Robert “R.D.” Evans is gone from WWE, reportedly over a situation that developed during the Hall of Fame ceremony this past weekend.
There was an incident during the ceremony that led to Evans either being fired or qutting on the spot. He wrote a line during Bret Hart’s Hall of Fame speech where Hart thanked Vince McMahon for giving him and Jim Neidhart their break together. Writers were either told ahead of time or it was expected that they knew that McMahon’s name was not to be mentioned in any speech.
One person who was there said that as he was being berated, and was about to be fired, he quit on his own. It was explained that the attack on Bret caused such a frenzy that it created a very tense atmosphere backstage when the speech was over. The incident took place right after Hart & Neidhart’s speech was over, and it was something of a you can’t fire me because I quit scenario.
Whether Vince was in a bad mood because of the attack on Hart ruining his planned show, he was furious when it was over and tore into Evans, even though the thanking of Vince was on the teleprompter, meaning it had gotten through a number of channels after Evans wrote it. One person said that it’s possible it could have been resolved but Evans quit.
Evans is best known for portraying a number of characters in Ring of Honor and CHIKARA before joining WWE as a writer in 2016, including Archibald Peck and Mixed Martial Archie.
Zachary Madsen will be will arraigned in a Brooklyn, NY, court Sunday for his assault on Bret Hart Saturday night at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremonies.
The 26-year-old will be charged with two counts of third degree assault, one count of criminal tresspass, and one count of violation of local law following his tackle of Hart at the Barclays Center as he was giving a speech as part of the Hart Foundation’s induction.
The 61-year-old Hart appeared unharmed and finished the speech after things settled down. However, our Dave Meltzer tells us he did visit a hospital Saturday as he was experiencing some hip discomfort from the fall.
Retired and active wrestlers jumped to Hart’s and niece Natalya’s aid following the incident. One local outlet reported a security guard suffered minor injuries in the skirmish.
The New York Post did a deeper dive into Madsen’s social media accounts Sunday.
As of this writing, Hart has not posted about any of this on social media.
WWE Hall of Famer and wrestling legend Bret Hart was assaulted during his Hall of Fame speech Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY, but avoided serious injury.
Hart and his niece, Natalya, were accepting the honor for the Hart Foundation, the famous WWF era tag team with the late Jim Neidhart, Natalya’s father. Suddenly, they looked to their right as the fans noticed someone was approaching.
Then, a fan with a rastafarian hat and wig appeared to try to tackle the 61-year-old, but the feed went to black as he ran into Hart. LA Times’ reporter Arash Markazi caught the aftermath from his floor seat:
Someone from the crowd just ran into the ring and tackled Bret Hart during his WWE Hall of Fame speech. Here’s the aftermath. pic.twitter.com/oZXjnUj2kp
After a few minutes of chaos, Hart resumed his speech and even made an improv joke about it. WWE didn’t respond to a text regarding Hart’s health status, but it’s assumed he is ok given the situation.
WWE did release a brief statement to us: “An over-exuberant fan surpassed our security at ringside and made his way briefly into the ring. The individual has been turned over to the proper authorities.”
Markazi said he was told the attacker was charged with two counts of assault in the third degree and disorderly conduct. As of this writing, his name has yet to be released but the Associated Press reported he’s 26 years old.
Natalya tweeted following shortly after the incident, “I’m so proud of my uncle tonight during our HOF ceremony. Bret is a cancer survivor, a stroke survivor and one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. He didn’t deserve to be attacked or have his moment or my dad’s diminished. We got it back on track. Thank you, guys.”
D-Generation X (HHH, Shawn Michaels, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg, Billy Gunn) Honky Tonk Man, Torrie Wilson, Brutus Beefcake, the Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart), and Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray) will all be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
Additionally, longtime WWE employee Sue Aitchison will recieve this year’s Warrior Award from Dana Warrior. Aitchison is heavily involved in community service and is credited for being the link between WWE and Make A Wish Foundation.
WWE will also add a large group as Legacy Hall of Famers that includes Bruiser Brody, Wahoo McDaniel, Luna Vachon, SD Jones, Professor Toru Tanaka, Primo Carnera, MSG Network creator Joseph Cohen, former WWE president Hisashi Shinma, Buddy Rose, and promoter Jim Barnett.
