even though it wasn't a jiu-jitsu system that won it. It was a kickboxer, a K-1 fighter in Gerard Godot. But it showed that this guy in the massive size on him and the skill sets of the striking ability of Gerard Godot was he was so undermatched because he didn't have the ability to fight on his. feet, which is in the same sense of when Gerard fought hoist in the finals, taking him to the ground. And Gerard was, it was the same kind of concept of the sumo guy trying to beat Gerard Godot

at a striking match when the sumo had no experience whatsoever in striking. Yeah. And then all of a sudden now Gerard Godot is faced with a guy who has all the skills in the world on the ground, but nothing standing up. Yeah. And was able to get him to the ground and make Gerard look. like a rookie in there. I mean, just schooled him.

Yeah. And Gerardotot was a world-class kickboxing champion. I mean, he was no joke. Yeah. So it really was educating people through that whole period, that first year of what it was to actually be somebody that could protect themselves and that could really fight. Before all that, it was all this karate and, you know, I'd have to kill you, that kind of thing. and then reality sets in and it's like, well, wait a minute, this is what's the real deal,

which is in our todays and our world now, it's being skilled in stand up and the ground, which was Gerardot and Hoist Gracie and mixing those styles together is what gives you a true badass. So how does that lead to an opportunity in WWWF at the time? Wow. That's a journey. A lot of things that happened, I became, you know, champion over in Japan, champion in the UFC, and got to a point to where I was supposed to, you know,

have an opportunity to renegotiate a contract with the UFC. They were going through some, Bob Meyerowitz was going through some really tough times with always in court, you know, before every fight, you know, they would try to shut it down politically, calling a ballbaric and it shouldn't be doing this, cockfighting. So we heard it all, and they were fighting all the time in court, and it was draining them. The money was being drained. So it just got to a point to where I had to make a decision because the money just wasn't there in the UFC at that time.

Had you already been approached by wrestling at this point? No, no, no. I had to make this decision on my own because I wanted to take care of my family. My family came first, and doing what I wanted to do came second. And it came down to that. my family or do what I love doing. And so I chose to try to make the money I needed to to support my family. Not just my family. I had six fighters living in a house that I supported them. Every new fighter that came

and I trained them for six months to a year. And I had this gym with three different buildings, you know, one for weight training, one for, you know, kickboxing and one for grappling and three different buildings. And so I had a pretty good business going. And it was a decision I had to make in order to make money to be able to support all that going on. And I felt if I went into pro wrestling that I could make the money I needed to keep it going until, which was a risk to see that if MMA would improve and get better, and then I could go back to it.

And so I made that choice to go into pro wrestling because I needed enough money to support what I had built. So did you approach them and say, I'm open, I'm interested in doing this? Yes. And I actually found an agent. I had him actually approach Japan first. And then I believe he reached out and he had some connections to the WWF. So he reached out to a few different places.

And it was probably, I would say 10 days. I literally got a call from Vince McMahon. And it was two days later, they flew me in to go to a, I believe it was a Monday night. I'm not sure Monday or whatever, but I went to one of the shows. And it was when I actually faced Farooke and some of those guys, I was sitting in the audience. And that was my first time being on camera in a WWE event. It was an experience, right? And I went into it.

I didn't go into it with the idea that, you know, this is what I wanted to do. It was something I knew that I could do. I had experienced when I was younger doing some pro wrestling, but not at this level. And I felt like, well, let's give it a try, see what happens. And I remember jumping into it and training with Brett Hart for a while and trying to understand some of the psychology and the character that I needed to become. And then when I got the opportunity to do a match, I remember doing the match. I had one with Vader, and that was a little bit after I'd been there for a minute. but that was my actual first one on a real show.

And he broke Vader's nose. I was like, and again, I didn't know because, remember, I'm a fighter and I just tried to go in and do what I thought was normal. And so normally I'm used to just sparring, right? And you spar, but you don't hurt guys. And that's kind of what I did with Vader, just kind of went and sparred with him, didn't want to hurt him. And I guess I ended up breaking his own, didn't know it. You need him in the face, right? Yeah, and then I find out later on that he gave me a receipt when he hit me hard,

when I went down real hard. Again, that's like the chair shot where people look at it and go, oh, Vader really nailed him, man. He must have pissed Vader up. And I'm thinking of myself, what? Like, what are you talking about? And then I watched it and I was like, awesome. That's awesome.

