Shamrock: The World's Most Dangerous Man

by Jonathan Snowden

From his fights inside the cage with Hall of Famers Royce Gracie and Dan Severn to his even more fearsome battles outside of it, this book takes an in-depth look at one of the most fascinating men in all of combat sports. In Shamrock: The World's Most Dangerous Man, acclaimed Bleacher Report sportswriter Jonathan Snowden offers a compelling and hard-hitting look at the factors that led to the rise and incredible fall of one of mixed martial arts most enduring icons Ken Shamrock.

Through extensive research and more than 100 interviews, Snowden reveals a complicated man who, even when on top of the sports world, was planting the seeds of his eventual fall. These are the stories behind the headlines, a rare glimpse at what life is really like for a WWE Superstar and UFC Hall of Famer including the drugs, crime and debauchery that almost cost Shamrock everything.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Sports, Mixed Martial Arts

525 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2020

About the author

Jonathan Snowden quit his job as a lawyer after September 11, 2001, to join the United States Army. He trained in Brazilian jiu jitsu and the Army Combatives Program and fell in love with the UFC. He is a former radio DJ and television producer who worked for the White House Communications Agency in Washington, D.C. He currently works for the Department of Defense and is a Contributing Editor for UGO.com and the author of Total MMA (ECW Press, 2008) and The MMA Encyclopedia (ECW Press, 2010).

Reviews

[Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brutal, unflinching, and honest by the standards of this kind of thing. Does sort of gloss over a couple bombshells, just kind of drops them and then walks away never to bring them up again, but on the whole right up there with the best wrestling/combat sports books I've read.

[Zach Koenig · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've always been fascinated by the early days of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Back when it was less of a sanctioned competition and more of a bare knuckle, "anything goes"-type contest. One of the biggest stars of that era was Ken Shamrock, and Jonathan Snowden aptly tells his story here.

This is truly one of the best sports biographies I have ever read. It is one of those rare endeavors that gets large amounts of first-hand input from the source (Shamrock himself), but also is able to take a "warts and all" approach in examining that life. Much credit must be given to Shamrock for the sheer amount of transparency allowed in his life story, as well as to Snowden for massaging it into a compelling story/narrative.

There are four primary areas of Ken's life that this book covers:

-His incorrigible childhood, which led to to multiple group home experiences and even homelessness before being adopted by Bob Shamrock and his Boys Ranch, which gave his life a purpose.
-His fighting dominance, including the harsh "Lion's Den" method of training he perpetuated and his battles with Royce Gracie, Dan Severn, and others in the burgeoning UFC.
-His professional wrestling period, which saw him gain prominence (though not stardom) in WWE, as well as beat his body to its breaking point in the process.
-His sad late-career return to fighting, largely precipitated by tax debt that saw him take fight after fight in which he had little to no chance of success.

There is also extensive information here regarding Shamrock's personal life--the good, bad, and ugly. Despite being an incredible ambassador for MMA, his familial existence leaves much to be desired.

Put all this together, and "The World's Most Dangerous Man" is a fascinating read for anyone interested in MMA in general or Shamrock specifically. Neither author nor subject is afraid to dig deep into topics both favorable and embarrassing, and that is a rarity in the sports bio genre.

[Joe Larsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the best sport bio I have ever read. Refreshingly honest (in comparison with most sport bios) about a very flawed man who has had a long career with many different phases.

[Brian D'Souza · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly inspirational trip down memory lane with The World's Most Dangerous Man, Ken Shamrock as told by the very excellent Bleacher Report writer Jonathan Snowden. Jon tells us the most exciting stories about Shamrock's storied life: We find out about his hard knock childhood, the good & bad of Bob Shamrock and the success that Ken had in Japan that helped him become a force in the UFC.

WWE took Ken out of the mix, but Snowden tells us pivotal behind-the-scenes details about the Lion's Den training, including how Ken stacked up against PRIDE champion Mark Coleman. I had only seen Ken lose to Franklin, Ortiz, Sakuraba and others and did NOT know the TRUE picture of Ken's abilities.