Outside Hogan inducting Beefcake and Jimmy Hart inducting HTM, WWE hasn’t announced any of the other inductors.
The ceremony kicks off at 7 PM Eastern on WWE Network.
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Corey Graves and Renee Young are kicking us off from Barclays and introduce a video package for our first inductee, the Honky Tonk Man. The stage is a bit different this year as it’s in the ring with one side of ropes removed instead of the traditional stage we’re used to. It works.
Honky Tonk Man (inducted by Jimmy Hart)
Hart (who still has that great hair) told stories of HTM rising to the top of WWE in a fairly kayfabe fashion although he did use the name Wayne Ferris. The speech was only a few minutes, but mentioned how DDP drove to WrestleMania 6 in order to be the driver of HTM’s pink Cadillac for the show.
A very tan HTM, in full jumpsuit, guitar and with Peggy Sue, came out by the stage in that pink Cadillac. He said he wouldn’t be here without Hart. “Every dream I have had has come true 1000 times. This is the one dream I didn’t think would come true,” he said. He got a “You deserve it” chant from the fans.
He told a story of how the HTM character came about. He said he needed something different to get things rolling and had an idea for the character but needed a name. He was driving up the Gulf Coast and a 60s song “Honky Tonk Man” described the character he was trying to create. A promoter liked it and said he needed a guitar. “Can you play one? No? That’s even better.”
He talked about how the character really came to life in Calgary which is where he learned “how to stand, where to stand”. He said a recommendation came from Hulk Hogan (without naming him) to WWE after seeing him and he was hired right on the spot. “I love you, brother”, he said.
During the speech, he acknowledged his son in attendance and his daughter who was in Texas finishing up her final three months of medical school. “She said I should lose some weight before I did this. Doctor’s orders,” he joked.
As he wrapped up, Hart urged him to sing his theme song.
– Seth Rollins was shown and namebarred to a nice pop.
– We got a DX video of the Mike Tyson angle, the Vince/Shane impersonations, Raw 1000, and more.
Torrie Wilson (inducted by Stacy Keibler)
Keibler was a surprise and got a nice pop. She put over the women’s main event at WrestleMania and the women’s evolution. The fans chanted “Becky! Becky!” which Lynch got a bit embarassed about. Keibler talked about her Nitro Girls tryout and how that was the first time she met a woman with a “big smile and two dimples.” They have been friends for 20+ years.
Wilson started with a 4th grade story about a boy being interested in her for the first time and being nervous. She got up the nerve to talk to him after summer and he called her “fatso” and how that helped set a course for her the rest of her life. She transitioned to her first day in WWE and how she was nervous on that day as well. “Fear has one enemy: a confident persona.” She said how WWE gave her a confidence she wouldn’t have found anywhere else.
This was mainly an inspirational speech from someone that has done this before with advice that put over the fans. One of the best lines when talking about forgetting failure: “I didn’t get hired for my wrestling skills. I had none.” She told a fun story about Judgment Day 2003 when she did a posedown against Sable and “summoning her swagger” to get through the nerves.
Among others, she thanked Kevin Nash and Hulk Hogan about helping her get her start; Fit Finlay (“I’m sorry” she laughed) for helping train her which got a “Thank you Finlay” chant; “Pete aka Billy Kidman, aka my ex-husband” for teaching her what heat was and how to avoid it; Keibler; Michelle McCool (“She was my road wife before Undertaker got his hands on her”); Victoria; Candice Michelle; and her family, especially her father Al who passed away this week.
A puberty joke about the fans brought down the house and elicited a “Thank you Torrie” chant. This was a really fun, emotional speech and is worth your while to see.
The Legacy Hall of Famers were up next.
Bruiser Brody, Jim Barnett, Hisashi Shinma, Luna Vachon, Buddy Rose, Primo Carnera, Toru Tanaka, SD Jones, Wahoo McDaniel, and Joe Cohen made up the class. Cohen, a driving force behind MSG Nework and WWE’s relationship with USA Network, was specifically shouted out as he was in attendance.
The Hart Foundation
Bret Hart came out with Jim Neidhart’s daughter, Natalya, who accepted on his behalf.