You guys really think that was really? It's awesome, man. I mean, I can do this. What's he? There's a moment where he's like this, like telling you to slow down or take it easy. What's he saying? to you there. I didn't, I don't remember. I, I, I, I don't remember any, when he was talking to me. The only thing I remember him telling him, he's just calling some spots. Oh, like, it's, it's clear that he's

basically being like, hey, like, calm it down or something like that. Yeah, I don't, I, I, I never, no, the only, even when we walked back to the locker room, I thought it was a crappy, you know, showing. But when I walked back in the locker room, remember Brad Hart was the first one I looked at, And he went, dude, that was good. That was good. That was, I'm thinking to myself, I felt like it just didn't feel right. You know, I've been fighting all this time and I went to do this and just didn't feel right. And then Vader came out to me and he said, bro, good job, man.

Good job. He said, I think he broke my nose. And I was like, huh? He goes, when you threw the knee and I was like, oh, sorry? He goes, oh, bro, don't worry about it, man. It was a good match. And I was like, I really didn't, when I did it, I didn't feel that good about it. But then when I watched, I was like, damn, that was good.

Like, that wasn't bad. And that was my actual very first one really going in working with someone like that, right? Yeah. I think because the WrestleMania 13 match with Brett Hart and Stone Cold is so good and so iconic with that image of Stone Cold bleeding there, that a lot of people forget that you're a big part of that match. And you're right there as everything's happening. It was fun. That was when I'm, I remember when I was asked to do that.

match. And it's before you had wrestled, right? Yeah, it was, I didn't done anything. I did something with Vernon a little bit, Vernon White, but nothing, I hadn't been introduced yet. Like, I hadn't really been on the scene. And so when they asked me to do it, and this was Brett Hart and Stone Cold, I'm like, like, what am I going to do? Like, it should be a referee doing this? I don't know what I'm doing. I'm not a referee. And they're like, no, we think it would be great, man. It would add that thing to it. Like, you're going to make sure that nobody gets out of line and you're, you're going to regulate these matches.

And I'm like, I was nervous. I was, I mean, this is Brett Hart and Stone Cold. Like, these guys are like it. Yeah. And I'm like, man, I'm so scared I was going to screw up the match or miss something. Because I never ref. I'm not a referee. And I remember going into that.

And I'm thinking to myself, man, well, I guess I'm going to find out. whether I'm staying or going, because if I screw this up, I'm gone. There's no way I recover from this. And so I went in and just, I kept thinking of myself, all right. And I tell you the reason why I was more nervous was because I didn't know if I could, if I could act, if I could make things with my facial expressions or, you know, doing what those guys do so good. Yeah. And I didn't know if I could do that because everything I'd done to that point was legit.

I knocked the heck out of people and I meant what I meant. And now I got to go in and I got to do something that I don't know if I can do at this level. And so I remember going in there and I would say probably a minute, minute and a half into the match, I completely forgot anything, everything. I mean, it was like I was actually refereeing. an MMA match. I mean, I literally went from being nervous, not knowing whether I could do this or not,

to I'm in it. And it's a fight. These guys are fighting. I didn't have to change anything from what I knew. My career in M.A. when I was in there with those guys, they were hitting each other.

They were putting these moves on one another, and I kept thinking of myself, he's going to tap, but he's got to tap. He's literally turning him up. And then all of a sudden he would reverse it. And I was like, I was into it as much as the fans were. Like, it was that legit to me. And I was standing that close to him.

And I know those guys beat the hell out of one another. Do you remember looking at Stone Cold, maybe in the eyes or looking at his face when the blood was pouring down him? Dude, I don't care what anybody says. I mean, I was there. I refed that match. Those guys beat the hell out of one another. And Stone Cold, that took something out of Brett Hart and Stone Cold, both of them. because with me being in there, those guys, I know.

Those guys want to make sure that this, Ken Shamrock's walking into my world now. Yeah. Brett Hart's calling you now. Yeah, hang on the second. I turned it off. Let me turn this off real quick. Passion, drive, and patience.

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I think you took one of the first, or maybe the very first people's elbow of all time. There's like this grainy video of Rock giving you the people's elbow. Was that the first or maybe one of the first? It had to be. I think that's a long time ago. I remember looking at that video. I mean, I don't even think Rock knew how to perfect it yet because when he was just starting, I remember laying on the mat looking up at him going, bro.

this is just not a good sight, bro. You don't have to be standing over the top and with your legs spread. Point to the crowd that long. Make your move. What a view for you, right? Yeah, right. He's like, come on, bro, drop it.