The story also leads to big success: million dollar paydays, lavish spending and some bad legal/financial decisions.

Bravo to Snowden for creating this masterpiece for hardcore MMA/wrestling fans to enjoy for years to come. A must-read!

[Writemoves · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found Snowden's book more interesting then Ken Shamrock himself. Snowden gives an excellent background on mixed martial arts and the rise of the UFC. Shamrock was the "face" of mixed martial arts, particularly for American audiences. To be honest, his win loss record is basically that of a “journeyman.” Shamrock overcame a very hard childhood and early life. But, he is not exactly a role model for anyone desiring to pursue a mixed martial arts career or any other athletic career.

Shamrock faced many demons, alcohol, drugs and the lifestyle that were not conducive two prime performances in the ring. The author did a very good job of providing details on Shamrock's family life, marriage and various business deals that did not pan out.

I give props to Shamrock for being as open and candid as he was with the author. If you are a fan of UFC or mixed martial arts, you'll enjoy this book. This is not your typical sports biography.

[ReadinRasslin · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most detailed and well written biographies on a single fighter / wrestler there is, Jonathan Snowden captures the remarkable career of Ken Shamrock in a gritty, unfiltered style that shows the good and bad of the legendary fighter. For Shamrock fans, this is the definitive career retrospective book and covers his entire life. I don't watch a ton of MMA and mainly know Shamrock from his wrestling career, but the book was written in such a compelling nature that I wasn't bored or unenthused by his MMA career taking up a bulk of the book. There are few wrestling books I own that are as dedicated as this is - Guy Evans' Nitro comes to mind as another heavily detailed passion project. It took me a while for this to hook me in and the time I put aside to read this was a little slower than usual, but it got me interested quickly into Shamrock's fighting career. Great career retrospective book from an incredibly knowledgeable, dedicated author.

[Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the best wrestling/mma books I’ve read. It does more to capture the dark side of both businesses in terms of drug use, ruined marriages and financial issues than anything else I’ve seen. Snowden also did over 100 interviews for this book and got some great perspectives including from Shamrock’s kids. Shamrock has a crazy life story which made the book that much better.

The only wrestling book I’ve ever given 5 stars up to this point is Bret Hart’s autobiography. The second closest would be either this book or Guy Evans’s Nitro. In the case of this Shamrock one, I think the main place it falls short of the Hart book for me is the emotion it draws. There’s a lot of sad stories in here but without Shamrock narrating or something else with the way it was written it felt less poignant.

[Anthony Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

An in-depth look at the Wild West early days of the proto-MMA scene in Japan and the emergence of the UFC, Snowden got incredible access to Shamrock and his circle. The book isn't a hagiography, in fact Shamrock seems like kind of a terrible person to spend time with and the legendary Lion's Den's practices come across as insane, counterproductive, and abusive, but for anybody who is a big MMA fan the book is worth a read. It spends a fair amount of time on Shamrock's pro-wrestling career as well, which isn't something I knew anything about, but it was interesting to learn the ins and outs of the business. I got super into MMA around 2001, so Shamrock was already basically a spent force, but his legend was very strong and it was fascinating to learn more.

[Eduardo Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Ken Shamrock book is one of the best wrestling books I've ever read. The only book that goes through 1980s territorial pro wrestling, shoot style wrestling in Japan, Pancrase, the early days of UFC, late 1990s WWF, PRIDE, Zuffa-era UFC, independent MMA, Bellator, and back to wrestling at the end. And all with really great detail and brutal honesty. The level of detail, research, and amount of interviews presented is incredible.

I used to buy bootleg DVD's from the author back in the old days of DVDVR, so am not surprised that he did an amazing job here, considering the unique subject matter that crosses over through both professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.

Should win the WON award for Book of the Year.

[Antonio Santos · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would put it in the 3.5-4.25 range. The book is as thoroughly researched as it can be, and the author does a great job by putting all the pieces together, but I would like it even more if the quality of the writing was better. The powerful narratives coming from the subject certainly deserved a little bit more than a writing that seemed formulaic at times.

