Tag: Bad News Brown

Bad News Brown’s widow says family will ‘cherish forever’ Hall of Fame induction

Posted on by Ian Carey

Helen Coage, the widow of Bad News Brown, has released a statement regarding her late husband’s induction into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Brown joined Sid Eudy as this year’s inductees into the Legacy Wing of the Hall of Fame. Similar to Eudy’s induction, Brown’s family did not make a speech or appear on stage, though they were shown in the audience.

Coage wrote on social media Monday that she knew the family would not be given a chance to speak and was simply happy that Brown was honored.

Coage wrote:

“I know many of you are unhappy about our family not being granted the opportunity to speak at the WWE induction of Bad New into the Legacy Hall of Fame. But from past inductees we all knew that was not going to happen, please don’t be bitter, please just be happy that he was given this honor. I am happy.

Had we been given the opportunity the speech would have been short… something like this

Good evening,

On behalf of our family, I want to thank WWE for this incredible honor. To see my husband inducted into the Legacy Hall of Fame is something we will cherish forever.

I also want to take a moment to thank Benjamin Brown and Holly Von Holtz for taking such good care of us through all of this. Your kindness and support have meant more than you know, and we are truly grateful.

To the fans—he loved you more than you may have realized. Now, he may have called you “beer-bellied sharecroppers” and “spineless cockroaches”… but that was the character. That was the show. Because outside that ring, he was the exact opposite—a devoted husband, a proud father, and a man with a big heart.

He gave everything he had to entertain, to connect, and to leave an impression that people would never forget.

His gimmick has been copied more than a few times by those who came after him… and in this business, that’s one of the highest forms of respect. It means what he created mattered. It meant something. And it lasted.

He truly left his mark—helping shape an era and even giving Hulk Hogan the name “Hollywood Hogan,” a name that became legendary in its own right.

Though he’s been gone for many years, his voice still echoes. In every cheer, every memory, every moment like this—he’s still here. And tonight, I know he would be so proud… not just of this honor, but of the family, the fans, and the legacy he leaves behind.

Thank you for remembering him. Thank you for honoring him. And from the bottom of my heart—thank you for never letting him be forgotten.”

Dave Meltzer addressed changes made to the Legacy Wing of the Hall of Fame in the March 30, 2026 edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Meltzer noted that the Legacy Wing now appears to be for honoring wrestlers who are no longer alive rather than those whose careers primarily took place prior to 1984.

Meltzer wrote:

“It appears this year it has changed as the legacy wing is honoring Vicious and Bad News, who were post-1984 WWF and would normally be in the regular version. It appears in this case it’s a way to honor those no longer alive and save time on a ceremony that starts at midnight Eastern time and has been criticized for going too long at times, as well as for inductions of some being terribly rushed at other times.”

Helen Coage’s post about Bad News Brown’s WWE Hall of Fame induction is available below:

Bret Hart gives thoughts on Bad News Brown WWE Hall of Fame induction

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Bret Hart was happy to learn that former Stampede Wrestling star Bad News Brown has joined the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2026.

It was announced last week that Bad News Brown (real name Allen Coage) is posthumously being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame during WrestleMania 42 weekend. During an interview with Studio 1 Sports, Hart found out the news and gave his reaction.

“You know, I didn’t know that he got inducted. So that’s news to me,” Hart said. “I’m always happy for him. You know, to me, he’ll always be a Stampede wrestler — one of my dad’s guys. Bad News was maybe not my closest friend, but I always had a respect for him. He was a pretty intense guy. Like, he was not a stupid man. He was a pretty well-educated, disciplined guy and was really, I think an honorable guy. He was the kind of guy I would say never told a lie in his life, you know, that kind of thing. He always spoke his truth.”

Brown represented the USA in the 1976 Olympics and won a bronze medal in judo. After that, he broke into pro wrestling in Japan and later had runs in Canada with Stampede Wrestling and the United States with WWF. Hart noted that, because Brown learned wrestling in Japan, he never developed the kind of psychology that Hart was familiar with. Hart described him as a “meat chopper” — someone who just wanted to beat the hell out of their opponent and get their hand raised.

“He was very limited. Like, you couldn’t hit him in the head,” Hart said. “He was very touchy about what you did to him. And he was not the kind of guy you could mess with. He was a very tough man — arguably maybe one of the toughest men that ever put on a pair of boots in pro wrestling. A legitimate badass, tough guy that was more than capable of fighting anybody.”