The crowd got so into it, though. Yeah. No, that was one thing great about, you know, working with the rock is that, you know, I felt like that was a great opportunity for myself and him, for us to really put ourselves in the mix with the greats. Sean Michael, Stone Cold, you know, I mean, The Undertaker. I mean, that was a loaded roster.

And I felt like me and Rock had the opportunity to put us in the mix on one of the best matches on the card those nights that we were together. And it felt like the more that we worked together, the better we're. we became and to a point to where I believe that we were rivaling any made event that they put on on our cart. And that that was a testament to the Rock and some of the hard work that he put in to those matches with me and him. I know The Rock has a lot of love for you. And you guys are so close now. And it's because of you that the Rock made an appearance in TNA. That was wild. seeing the rock making those comments about you when you were inducted in the TNA Hall of Fame.

I mean, especially at that time when WWE was not working with TNA, that was pretty crazy to see. Yeah, you know, I was being inducted in the Hall of Fame. And, you know, I was thinking of, and obviously there's a lot, a lot more, right? But you can only get, you know, so many to actually have somebody say something about. you. And I felt like the Rock was a very big opportunity for me in pro wrestling. You know, there was one of those things in your career where you, you know that that one thing helped you get where you needed to go. And I felt like the matches with the Rock was a huge part of bringing me into that world of wrestling.

and becoming relevant. And I know it was for him because prior to that, and we kind of came in at the same time, prior to that, you know, he was struggling, you know, he's with the nation,

kind of in a group of people and no identity. And I felt like when we were put together, um, we both got to really kind of become, uh, a figurehead in pro wrestling. I was already something in MMA. I had already built that.

And no question, but coming into this world, I had to, I had to, The fans had to identify me as something. And working with The Rock gave me that opportunity because that was the real first opportunity for me to work a program with somebody,

a long working program with somebody. And I felt we did a tremendous job. What led to you leaving WWE? I feel like there was an opportunity for you to do a lot more there. That was weird. You know, it was a lot of things that happened along the way that we're

frustrating, you know, obviously the situation with the Rock and Sean Michaels. That was a frustrating situation. And again, everybody has a side that they take, but it's not about who was right and who was wrong. It's the Rock

and Sean Michael's? I'm sorry, not the Rock. It was Sean Michael's Brett Hart. Oh, the screw job. Okay. Just got to talk about the Rock. We were just talking about the Rock. I was like the Chair Shaw, you know all that. I said, my memory. So the screw job kind of. Yeah, that was one of those times where it was uncomfortable

because I was so close to Brad, you know, because he helped break me into the business because I went up and trained with him and worked with him. And then that happened. And again, I wasn't in the conversations with Vince and Brett and wasn't on the inside the know, right? So I don't know what happened. I don't know who was right and wrong.

But I know who helped me. I know who worked with me and helped me understand the character that I needed to be. And then, of course, getting the opportunity to wrestle, you know, in the WWF, Vince gave me an opportunity. Brett helped me develop my character. There was a lot of, it was a very uncomfortable spot for me. And then moving on past that, you know, it just. It felt like in that in that moment, it felt like I had no identity. Like I wasn't going anywhere.

There was no program. I was being asked to do other things that just weren't comfortable. And I'm not saying anybody was trying to hurt me or anything, but it's just some stuff that I just didn't feel comfortable doing. The Ryan Shamrock angle. Yeah, you know, that. And then, you know, my own personal thing was I just didn't want to get in a ring with China. I taught my children at a young age, and they were at the time eight, seven, and five young kids going to school. And one of the things that I drilled into their head was that you respect women and that you don't lay your hands on them.

And then I was asked to do that. And I get it. You know, this is entertainment. I get all that. But again, we talked about this, you know, earlier where my family comes first. and if I'm doing something that's going to possibly, might not, but possibly confuse them, I'm not doing it.

And so those things, right? And it was not like WW had it in for me. It wasn't it. It was just things that I believed in. And it just felt like it was like I was constantly going in a direction that had no end to it. Did you feel like you weren't able to say no to events? Like when you said no to working with,

was that met with some resistance? No, there was no, no, nothing at all. I didn't, didn't, there was, the fact is, it was very respectful when I said I didn't want to do it. Now, I may have gotten beat a few times, but it was no, it was no angering like that.

I, like I said, I enjoyed my time and truly blessed to have the opportunities that I've had. But I, I believe that everybody has to make their decisions in life and try to do what's best for them and their family. And I felt at that moment that I needed to make a move and go and get back into what I love doing. Don't get me wrong, I love wrestling and I enjoyed it.

