I received a press release yesterday from EliteXC announcing that the promotion had signed living legend Ken Shamrock as well as his 19-year-old son Ryan. According to the press release, EliteXC Live Events President Gary Shaw said, “We’re thrilled to have signed Ken and Ryan Shamrock. Ken is one of the most recognizable and popular figures in MMA. He has fought the biggest and some of the most important fights in MMA history."

Both Shamrocks are scheduled to make their EliteXC debuts on March 18 in London, England at "EliteXC Presents: Cage Rage 25."

The elder Shamrock last fought in October 2006 and lost in the first round to Tito Ortiz. In fact, he lost his last four fights and six of his last seven, including three to Tito Ortiz. However, even in his final fight against Ortiz, in which the only uncertainty going in was how quickly Ortiz would win, Shamrock proved to be a very, very strong draw. That fight, televised on basic cable's Spike TV, did extremely well.

So, while it's unclear whether Shamrock truly has anything left in the tank, this is a good move by EliteXC. Why? Because the name Shamrock is one of a few names closely associated with MMA, much like the Gracie name. EliteXC is banking on the fact that the Shamrock name itself will draw fans to its promotion. And, given Shamrock's history, Shaw could be right about that.

In fact, in many ways this is the perfect deal for MMA. Shamrock had no place in the UFC light heavyweight division but at EliteXC he gets to fight again and the promotion benefits. We the fans can continue to satisfy our urge to watch him fight in what will amount to spectacles, and the integrity of the sport's top promotion, the UFC, is unhurt.

The signing of Shamrock follows the signing of Kimbo Slice late last year by EliteXC -- another signing meant to attract fans to the promotion, in this case all the online viewers of Slice's fight videos on YouTube.

One question is, will Shamrock fight in the light heavyweight division, which is very thin at EliteXC, or will he fight at heavyweight, which is only slightly deeper?

Either way, the signings show Shaw's true colors as a man with roots in boxing. With the high-impact name-value signings of Slice and the Shamrocks, it's clear Shaw believes, as he has stated, that the fighters are the stars. While I wouldn't say UFC President Dana White is on the other end of the spectrum, White appears to believe that the UFC brand name can carry that promotion and allow it to develop new young talent that will be tomorrow's stars.

Interestingly enough, it's hard to see either Shamrock -- father or son -- making an impact in the next couple of years inside the cage. While the father is too old, the son is too young.

According to the press release, Ryan is 5'9" 135 pounds. He also has only one pro MMA fight under his belt -- an August 2007 win by rear naked choke over Josh Besneatte (according to Sherdog.com) in a small promotion.

So, the reality is we don't know what kind of fighter Ryan is and more likely than not he still hasn't even reached his potential in terms of physical stature. He may gain 30 pounds in the next few formative years and end up fighting at a much higher weight class. And, he is just beginning his career so we don't know if he even has the talent to become a star like his father.

And, if Ryan does progress, will White come in and snatch him up, rendering EliteXC merely a farm system for the UFC?