Hart described Brown as “fearless” and said he was not afraid of anyone, anywhere. Though he personally had difficulties working with Brown because of his Japanese-style psychology and refusal to sell in their matches, Hart gave Brown a positive recommendation when Vince McMahon wanted to bring him into WWF. Hart urged McMahon not to put them in a program together because of their in-ring differences, but McMahon did not end up listening, having them as the final two in the WrestleMania IV battle royal that Brown won.

In the industry, Hart believes some people saw Brown as “a bit of a racist” because of how outspoken he was about his Blackness. If they weren’t in the same business, Hart believes he would have been a big fan of Brown because of how honest he was. Summing up his final thoughts, Hart called Brown a “great guy” who he just couldn’t do business with in the ring.

Brown passed away at 63 years old in 2007 due to a heart attack. He is part of this year’s WWE Hall of Fame class alongside Stephanie McMahon, AJ Styles, Demolition, Dennis Rodman, and Sid Vicious.

Last year, Hart was honored with his WrestleMania 13 match against Steve Austin being inducted into the Hall of Fame. It was the first match ever inducted. Hart is already in the HOF individually and as a member of The Hart Foundation with his brother-in-law Jim Neidhart.

Bad News Brown joins WWE Hall of Fame class of 2026

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Bad News Brown, an Olympian who found pro wrestling success in multiple countries, is being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

It was announced today that Bad News Brown (real name Allen Coage) has joined the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2026. The ceremony is being held in Las Vegas on Friday, April 17 during WrestleMania 42 weekend. Stephanie McMahon, AJ Styles, Demolition (Ax & Smash), Dennis Rodman, and Sid Vicious are the other inductees that have been confirmed so far.

Like Vicious, Brown is a Legacy Award winner, which is how WWE honors inductees who have passed away. Brown, 63, died of a heart attack in 2007.

Brown entered pro wrestling after an accomplished judo career that saw him win a bronze medal for the United States at the 1976 Olympics. He started with New Japan Pro-Wrestling shortly after that and later competed for Stampede Wrestling in Canada and the WWF back in the US. He went by both “Bad News Brown” and “Bad News Allen” in pro wrestling.

While with WWF, Brown competed at three WrestleManias, including winning a battle royal at WrestleMania IV in 1988.

“From standing on the podium at the 1976 Summer Olympics to the center of the ring at #WrestleMania IV, Bad News Brown was a fierce competitor with an attitude to match,” Paul “Triple H” Levesque tweeted. “For his accomplishments in combat sports and contributions to @WWE, it is a pleasure to announce his induction into the 2026 Legacy Class of the #WWEHOF.”

Dolby Live at Park MGM in Vegas will be the venue for the Hall of Fame ceremony.

April 4, 2007 Observer Newsletter: Bad News Allen bio, UFC sues EliteXC

Posted on by Dave Meltzer

In every regional territory, there was that one moment that becomes the most vivid memory of pro wrestling at a certain time in a certain place. It’s the one thing that over time becomes the lasting memory of the old days of territorial wrestling. Not just years, but decades later, older fans remember it and younger fans have been told about it so many times they can visualize it, even when they often happened before those younger fans were born. In most cases, these are part of the high-water marks in the history of those promotions, usually leading to record setting business. Because nobody saved tapes, few of them are even available to be seen today.

Example of this are different in every one of the old regional territories. In Northern California, it would be when Ray Stevens jumped off the top of a ladder onto the throat of Pepper Gomez in Oakland in 1962. In Southern California, it would be when John Tolos threw Monsel Power in Freddie Blassie’s eyes in 1971.

Subscribers can read this issue here.

My Favorite Wrestler (This Week): Toyota, Bad News, Newell, Miz & Maryse

Posted on by Zach Dominello

Before we get started this week, we wanted to send our deepest condolences and prayers to Jim Ross and his family.

This week in wrestling, PWG had a supposed show of the year contender that nobody except the live crowd can see for months, Katsuyori Shibata (thank the lord not Bad Luck Fale) won the New Japan Cup and is set to face Kazuchika Okada at the very pretty sounding Sakura Genesis in April, and WWE has continued its build to some sort of big, annual wrestling event called The Wrestling Mania. I doubt you’ve heard of it.

These are our favorite wrestlers this week. Who’s yours?