And I probably would have stayed much longer if I felt like there was a direction for me. I just didn't feel that. You've never been on like the Raw 1000 or the 25th anniversary or anything like that. Do they ever call? Do they call? No. That doesn't make any sense.

Yeah. I got actually, you know, an opportunity to go to this last Hall of Fame induction, and that was awesome. They treated me well. Who were you there supporting? Rock, the Rock. Oh, that's right. Yeah. Yeah.

So I went there and I really enjoyed the show. It was awesome. I think what Hunter's doing and some of the moves that are being made are awesome, you know. but yeah it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's something that I think about when it's brought up like when somebody asks all the time it has always asked why aren't you in the Hall of Fame except that's that to me is is awesome because people feel I should be there and and and so that makes me feel good that that makes me feel really good that that my work has made an impact on people well it's not just in WWE you're the first

first ever recognized TNA world champion, then you did all of the stuff that you did later on in TNA? Like there's, and of course, UFC, there's so much that you've done there. I mean, you're obviously a Hall of Famer. Do you have a relationship with Triple H? No. We've vaguely talked, you know, there was some things that, you know, obviously, that's with anything that you do.

You have some things you don't like or things that had happened that you're not happy with. and sometimes probably misunderstood when you're in the moment, you don't know everything going on and you kind of see something a certain way and that's not probably how it was. But at the same time, I don't have any anger or animosity towards anybody. I truly am very happy and feel very blessed to have been able to have the opportunity to be in WWF and have those opportunities and to be in the UFC and have those opportunities. I mean, I just, my life has been blessed. When you left WWE and you went back to UFC,

can we talk about those sideburns? Hey, Wolverine. Maybe you're playing, you know, homage to the rock. They kind of look like the people's sideburns. No. No, I, I, I, you know, I, you see baseball players do it, football players do it. They just get bored. And they say, I want to do this. Did they give you super fighting powers?

Yeah. Like, you felt like I'm a new character. It's like, I'm powerful now. And then as soon as you lost with sideburns, you're like, all right, they're out? Yeah, tough them off. Go something else. Next time I'll be a lightning bolt. You had them for, what, a few years?

Yeah. Yeah, yeah, it was, uh, when I first grew up, I started getting some positive reaction from people. So I'll just keep it. And, uh, and then as time went on, it's just like, I got bored and shaved them off, thought I'd do the clean face. And then I grew a beard one time. He said, don't do that again. your words in your fight with Tito Ortiz echo in my brain all the time.

Tito Ortiz is a punk. Yeah. Because at that time, UFC entrances were taking a lot from wrestling, right? There was the big stage and there was a big like Titan Tron things. And what played on the screen was Tito Ortiz is a punk. They repeated like three times. And then your music hit. And then you came out.

And it's something I'll never forget. Yeah. We, Tito and, and I had some really good moments. And, you know, I know a lot of people, when they look at that, they look at us and like, you guys must have hated each other. And I, and I, and I, I try to explain it. Maybe it's just the street in me because, you know, I grew up without a family. There's a group home, you know, had anger.

But people I liked, I protected them. And so even as a fighter, I felt like going. into a fight, I had to find something in that person I didn't like so that I could literally go after them with anger and frustration and even to almost hatred, right? Just, I want to hurt them. From the beginning of my career, that's, that's what I needed, right? Because I felt like I fought better when I wanted to take someone out. And, you know, obviously as I got into it and I became a little bit more understanding of my faith and different things that go along with that, that I didn't have to do that.

Like, I could still be that same guy going in there and getting after somebody with anger, but not with the intention of hurting them or wanting to put them away. So with Tito, that's kind of where that came from, where people look at it and go, man, he must have, hey, but at that moment, that's what I needed to do to fight him. I was a little bit older, so I became a little bit more less hateful. But at the time, I was more into the actual skill set and finding weaknesses in people's arsenal to go after them at. So it wasn't a hate thing. It was more of just a way for me to get in the frame of mind to go in there and just go after someone.

when you guys had that, like, whatever, tussle in the ring, like, when he disrespected you, right? The way Big John McCarthy picks him up like a child and just like places him somewhere else in the octagon, it's an image that's like burned into my brain. We needed someone like John to be in there because, I mean, it got, it. Like, didn't the police go in there? Yeah, I'm telling you. Got out of hand. Well, that there was, yeah, that was, that was, that was where we really started to get, you. interest mainstream.

