10 Superstar-Centric Gimmick Wrestling Matches
8. Lion's Den Match - Ken Shamrock
When Ken Shamrock arrived on the WWF scene in the late 1990s, he was a totally different beast to anything we'd seen before. He was presented as a truly dangerous man, a legitimate fighter who had come over to the professional wrestling world to snap ankles and suplex referees. He even got his own signature match named after his fighting dojo: the Lion's Den Match.
It wasn't the most complex of matches. It was basically an everyday professional wrestling match that took part in the confines of an MMA octagon, with victory coming via pinfall or submission. The first ever Lion's Den Match took place at SummerSlam 1998 where Ken Shamrock and Owen Hart faced off, and Shamrock picked up the win after Owen's trainer Dan Severn walked out on his protégé.
Shamrock even faced Mr. McMahon in a Lion's Den Match, Vince coming out the winner thanks to the interference of Jeff Jarrett of all people.
Shamrock and Steve Blackman had probably the best Lion's Den Match, although this was because of Blackman's weird non-charisma and the weapons. Oh, the weapons...