"Built like the Greek God" - UFC Hall of Famers Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock share hilarious first impressions of each other
Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock recently shared their hilarious first impressions of each other during a special roundtable that was uploaded to the UFC's YouTube channel.
While reflecting on UFC 1, the MMA pioneers shared their first impressions of each other ahead of the one-night no-holds-barred tournament. The Jiu Jitsu practitioner noted that he was aware of 'The World's Most Dangerous Man's' power and mentioned that he was in awe of his physique.
He said:
"I knew you [Ken Shamrock] punch hard, I heard stories of you punching hard and there was no gloves. I was like, man, I saw your size - chiseled - built like the Greek God over there...Man, when I grow up, I wanna be just like him...Just like greek God, man." [33:43 - 34:02]
Ken Shamrock, on the other hand, was confident that Royce Gracie wouldn't pose a threat to him if they fought. He mentioned that looks were deceiving as he later found out how effective Gracie Jiu Jitsu was when they met in the semi-finals. Shamrock said:
"I didn't know who Royce was and didn't really believe he was fighting until I saw him wearing his Gi and I was like, 'Why is this guy wearing his pyjamas for? Like, what is he doing?' And I don't know, was it 48 hours later I was looking up going, 'Man, those jammies work pretty well.'" [11:47 - 12:07]
Royce Gracie submitted Ken Shamrock in the semi-finals and went on to submit Gerard Gordeau in the finals to win the UFC 1 tournament.
Check out the full video:
Ken Shamrock credits Royce Gracie for motivating him to improve as a fighter
Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie were among the most influential fighters for the UFC during the earlier years and they had the promotion's first true rivalry.
During the aforementioned video, the former UFC Superfight champion credited the Jiu Jitsu practitioner for motivating him to improve as a fighter. He mentioned that his loss at UFC 1 led to him to dedicate himself more to training grappling in hopes of getting an opportunity to avenge his loss, saying:
"Because of that night [UFC 1], I never tapped out after that again...By having that experience made me a better fighter and made me want to work harder to try to beat you. I mean, that was my whole world, was you." [38:11 - 38-39]
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