It started to create a story and some, some, some, some, some, some, some, some, some, some, some, some sides, you know, and it, there was a rivalry and it was even though it was, I never won. So I'm not sure how good of a rivalry was, but it really, it created this, this interest, uh, in the UFC with people, you know, and, um, and, and, and I think with anything, it's, it kind of take a kind of take notes from that. Like, and when you want to build something, people got to, why is it they want to watch your fight or your organization?

And it comes down to storylines. It comes down to character. And I believe we created all that. At one point, you were in line to have an MMA fight with Bobby Lashley. Yeah. What ended up happening there? Man,

that was a long time ago. I don't even remember, but there's one thing that I think that I want people, to know. And anybody that knows me and anybody that's ever been around me and anybody's ever trained with me knows this for a fact. I'm afraid of no one. Even to this day, I'm afraid of no one. It's a friggin' fight. You put a gun to my head. I mean, yeah, I'll be a little bit nervous, but my character in the way that I grew up, I'm not afraid. That's not in me. That's not a part of me. So whatever happens out throughout my career with different things because it's been probably three or four of them where it fell through and mostly because of the negotiations.

I never negotiated my fights as I became bigger and bigger. I got agents to do that. So when they fell through, it had nothing to do with me. It's the negotiations. And for whatever reason, you know, and a couple of these other different things that people want to say, well, you just didn't want to fight him. He's like, I promise you this. that if you're a fighter and you're at that 1% level, that will never happen to anyone,

not wanting to fight somebody. That's not in our DNA. That's not how it works. That's not how fighters' brains were. I don't want to fight some. That's what we do for a living, man. That's like, that's how we make money. You think we're afraid of an individual because we make it hit?

Come on. So you wanted to fight Bobby. Bobby wanted to fight you. Yeah. And again, I don't know how or what happened and why it didn't happen. There's a couple other ones, too, that happened. I was supposed to fight somebody in England.

I forget his name. And it fell through at the last minute and had to do something with negotiations. And all of a sudden, they're screaming. He didn't want to fight him. He's afraid of him. I was like, you know, it was like, yeah, that's how I became a champion because I'm afraid to fight people. You know, it's like, unbelievable. But just as an education, man, anytime that ever happens, I promise you, it has nothing to do with the fight.

What do you think is the biggest life lesson that fighting has taught you? Oh, I think without a shadow of a doubt, it's work ethic. There's nothing like, and I'm not saying just being a fighter, I'm just saying being a world chain, getting to a point to where you, you, you are a contender, not necessarily a world champion because anything going to happen, but just being a contender. There's so much, so much, so much that you have to sacrifice to get there.

It's a long journey. It's hard. It's grueling. And you put yourself through things that 95% of the people won't do. And so if you can take that same commitment and desire that you did to become a world champion or a contender and then figure out how it fits into the business world, you'll never fail. When was the last time you went to a UFC fight? I've never been to one. unless I was fighting.

Really? It's never sat in the crowd. Never. Would you want to? No. I mean, it's not that I don't want to. I've never thought about it. Where I'm at and have been since I've stopped fighting was that I'm focusing on me and my family

and what I'm going to do next. And it feels like so many of us want to keep living in that, in what you've always. already accomplished or what you've already done, I sure I could go back there and I could be signing autographs and getting pads on the back and being the king or used to be the king, you know, getting all that. But that's, that's over. Like, I don't want to live there anymore. I want to move forward. I want to create other opportunities. I want to build other businesses. I want to create other types of success rather than living in what I've already done. And your focus now is on true beke.

True beke. So bare knuckle. Yeah. And again, we just came out with the website. So we've revamped everything. We've already done two events. They were exciting. Bear knuckle is the up-and-coming combat sports.

I truly believe that. I think what we're creating with the no ropes and no cages, it's in a kind of in a pit. We call it the lion's pit. and it's unique. It causes action to happen fast. There's when we're called True Barrenuckle, which is T-R-U-B-K dot com, if you want to go check out our website.

I went to the website. You're like looking for fighters. Yeah, we're like I said, we've done two shows and we're right now just building this. And so we're looking for great fighters. And we're focusing on that boxing industry because it's dying. And I think boxing is such an art. but I think you got to take the gloves off.

I think you got to take the tape off. I think you've got to bring it back to the true type of fighting that it originally started with in the old days. And so that's why we call it true barrenuckle because we are the only true barrenuckle organization because we do not allow tape on the back of the hands or on the thumbs. It is a true barenuckle event.

No tape? None. Zero. Wrists wrapped? Wrists can wrap, but it's not on the hands. They say, oh yeah, you can wrap your wrists. and then they wrap the back of their hand and their thumb. No, no, no, no, no, no, no.