She started by acknowledging her mom, Bret, and the fans “for showing unconditional love since 1985”. She said his favorite team to wrestle were the British Bulldogs and that his favorite city to compete in was New York City. She mentioned all the teams inspired by the Hart Foundation and mentioned Teddy Harty and Harry Smith among a group of WWE teams through the years. She said in their last text exchange, his proudest accomplishment, other than his three daughters, was being in WWE.
Then, it was Bret’s turn. He talked about 1985 and the first Mania. After years of toiling away, he said, his character was going to be “Cowboy” Bret Hart with the full package. He joked about he told George Scott that in order to be a cowboy, you need to be a real cowboy and turning it down. He said he blurted out about how Jim and Jimmy needed something and could team them and name them the Hart Foundation. Scott didn’t think he could be a babyface, but eventually relented.
As he was telling a story, a fan rushed the stage in a hat and wig and went to tackle Bret. The screen went to black quickly and came back up with a crowd shot. Eventually, we went back live to chants of “F*ck him up” and “A**hole” with about a dozen talents in the ring. As people settled down, it was time to get back to the speech.
Bret joked that he had never talked to Jim about the idea before he had brought it up. He joked that being a heel tag team in 1985 was a “sort of a little like that right now” which popped everyone big. He talked about the Killer Bees vs. the Hart Foundation in Calgary with his parents watching a 20-minute draw in the front row. He joked about how he called his mom “a old bag” while playing a heel and his dad yelling back at him.
He told a great story where he, Neidhart, and King Kong Bundy were walking to a NYC parking garage as heels, and Bret being naive about the situation. He got kisses from the girls while they got pelted with garbage and yelled at. The story kept going and was fantastic including an upside down map story.
He shouted out Jimmy Hart and said he should be up there with them. Dover, NH, native Danny Davis even got a shoutout, as did many of the familiar tag teams of the 1980s and 1990s. “We were young, dumb, and full of…life.” He closed out the speech and said that he hopes to see of his friends again someday and wants to be brought to the Anvil first. And, of course, he closed with his “best there ever will be” line with a quick video of Neidhart playing on the video board.
Given the interlude and Bret’s words after the fact, this was one of the most memorable speeches of all time.
Brutus Beefcake (inducted by Hulk Hogan)
Hogan does his “Let me tell you something, Mean Gene” bit to kick things off. Hogan talks about getting into wrestling and having his leg broken by Hiro Matsuda his first day and coming back later. He talked about how he got Ed Leslie to come help him out with his bar and gym and what happened after Hogan decided to get back into wrestling. He explained how Leslie would get training before shows while Hogan was on the road and how in NYC, the name Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake was born.
He’s been in the business for 41 years. He thanked Hogan and “the 10 other guys Terry asked who said no”. He talked about his big break and how initially WWF was thinking about a butler characer called Baron Beefcake. “I wasn’t digging the name Baron. No offense, Baron Corbin” was a funny moment. Eventually, the name came to be and he said all he heard was, “How could this not make money?”
He credited Pat Patterson with “The Barber” gimmick and admitted being upset they wanted to add it to his character that was going really well at the time. He said Hogan came up with the idea of the sleeper and haircut.
He thanked his family, Kenny Casanova, Greg Valentine, Wade Boggs, DDP, and Marty Jannetty. He talked about some of his favorite matches like SummerSlam ’89 with Hogan vs. Randy Savage and Zeus, taking on Hogan in 1985 in the Oakland Coliseum with a group of Hell’s Angels wearing Hulkamania t-shirts, and the night Roddy Piper beat Adrian Adonis in a hair match and the electric clippers that didn’t work.
He talked about ending Mr. Perfect’s win streak and chasing after Lanny Poffo to cut his hair…but Poffo didn’t know he was supposed to have his hair cut. He joked about how Savage was ready to fight him backstage but Patterson helped cooler heads prevail.
He closed things up by joking that Shawn Michaels let him shave his head and that he still owes him $350 for breaking his barber shop window.
The Warrior Award is up next, given to WWE’s Sue Aitchison.
Dana Warrior came out and talked about the award, her late husband, and a little about Aitchison before ceding the stage to John Cena, complete with parted hair and welcomed with a loud “Face Kurt Angle” chant.