This week’s panel —

Manami Toyota

By Zach Dominello

Earlier this week, Manami Toyota announced her retirement later this year after 30 years as a professional wrestler. Toyota is considered one of the greatest wrestlers of the 1990s, not that I had any idea who she was back then. I was too busy imitating Shaq Attaq and collecting Shawn Kemp basketball cards, which I’m sure are worth millions now.

I only became familiar with Toyota in recent years as my interest in Japanese wrestling has grown, and even then I’ve only seen a handful of her matches. But you know what, you don’t need to see many Toyota matches to understand how incredible she was in her heyday.

She was basically a five-star match machine in the early 90s. I would describe her style as a sprint from start to finish, like if Florence Griffith Joyner had been a wrestler. What I personally enjoyed most from the few matches I’ve seen are her astonishing array of suplexes, those insane dropkicks all the way to the floor, and her bridge. Is that weird? I just love a good bridge, OK. And hers were the best.

If you’d like to know more about Toyota’s incredible career, check out Dave’s excellent feature in this week’s newsletter.

Bad News Allen

By Arya Witner

My favorite wrestler this week is an odd choice since he retired in 1999 and hasn’t been on a nationally televised US TV show since 1990. On top of that he passed away in 2007. My favorite wrestler this week is 1976 Olympic Bronze Medalist Allen Coage aka Bad News Allen/Bad News Brown.

Ten years after he passed away he was the subject of a tribute show on Killing The Town, starring former F4WOnline co-host Lance Storm and New Japan commentator Don Callis. The story of Bad News is an interesting one. He didn’t take his first Judo class until he was 22 but somehow became a five-time AAU national champion, a two-time Pan-Am Gold Medalist, and the afore-mentioned Olympic Bronze Medalist.

From there he entered the New Japan dojo at the ripe, young age of 34 and had a colorful 22-year career with his most notable stops being in Stampede Wrestling and the WWF. After leaving the WWF in 1990 he wrestled in New Japan and appeared on Canadian independent shows over the next decade. In addition to being an excellent athlete he had a commanding presence that helped him both with promos and in the locker room, where there was great respect for him everywhere he went.

Nixon Newell

By Alan Boon

My favorite wrestler this week is Nixon Newell, who bade farewell to one of her regular haunts — Fight Club: PRO — as part of a long, winding goodbye to the British wrestling scene. Her “nxt” destination hasn’t been officially announced yet, but it’s fair to say that you should expect to see her on that Network thing by mid-summer, if not sooner.

Her last show for Fight Club: PRO, at the Fixxion Warehouse in Wolverhampton, was named for her. Entitled First Female of Fight Club: PRO, it saw 200 people cram into a tiny space above a nightclub to say goodbye, with a last match against one of her mentors — Candice LeRae — a fitting way to bow out. LeRae was a perfect opponent, because she, too, has spent much of her career fighting as many men as women, one of Nixon’s core strengths.

Indeed, the night before, at All The Best 2017 in the same building, Nixon went toe-to-toe with her eternal nemesis (and sometime tag partner) Chris Brookes, in a crazy match which involved staples and thumb tacks amongst a display of super, modern wrestling.

Although the British scene is in a very healthy state, Nixon’s departure will leave a huge gap, and our loss is very much Orlando’s gain. Enjoy her while you can, and get ready for the next chapter in her story.

The Miz & Maryse

By Joseph Currier

The Miz and Maryse are my favorite wrestlers this week, and I’d expand that to include John Cena and Nikki Bella as well if I didn’t think that picking two wrestlers this week was already stretching things too much.

The “Total Bellas” videos that aired on last Tuesday’s SmackDown were about as funny as WWE comedy gets, largely due to the performances put on by Miz and Maryse. And even with their quality, they were almost overshadowed by Cena’s excellent promo on Talking Smack.

Everyone involved in the Cena & Nikki vs. Miz & Maryse mixed tag match at WrestleMania has played their parts so well since it started to build. We’ll see what the end result of it is on the show, but it’s become one of the matches I’m most looking forward to at WrestleMania.

Their storyline has been another reminder of how good Miz has become. I picked him as my choice for Most Improved in the 2016 Wrestling Observer Awards, though I understood the argument that he was just given more of a chance to showcase his abilities instead of actually becoming better.

But I think everything clicked for him in 2016, with Maryse returning and how well the couple works together on television helping out a lot, to the point where he’s now a worthy legitimate main event-level wrestler.