No, because that's what a lot of the other organizations do, which is fine. I got no problem with that. Sure. But I want to try to keep it as safe as possible. And if you actually put a cast on someone's hand and you don't put a glove on it, what do you think is going to happen? Come on.

People, like, no, let's, if you're going to fight and you want to fight, you know, bare and knuckle, then let's fight barren knuckle. What do you think of what Jake Paul's been bringing into boxing? I mean, it is hilarious for me to watch this, actually happened because I hear so many people. And I was one of them in the beginning. Like, what are you doing, man?

You just, what do you? You can't do that, man. And then I'm watching how it's playing out. I'm like, wow, that's brilliant. It's like, he's never fought a contender. And he's making more money than world champion boxers. Do you think he can fight? Oh, I think he can.

No, I think he can. Because there are a lot of people that question that. No, that's absolutely ridiculous. He's beating guys that have skill sets. They're just older. but they still have the skill set, and they can be probably 75% of the guys out there. Yeah, some of his knockouts have been pretty incredible.

He's a legit fighter. He's just not a ranked fighter in the world ranked boxing. Yet that's one of his goals. That can happen. If he goes there, it can happen. He's putting in the work. We haven't seen it yet. That's why there's so much of this uncertainty because he hasn't put him in.

He has not put himself in a position to be able to have some of these real true boxers, okay, he's legit. Maybe, I mean, dude, he's fighting Mike Tyson. That's not the same. So maybe after the Tyson fight? Yeah. Because he wants to be a world champion in the next few years. And I believe that he has the opportunity to do it because he's young enough. He has the skill to do it. But again, this is not saying that I don't think he can fight. I'm saying he has not put himself in a position for people to look at him as a legitimate

boxer. When he starts fighting ranked boxers and he moves up that chain like a career, Like people have put their lives on hold to be able to go into boxing and put themselves in position and they fight, you know, 20, 30, 40 amateur fights and then they get into pro and then they fight. He skipped the amateur process. No problem with that. Less damage on his body. But now he's got to work up the ranks in ranked boxing if he wants to be recognized as a legitimate boxer. I still think the guy can fight. I still think he has skill sets.

I think now it's just the opportunity for him. him to prove it. And he doesn't have to. And as far as I'm concerned, he's brilliant. He should keep taking these fights like he's been doing and making all that money and take less damage. He's a marketing genius. Exactly.

Because a lot of people are tuning in to see him lose. And whether win or lose, right, you either on the side or not, then that's the way fighting is. And to me, I think it's just brilliant. I would be, if I was in his camp, man, and I would be still doing that Tyson fight. and then I would be finding guys that are on that verge of being a legit fighter and then having lots of popularity and having him fight and continue to keep fighting that way.

Yeah. Because he's not going to make more money by fighting guys that are ranked. He's going to make less money. Yeah. So why would you go and do that when you're going to make more money by fighting all these celebrities and knocking them out and you're making more money? Then people scream at you're not a legitimate boxer. You need to fight rank boxers.

Then you do it and you lose. And all of a sudden that money isn't there anymore because you don't have that reputation. Yeah. But whether you love him or you hate him, you're tuning in. Absolutely. That sounds a lot like pro wrestling to me. Right.

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Follow and listen on your favorite platform. Did Kurt Engel reach out to you when he started using the ankle lock? No. And he didn't need to. I remember when it first started happening, people were like, he stole your ankle lock. And I was like, huh? Like, that doesn't even like, like, even equate in my brain. Like, what are you talking about?

Well, he's using the ankle lock. And it's like, I learned that from. somebody. And then, of course, like with what you said, well, yeah, but, you know, he's using it in pro wrestling. And I remember thinking to myself, yeah, but I'm not there. Like, if he would have done it while I was there, then there would be a problem. Like, hey, bro, that's my finishing hold. You can't do that. Right. And when he was using it, people were thinking of you. And there's the compliment, right? I mean, like, there's the reason why you want people to use your hold is like it's like saying hey that's something that was important like we talk about

you know when you the credentials of being in a hall of fame did you make were you in your time there one obviously being good inside and outside of the ring but second you know did you change the game were you a part of making it better and by little things like that yes I made it better and Chad Gable uses it now yeah it's not going away right I mean it's it's it's there There's a whole lineage of it now. Yeah, the lasting impact you've had is, I mean, it's been pretty incredible. Yeah. Yeah, you remember that, you know, it's like the ankle lock and, you know, the choke slam arm bar that I did on Taker.

