UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock is getting back into the fight business by launching his own bare knuckle fighting promotion.
The organization will be called Valor Bare Knuckle Inc. as Shamrock partners with longtime business associate Des Woodruff to launch the new fight promotion.
“I fell in love with bare knuckle in the first no-holds barred UFC promotion in 1993,” Shamrock said in a press release. “There is nothing like bare knuckle. You have to be much more accurate with your strikes, and you have to train with a specific strategy in mind.
“Bare knuckle has always been my favorite way to compete because it is simply fighter against fighter, no more and no less. There is something pure and uncomplicated about that.”
The first Valor BK event is scheduled for Sept. 21 at the 4 Bears Casino and Lodge in New Town, North Dakota. There’s no word yet on the fights being televised, although the Valor BK website states events will be available through “network, digital, and pay-per-view (PPV) platforms.”
Shamrock has been a stalwart of the fight game for more than 20 years including multiple runs in the UFC as well as appearances in PRIDE Fighting Championships as recently as 2016 when he competed in Bellator MMA.
The 55-year-old veteran has also dabbled in professional wrestling in recent years after a successful transition to World Wrestling Entertainment back in 1997.
Now Shamrock will get into the bare-knuckle fighting business after promotions such as Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships have found success over the past two years with high profile fights such as the recent showdown between former UFC fighter Artem Lobov and retired boxer Paulie Malignaggi.
The organization will be called Valor Bare Knuckle Inc. as Shamrock partners with longtime business associate Des Woodruff to launch the new fight promotion.
“I fell in love with bare knuckle in the first no-holds barred UFC promotion in 1993,” Shamrock said in a press release. “There is nothing like bare knuckle. You have to be much more accurate with your strikes, and you have to train with a specific strategy in mind.
“Bare knuckle has always been my favorite way to compete because it is simply fighter against fighter, no more and no less. There is something pure and uncomplicated about that.”
The first Valor BK event is scheduled for Sept. 21 at the 4 Bears Casino and Lodge in New Town, North Dakota. There’s no word yet on the fights being televised, although the Valor BK website states events will be available through “network, digital, and pay-per-view (PPV) platforms.”
Shamrock has been a stalwart of the fight game for more than 20 years including multiple runs in the UFC as well as appearances in PRIDE Fighting Championships as recently as 2016 when he competed in Bellator MMA.
The 55-year-old veteran has also dabbled in professional wrestling in recent years after a successful transition to World Wrestling Entertainment back in 1997.
Now Shamrock will get into the bare-knuckle fighting business after promotions such as Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships have found success over the past two years with high profile fights such as the recent showdown between former UFC fighter Artem Lobov and retired boxer Paulie Malignaggi.