UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock agreed to a settlement with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation after failing his post-fight drug test at Bellator 149.
As part of the settlement, Shamrock’s combative sports license in Texas is now revoked, and he is required to pay a $2,500 fine, according to a copy of the order obtained by MMAjunkie via public records request.
Shamrock (28-17-2 MMA, 0-2 BMMA), 52, lost a first-round TKO to fellow UFC Hall of Famer Royce Gracie (15-2-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) in the Feb. 19 event’s Spike-televised headliner, which was regulated by the Texas Combative Sports program. He quickly appealed the result to the TDLR, which oversees the commission, pointing to an illegal knee to the groin that was missed by the bout’s referee. The status of his appeal is currently unknown.
One month after his protest, Shamrock’s pre-fight urine test came up positive for synthetic opioid methadone and the steroid nandrolone, and the Texas commission initiated disciplinary proceedings, initially offering a settlement of a $3,000 fine and license revocation.
Shamrock, via his attorney, subsequently argued his positive test was caused by medication he took at the advice of a doctor to control “swollen pituitary glands in his brain,” according to a statement from an investigator with the TDLR. He asked for more time to put together a defense.
But it appears Shamrock instead elected to put the issue behind him, signing the settlement agreement on July 11. Subsequently, his license revocation was noted on the Association of Boxing Commissions’ administrative database, which tracks fighter suspensions. He is free to apply for another license in Texas on March 4, 2017.
Given that ABC member commissions generally honor suspensions issued by other member commissions, Shamrock is unlikely to be licensed within North America, but he could fight overseas where the sport isn’t formally regulated.
After his positive test came to light, Shamrock wrote, “This is what I want my fans to do stop looking at the purple elephant in the room what’s important is getting this fight overturned? ?????,” adding, “This is a good one the amount of steroids I was supposedly have had taken I still lost weight yep that’s right lost 10 pounds.”
The Bellator 149 positive was Shamrock’s second positive for steroids after a post-fight drug test in 2009 in California revealed a trio of steroids in his system. He is still free appeal his loss to Gracie in Texas district court.