You know, all these things that were done first are there now. And you can't change that. Just like with the tap out. I mean, people don't realize that, but that's a real thing. There was no, there was no just a tapout. There was a verbal command of I quit. until I got there, now there's literally a tap out. It's so hard to come up with a first of anything in wrestling.

Very hard. And the fact that you've come up with a few of them is pretty impressive. Yeah, and again, like I said, I'm very happy. And, you know, the Hall of Fame is something that people mention all the time. And it's something that I hope one day that happens. But it's not something that's going to define what I was able to do in pro wrestling. That's already been defined. Yeah.

It's already absolutely been to find everything that you've done throughout your entire career. And now what you're doing as a father and as a grandfather, too. I mean, I'm in grandkids, you have. I got 16 and I got one on the way. Oh, my gosh. Seriously, though, man. 17 grandkids. I understand where I came from.

I had no, I was in a group home at 10 years old. I got stabbed, you know. I end up in Shamrock Boys Home after going through several different group homes. and boys work camps, ended up Shamrock Boys home at 13 and spent the rest of my life there, got adopted by them. I didn't have a family,

you know, like a blood family. And so for me, this is, this is what's important to me. It's what, it's when I die, I want to know that I've done everything I can for my family.

Well, this is your real legacy. This is, that's, that's, that's something. important to me because I didn't have it. Yeah. So, you know, I communicate with my kids and I have a good relationship.

How many kids? Seven, seven kids, seven kids, seven girls, seven boys. Yeah. So, wow. I, I, you know, we've got our hands full of the one and another one in the way. Well, you don't tell me, man. And any listeners out that are hearing this, understand if you've had a kid or a couple kids, they change your life.

It changes everything. Man, I cry when the wind blows slightly differently now. I'll see a commercial and I'm like, oh man, it reminds me my little girl. Yeah. Or when we start talking about political things and what the world's going to look like 10 years down the road, the first thing you think of is your kids.

Yeah. Yeah, it's amazing how even a hardened man like you, it's amazing how much it can change you. It gives you, like, where I come from and kind of how I grew up in that thing, to have that responsibility with kids and all that is it's i don't know how to explain it unless you come from that that background that i did on how important it is to you yeah why weren't you part of brawl for all were you ever asked to be part of that yes i was asked i said no um listen

i got paid big money big big money to fight in the ufc yeah yeah so now there's asking me to do this thing for free. Well, as part of your same pay in WWF. Listen, I think anybody that has been involved in pro wrestling understands how hard it is to gain trust in the locker room. If guys don't trust you, man, they're not going to work for you. They're not going to allow you to do things that they feel they may get hurt with. So that was one of the things that Brett really instilled in me.

It was being able to make sure that I had a relationship with the locker room. Like I would go up, say hi to people, shake their hand. You know, be open to suggestions, building relationships because you've got to build trust. And these guys got to trust me to go in the ring with them. And then they asked me to fight. I'm like, so now I'm going to go in there and beat the hell out of these guys and then go back and say, hey, we're going to do a pro wrestling match. I just felt like that was kind of going against the grain of what I was trying to do there.

And so I just, along with, you know, I mean, I guess they were paying, I don't even know how much, it was 50 grand or something if you want it. And I'm thinking of myself, this is like, you guys, I mean, I already got, you guys asked me to come here and do a certain thing, and we negotiated a contract for that. And now you want me to. to actually fight. So I'm doing two things now.

And I just felt like, yeah, this is not for me. And it's it, I am not, I am not persuaded by insults and by ridicule. People saying you're afraid to go against the pro wrestlers and you're afraid to get in there. You're afraid of this guy. You're afraid of that guy. That does nothing. you're not going to shame me into trying to fight somebody. I mean, if I'm going to fight them, I'm going to fight him,

and we're going to negotiate something and we'll do it. But I'm not going to be shamed into, you know, fighting. And it just felt like that's what was trying to happen. It was like they were trying to, not WWF, just fan base kind of in a hole because they were pro wrestlers and they're pro wrestling fans. And by me saying, no, I didn't want to do that, I'm not going to do that.

There was that whole scene behind the scenes where people were saying, Jamrock's afraid I'm sticking to myself. Wow, how soon people forget. What would have happened if it was you versus Butterbean in the finals? Oh, Butterbean would have knocked that piss out of me. Like, I got no business boxing that dude. And that's what he did to Bark Gun. Yeah, like, that's not my game.