Cena was talking about Aitchison (“everything just sounds cooler with a British accent”) and a “Let’s go Cena/Cena sucks” which briefly seemed to irritate him before he defused it. The fans are really bringing it tonight in a terrible way. He put over Make A Wish and how he owes a lot of who he is today to Aitchison.
She talked about Make-A-Wish, Connor’s Cure, and how she’s coordinated over 6000 Wishes over her decades with the company. She put over all of the talent who have participated and those who have been recognized by MAW for their efforts including Cena who is at a record 619 Wishes. She told a funny joke about how Justin Bieber claimed he had done the most but that she cleared that up quickly.
She closed up with a story of a MaW child that the Rock met 15 years ago that is still alive, Jody Phillps. He calls her “Grandman” and was there in attendance, eventually asked to come onto the stage.
They showed Daniel Bryan and the crowd started booing. They flipped to Kofi Kingston and the crowd went nuts. Then, they did the ‘yeah/boo’ spot by flipping beween both guys in a very funny bit.
Harlem Heat is up next.
Booker T led off with some childhood stories and how when he went to prison, he and his brother would talk about wrestling. When he got out and needed a job, he said his brother told him that with any job, he needed to do it to best of his ability no matter what it was and that’s stuck every since.
Stevie Ray took over and explained how they went to Ivan Putski’s school and were trained by Scott Casey. He walked through their history of different organizations and when they met Eddie Gilbert in Global Wrestling, joking Booker looked “a wrestling version of John Shaft.” He explained how the team came about, how the names came about (Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder) and how they became the Ebony Experience but that things almost ended before they started.
He talked about how they got to WCW and how Sherri Martel helped them out, a tag match with Sid Vicious and a friend of his, and how Ole Anderson helped keep them around. The speech kept coming back to the phrase “Looks like it was over before it started” which always got a laugh. They put over Hogan as helping them get bigger as he told management they were WCW’s best tag team. Seems to be a running thread tonight, huh?
Ray made a point to put over Arn Anderson and how influential he was to them, doing so in a way to help counteract some of the stories about Anderson after he was let go from WWE. You could tell he really wanted to make that point. Overall, this was a good speech with some good stories and shoutouts.
DX is up next to close the show.
HHH, X-Pac, Billy Gunn, Shawn Michaels, and Road Dogg came out on an army vehicle like they did for the WCW invasion. After they threw out a bunch of neon light sticks and walked around the ring, Dogg said, “I dare someone to rush the ring on DX!” He then was asked to lead things off but said he was “blown sky high” and needed five minutes to recover.
HHH interrupted him and said he was an important executive and that “apparently if you put executive vice president in front of your name, you become important” in a funny moment. He went through the rules of WWE HoF speeches like “Do not say Vince McMahon” and they proceeded to say his name about 50 times, getting the fans to eventually chant it. Billy Gunn joked, “He can’t fire me!” HHH then said, “He’ll buy that pissant company just to fire you again!”
Michaels got serious and put over Chyna which the fans ate up with “You deserve it”. Dogg put on his “cheaters” which were glasses and a giant stack of papers that was his speech (“Hillbilly Jim helped me with it) and then all the guys brought out their glasses. HHH’s were googly eyed glasses which he said were Shawn’s while Shawn had a pair with a big nose that were his.
Dogg got serious and thanked God for his sobreity, and his wife who went through hell with him and how he’ll spend the rest of his days trying to repay her. He closed with a funny video that strangely ended wth a dog humping a woman’s leg.
Gunn then got the mic with jokes from HHH (“Don’t make Vince regret this”) and thanked his family, getting choked up when talking about his mom and his wife. He then brought out a SuperSoaker that fizzled out of water to which HHH said, “At our age, it happens. Sometimes when you pump it, it just dribbles out the tip.” Michaels said, “Just like Billy Gunn to overpromise and underdeliver. We appreciate you being here and being…all in.” This is an amazing set of speeches.
Then, it was Waltman’s turn and the fans chanted “1-2-3”. He said he didn’t think he’d be alive to see this moment. He talked about his family in attendance and being able to have a relationship with his two kids again. He said the guys made jokes about how many notes he had, but he decided to just wing it. “If you want to look up my work, just watch on the WWE Network…for $9.99. Is it still $9.99?” He talked about seeing Ric Flair vs. Dusty Rhodes and knowing that day, that’s what he wanted to do.
