What is Frank Shamrock's net worth?
Frank Shamrock is a retired mixed martial arts fighter who has a net worth of $3 million.
Frank Shamrock was the first person to hold the UFC Middleweight Championship, for which he went undefeated. He also won titles in other martial arts organizations, including the WEC Light Heavyweight Championship and the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship. Beyond his career as a fighter, Shamrock has done coaching, color commentary, and brand promotion.
Early Life
Frank Shamrock was born as Frank Juarez III on December 8, 1972 in Santa Monica, California to a Native-American Mexican family. Starting at the age of 12, he grew up in various foster homes and crisis centers. After having numerous run-ins with the law, he was taken in by Bob Shamrock and his wife Dede, who were known for adopting troubled boys. Legally adopted by the pair, Juarez changed his name to Shamrock.
Pancrase
Following a three-and-a-half-year prison term for burglary in the early 1990s, Shamrock began mixed martial arts training with his adoptive brother Ken Shamrock (who would also go on to become a UFC star). He soon became a member of his brother's training school, the Lion's Den, and made his mixed martial arts debut in the Pancrase organization in late 1994. In the King of Pancrase Tournament, Shamrock upset favorite Bas Rutten in a close decision. He would go on to face Rutten again in 1995, this time losing by decision.
In early 1996, after an injury prevented Rutten from defending his King of Pancrase title, Shamrock faced Minoru Suzuki for the interim championship. In the epic match, Shamrock submitted his opponent with a kneebar to claim the King of Pancrase interim title. After that, he scored victories over Ryushu Yanagisawa and Osami Shibuya, and then squared off against Rutten for the third time. Ultimately, Rutten won via TKO. Not long after that, Shamrock was fired from Pancrase after his brother got into a dispute with the management.
Post-Pancrase
Following his dismissal from Pancrase, Shamrock suffered a loss to John Lober in Hawaii's Superbrawl. He subsequently bounced back by beating Tsuyoshi Kohsaka in RINGS. Shamrock also turned to training fledgling stars in the Lion's Den, including Pete Williams and Jerry Bohlander. However, he got into a conflict with management and left to create his own team with Maurice Smith called the Alliance.
UFC
After defeating Enson Inoue in Vale Tudo Japan '97, Shamrock joined the UFC and faced Kevin Jackson for the inaugural UFC Middleweight Championship. Despite being a major underdog against the undefeated Jackson, Shamrock came out on top in just 16 seconds to claim the championship title. He made his first defense of the title at UFC 16 against another previously undefeated champion, Russian kickboxer Igor Zinoviev. Shamrock ultimately emerged victorious, knocking his opponent unconscious and forcing him to be carried out on a stretcher due to broken bones. This incident prompted Zinoviev to retire from mixed martial arts for good. Shamrock went on to make another successful defense of his title at UFC 17 against Jeremy Horn. After that, he avenged his earlier loss to John Lober by defeating him at UFC Brazil.
In 1999, Shamrock once again defended his UFC Middleweight Championship title, this time by beating Tito Ortiz at UFC 22. The fight, which is widely regarded as one of the greatest in UFC history, saw Shamrock land a series of brutal punches and elbows on his opponent. Having gone 5-0 in title fights, he was declared the best fighter in the history of the UFC by owner Bob Meyrowitz and announcer Jeff Blatnick. Following his decisive victory over Ortiz, Shamrock relinquished his UFC Middleweight Championship title and retired from the UFC.
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Further Fighting Career
Shamrock came out of retirement at the turn of the 21st century and joined K-1, the world's premiere kickboxing promotion. He went on to beat Elvis Sinosic via unanimous decision. On August 11, 2001, he faced off against his former student Shannon Ritch, and won the match after breaking Ritch's arm with a roundhouse kick. Later, in March of 2003, Shamrock returned to MMA and won the WEC Light Heavyweight Championship by defeating Bryan Pardoe. He went on to fight in the Strikeforce promotion, and in 2006 knocked out Cesar Gracie in the first MMA event ever sanctioned by the state of California. The year after that, Shamrock fought Phil Baroni on pay-per-view; winning the match, he became the Strikeforce Middleweight Champion. In early 2008, he lost the title in a brutal bought against Cung Le. Two years later, Shamrock announced his retirement from fighting. He made a brief return in 2017 to fight Pride veteran Kazushi Sakuraba in a grappling exhibition match at the Rizin World Grand Prix in Japan. The match ended in a draw.
Color Commentary and Brand Promotion
As a color commentator, Shamrock has contributed to Showtime Networks, Bellator MMA, Combate Americas, and Glory. He also served as a coach on the Spike TV mixed martial arts reality television series "Fight Master: Bellator MMA," which aired in 2013. Meanwhile, Shamrock has been a brand spokesperson for Strikeforce, UFC, and K-1.
Personal Life
With his ex-wife Amy Warren, Shamrock has a daughter named Nicolette. He also has a son named Frankie from another ex.
In late 2005, Shamrock opened the Shamrock Martial Arts Academy in San Jose, California. This eventually evolved into a franchise of schools. Shamrock also runs a merchandising company.
Animal Cruelty Charges
In March 2019, Frank abandoned one of his mother's dogs at a Dallas airport after not being able to find a home for the dog. The dog was reportedly tied to a truck for five days before someone called animal services.
