Shamrock will look to take on Johnathan Ivey on October 16 under the banner of the USA MMA promotion. The event is set to take place in Lafayette, Louisiana. It’s been a long, tough road for the UFC pioneer. Not only was his first win in eight fights mired by his positive steroids test, Shamrock was also handed a hefty legal fee after his court battle with Zuffa over a contract dispute ended with the judge standing on the side of Dana White and the Fertitta brothers. Most recently, Shamrock fell to the leg kicks of Pedro Rizzo at Impact FC, which marked the eighth (T)KO loss on Shamrock’s record, and had he not had his Armbar victory over the departed Clifton, the loss to Rizzo would have been his sixth (T)KO loss in a row.

Shamrock’s opponent may be in even worse shape than he is as a Mixed Martial Artist, as tough as that is to imagine. Johnathan Ivey will carry a record of 29-42 into his fight with Shamrock in October. Ironically, Ivey has also won two out of his last ten fights. Ivey weighs in at two hundred and fifty pounds normally, and almost none of that is muscle.

It’s tough to see athletes compete in a sport they were once good at far past the point where they stopped being good at it. It’s really sad and disheartening to realize that their sport of choice is all they know and that they aren’t prepared for, or refuse to live in, a life without it. They keep trudging along, piling up the losses, fading further and further into obscurity, adding ever-growing black marks to a once prestigious (or at least worthwhile) record. But I have to be honest: there’s a point where an athlete loses my sympathy. Ken Shamrock has passed that point. He passed that point years ago.

I honestly don’t think Ken Shamrock is sane. One of the most oft-repeated definitions of insanity is to do the same thing over and over again while expecting different results. Ken Shamrock fits that definition perfectly. He’s done nothing to evolve as a Mixed Martial Artist, he’s still the same fighter he was at the very first UFC 1 event, except with a lot more bumps, bruises, and humiliating losses. The man is no Randy Couture, the wear and tear on his body both from his time as a Mixed Martial Artist and even in his time spent as a professional wrestler should have sent him into retirement countless times. But he keeps coming back. Against all logic, Ken Shamrock won’t hang up the gloves and go quietly into the night. For that reason, amongst many others, Ken Shamrock will no longer receive any of my sympathy.

So, by all means, let him keep fighting. Let him become an even bigger joke. The only person he’s hurting at this point is himself. If he’s that much of a masochist that he just can’t go a couple of months without getting punched and kicked, then more power to him I say. This fight with Johnathan Ivey is a joke. Ken Shamrock is a joke. And I’m no longer laughing.

But what about you, fans and friends? How do you feel about Shamrock’s refusal to retire?