He thanked the Great Malenko, his sons, Scott Hall, the Clique, Bret Hart, Eric Bischoff for hiring him and firing him in time to back to win the Monday Night Wars for WWE, and Kevin Nash. Nash didn’t stand up immediately and Waltman joked, “What, are your knees bothering you? I was going to make a quad joke.” He thanked Gunn for not killing him for supergluing his hat to his head before a match, explaining he thought Gunn shaved his eyebrows but it turned out it was Curt Hennig.
He shouted out Chyna and suggested that the Chyna memorial battle royal had a nice ring to it.
His speech closed strangely with a talk about all the women who flashed them through the years which transitioned into showing old women with saggy boobs on the video board. Yep, that happened.
Then, it was time for Shawn Michaels who said that his family wasn’t here. They jokingly moved him along with HHH saying, “They’re embarassed because you wore assless chaps for years. Even Bret wouldn’t do that.” HHH then closed things up with shouting out Killer Kowalski, everyone he’s worked against, and the Clique (“It was DX before DX was, the NWO before the NWO was”). The crowd did the Young Bucks “Too Sweet Woop Woop” chant to which he said, “Honestly, that’s stupid and I hate that. Our stuff was cool, that ain’t.” Alright then.
He talked about Chyna and how her induction was fitting given the Mania main event. He pointed out her sister in the crowd. “She’s here, the real her,” he said, getting emotional. “Believe me, the real her would love this.” He shouted out his three daughters, his parents, Vince, Linda (“I can say her name. What’s she going to do, audit my taxes or something?”), and Stephanie (“Forever.”).
He joked that his mom was the master of the penis joke and wrote all the group’s controversial humor. Michaels then started talked and we got the return of the DX podium where the goal was to apologize for all the bad things they have done. This started to drag a bit, especially as we were nearing the four hour mark. All of their catchphrases closed out a long, but memorable speech.
Good night from Barclays Center…or at least a laptop in New Hampshire watching a show from Barclays.
Jimmy Hart will be playing a role in this year’s WWE Hall of Fame ceremony.
WWE announced today that Hart will induct The Honky Tonk Man into the Hall of Fame. Hart was Honky Tonk Man’s manager in the WWF.
It was originally reported that Hart was going to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame again this year as part of the Hart Foundation, but only Bret Hart & Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart are being inducted as part of the group.
Jimmy would have become a two-time WWE Hall of Famer if he was included with the Hart Foundation. He was inducted individually in 2005.
The Hall of Fame ceremony is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York tomorrow (Saturday) night. D-Generation X (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg & Billy Gunn), Honky Tonk Man, Torrie Wilson, Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray), the Hart Foundation, and Brutus Beefcake are the other members of this year’s class. Sue Aitchison will also receive this year’s Warrior Award.
As was announced yesterday, Hulk Hogan will be inducting Beefcake into the Hall of Fame.
Hulk Hogan has been officially announced as the person inducting Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake into the WWE Hall of Fame.
WWE released the news on Thursday, citing Hogan and Beefcake’s close friendship. The ceremony will be at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, on Saturday, and will air live on the WWE Network at 7 PM Eastern.
The professional connection between Beefcake (real name Ed Leslie) and Hogan dates back to the 1970s when they often teamed in Southeastern territories.
The two later teamed again in WWF, most notably headlining 1989’s SummerSlam and the main event for the No Holds Barred movie PPV event, defeating Randy Savage and Zeus on both shows.
Beefcake would later join Hogan in WCW, where the two were alternately friends and foes. They headlined 1994’s Starrcade event in a singles match.
Beefcake, Honky Tonk Man, Torrie Wilson, D-Generation X, Harlem Heat, The Hart Foundation, and Sue Aitchison (Warrior Award) make up the 2019 HoF class.
This year’s WWE Hall of Fame class has officially been finalized.
WWE confirmed via Sports Illustrated today that Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake will be inducted into their Hall of Fame this weekend. The ceremony is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday and will air live on the WWE Network.
“This is the culmination of a lifetime’s worth of work,” Beefcake (real name Ed Leslie) told Sports Illustrated. “I’m grateful to the WWE, and I cannot wait for the tremendous honor.”