Better him than you, right? You do that one. Now, in a boxing match, because I don't know how that was, but I don't believe you could have taken him down. No, that was a boxing match. Yeah, it was straight boxing. But like with the way that they, we could take guys down, that's a different game. That was my game.

Yeah, if you could have, in an MMA fight, if you could take Butterbean down, it might have been slightly different. It's over. I mean, there's no question. I mean, I fought guys so much better than him that were strikers in the K-1, that could kick and punch and knee and elbow. So, no problem. But in a boxing match, man, he would knock the piss out of me.

What a legacy that you have in the ring and outside of the ring. I love how you've come back to it so many times, just how happy you are with everything you've done in your career and how happy you are in your life. Gratitude's so big to me, and it's how I end every interview, Ken. So what are three things in your life that you're grateful for right now?

Yeah, I would say that, you know, you got to go back to the opportunity that Bob Shamrock and my mom, Didi, gave me to be able to have the opportunity to turn my life around because what they did with that home. And the kids that went through that home was they, it was their house. It was like a mansion. Most homes I went to, they were just, they were stinky and ugly and holes in the wall.

This was a mansion. They brought us into their home, 18 boys at a time, sometimes 20 at a time. And they gave their hearts to them. They changed so many lives. Mine, Frank Shamrock, many, many people. They gave them opportunities. So I'm grateful for that because without that, I am not here. I'm probably dead or in prison, like most people said.

I would be dead or in prison before I turned 18. So that I'm very grateful for. I would say that the opportunity in pro wrestling, Vincent Mann gave me the opportunity to, you know, showcase my MMA skills and be able to show the world who I was mainstream. So I was very, very fortunate to be able to do that. Now you see WWF and MMA merge. You have some merge.

So it was pretty cool to see that and me being that kind of seed that was planted. So that was pretty awesome. And then, you know, UFC, you know, a pancreas. the transition that I had going to Japan and having that tryout and really understanding and seeing that this is something that I really wanted to do. I never saw it before, but it was like, I felt it. I understood it. I was like, I want it.

That's me. And never looking back and just challenging myself from Pancras to the UFC to the WWF, challenging myself every step to try to be different and better. And so just I'm grateful for that. And I would say I'm obviously the fourth one, but this is the biggest one. And we've talked about this many times is like family first. Like there's nothing that. And again, when I say this, obviously my father and my mom who adopted me gave me an opportunity.

But after those opportunities, you have to be able to sustain life. And when you sustain life, you want to make sure that you're sustaining life. and you're helping not only yourself to be better, but you're helping and making sure that your family's secure, safe, understanding love, discipline, and understanding on how to be kind to other people, but at the same time, too, understanding that, you know, family comes first and that the responsibility that you have

to make sure that no matter how old you get, that you're there and you're present. And when I say that I mean for family, friends, or anyone being present and in the moment and taking that time to really understand what it is that you can do for other people, your family, or anyone. Yeah. Well, thank you for all of the memories and the moments in wrestling and in UFC. And thank you for this right now. You're the best, Ken. Appreciate you, man.

Thank you. Appreciate you. Yeah, yeah. Go to truebarnuckle.com. Check out the baronuckle. Awesome. man he is awesome big thank you to ken shamrock for coming back on the show always so good to see him and so good to catch up i picked him up from the airport we had a great chat from lax into the studio

just what a good dude and look with triple h in charge at w e maybe we'll be seeing ken shamrock making some sort of legend's appearance somewhere here or there i would love to see it in the meantime for more info on ken's bare-knuckle fighting league that he talked about out truebk.com. That's T-R-U-B-K.com. And snap a screenshot of this episode and tag us. He's at Shamrock Ken on Twitter at Ken Shamrock official. On Instagram, I'm at Chris Van Fleet. And I'll leave you with this quote from Napoleon Hill. Do not wait. The time will never be just right. Start where you stand and work, whatever tools that you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.

Be great. Be grateful, my friends. We'll see you on the next one for some more insight. We'll see you tomorrow. It's Ask CVV number 49. Send in your questions if you haven't already, and we will see you back here tomorrow for that one. Jim Rome takes on sports.

Why? Because I have a job to do. With rapid fire takes. So I don't want to hear from you lava pigs on this notion today. No idea what you're talking about. You're complaining more than you like to breathe air. It's like you get up in the morning only to complain and cry and moan on social media about things that you don't even understand.

He's the spitfire of sports smack. Take advantage of it, but get up in here. The Jim Rome Show podcast. What's your beef? Follow and listen on your favorite platform. You've been warned.