With that being said, MMA needed a book like “Shamrock”. The parts about the inception of the sport and the Japanese scene were great, and, in my opinion, a perfect theme for another book.

[Ray Rull · Rating 3 out of 5]

Closer to a 3.5. The cover alone is a 5.0.

Although the stories provided a real insider’s view of combat sports, the book was full of grammatical errors that it distracted from the content. Also, there were at times too many contrary footnotes that it took away from the flow and perspective of the text.

[Colin Wheatley · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exhaustive look at Shamrock’s life that’s well-researched and largely objective. My only criticisms are that it’s overly long despite employing a tiresome number of footnotes, while the strange mix of sources and voices (Shamrock says, Shamrock said in an interview with X, Shamrock told such and such) is distracting.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible history of MMA and pro wrestling. Really has everything I've ever looked for in a sports book. Shamrock is a truly candid subject but also candid input from related parties that is laid out in a way that shows when their accounts of 20 year old information contradict each other. So many compelling and historic moments covered in-depth from the inside of them. There aren't many people that are as important to the story of MMA and I'm glad the book does him justice.

[Michael Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally got around to this, and could say a lot about this book, but simply, it’s one of the best sports biographies I’ve ever read.
A remarkable story well told through meticulous research. A fantastic piece of work and must-read for any fans of MMA or pro wrestling - not least because the truth seems to shine through despite the countless full-of-lies AUTObiographies littering the space

[David Bril · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such an incredible and detailed telling of the story of one of the most important MMA fighters in history. Covering everything from his childhood, rise to MMA stardom, his WWE days and finally his later career choices. Including bits from key players in his life and interviews with the man himself. I really loved this.

[Bob Voss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very detailed and interesting look

I’ve been an MMA fan and Ken Shamrock fan for a long time. I thought I knew just about everything about his life/career and in this book I learned something new on nearly every page!

[Jason Weber · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars, one of the best sport bios I read!
Being a huge mma/ufc fan, I knew a lot of the things covered in this book, but there was also a TON of things that I didn’t know, and what made you keep reading!

[Johnny Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deep dive into the “World’s Most Dangerous Man”‘s life. A well written and compelling read. From the boys home to UFC/WWE Glory to the down years after this book is perfect for the combat sports fan.

[Rossiny · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jonathan Snowden is a bully.
Whether than being positive figure in the sports entertainment especially wrestling he comes off as rather toxic. Attacking others looks on social media and putting them down. I don’t recommend anyone reading or supporting this person.

[Joe Loncarich · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is super good, even if you're not into MMA or pro wrestling. Shamrock has had a crazy life from start to finish, and this story dives into a ton of stories I never knew and could also never imagine. Here's to Shamrock-Gracie IV.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Purely for mma and wrestling fans. I say that because the casual reader may be turned off by the blunt honesty of a true fighter and the drugs, women, lying and fighting that goes with it. Good insight into the origins of mma. Really liked this book.

[Andrew Simcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kind of a superficial biography. There are points where I felt like the book could have went through a stronger editing process. But it covers all the beats you would want out of a Ken Shamrock story.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thorough, in depth and unfliching

Every time I turned the page, I half expected Ken Shamrock to be dead. What a life. And all the details are here.

[R.J. Richards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding.

[Steve Albert · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up. Great story but too many typos. An excellent look at the history of MMA and its overlap of pro wrestling with a very honest view of one of the central characters.

[John Lamb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weird grammatical and spelling errors aside, this was a tremendous book about one of more interesting characters in MMA/Pro Wrestling.

[Lyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roller-coaster ride.

Phenomenal book that doesn't shy away from a lot of the negatives in Shamrocks life. More than highly recommended reading this book.

[Billy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best biographies I have ever read. Incredible depth on the untold story of an MMA pioneer and very complicated man.

[Evan Kirby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty much all you could ever want from a biography.

[Jez · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a bizarre life. Some great quotes and interviews, but this definitely reads like a book written by a reporter.