“Terry and I were just a couple kids from Tampa living our dream,” Beefcake said about his friendship with Hulk Hogan. “We had sat on the beach for endless days talking about wrestling, and then there we were, living it, working territories in Florida and Alabama with guys like Ox Baker, Bob Armstrong, and Professor Toru Tanaka. They took us under their wing and helped make us into what we became.”
D-Generation X (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg & Billy Gunn), Honky Tonk Man, Torrie Wilson, Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray), The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart & Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart), and Beefcake are the members of this year’s Hall of Fame class. Longtime WWE employee Sue Aitchison will receive this year’s Warrior Award.
The Hall of Fame ceremony will begin on the WWE Network at 7 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday. There will also be a one-hour red carpet special starting at 6 p.m. Eastern.
Two members of the Hart Foundation will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame over WrestleMania 35 weekend.
WWE confirmed via Yahoo Sports today that Bret Hart & Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart will be inducted into their Hall of Fame on Saturday, April 6.
“It was very emotional for me,” Bret told Yahoo Sports. “It really means a lot to me and I think it would mean a lot to my late tag partner, who would be really honored to be in the Hall of Fame. I think we both were really proud of our work as a team. I had hoped for years that we would get inducted together and get to go on stage together, but that’s not going to happen now. Emotionally, I feel really proud and I’m glad to get a chance to speak for Jim and I know he’ll be listening.”
Natalya tweeted: “GRIT. DETERMINATION. PASSION. THAT’S WHAT BUILDS A FOUNDATION. CONGRATULATIONS DADDY & @brethart … YOU. DESERVE. IT. #wwehalloffame”
Though he was originally reported as being inducted with the Hart Foundation, Jimmy Hart wasn’t included in today’s announcement. Jimmy was inducted individually in 2005.
Bret joins Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, and Booker T on the list of two-time WWE Hall of Famers. Michaels is being inducted as part of D-Generation X this year, while Booker T and Stevie Ray are being inducted as Harlem Heat.
This year’s Hall of Fame ceremony is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. D-X (Michaels, Triple H, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg & Billy Gunn), Honky Tonk Man, Torrie Wilson, Harlem Heat, and Bret & Neidhart have been announced for the Hall of Fame class, and longtime WWE employee Sue Aitchison will receive the Warrior Award.
A longtime WWE employee will be receiving the Warrior Award at this year’s Hall of Fame ceremony.
WWE announced today that Sue Aitchison is the winner of this year’s Warrior Award. The award “is presented to an individual who has exhibited unwavering strength and perseverance and who lives life with the courage and compassion that embodies the indomitable spirit of The Ultimate Warrior.”
Aitchison has worked for WWE for more than 30 years and is the company’s director of community relations. WWE notes that Aitchison is credited with spearheading their community outreach programs, including WWE’s relationship with the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Aitchison was honored with Make-A-Wish’s Chris Greicius Celebrity Award in 2006.
“I’m so humbled — just thinking about this honor is emotional,” Aitchison told the Stamford Advocate. “Giving back is part of WWE’s philosophy. This is something we do and always want to do well.”
“Sue has dedicated her entire career to helping Wish kids fulfill their dreams and putting smiles on countless families’ faces. Her heart and character epitomize the essence of the Warrior Award,” Stephanie McMahon said. “She is an unsung hero who deserves to be recognized and immortalized in the WWE Hall of Fame.”
Dana Warrior will present the award to Aitchison at the Hall of Fame ceremony, which is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday, April 6. D-Generation X (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg & Billy Gunn), Honky Tonk Man, Torrie Wilson, and Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray) have been announced for this year’s Hall of Fame class.
Connor “The Crusher” Michalek posthumously received the inaugural Warrior Award in 2015. Joan Lunden, Eric LeGrand, and Jarrius “JJ” Robertson have been Warrior Award recipients over the past three years.
A third name is set to join the list of two-time WWE Hall of Famers.
WWE announced via USA Today that Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray) will be inducted into their Hall of Fame over WrestleMania 35 weekend. With him being inducted alongside his brother, Booker T will become a two-time WWE Hall of Famer.
Booker T was first inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame individually in 2013. Stevie Ray was the person who inducted him.
Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels (who is being inducted as part of D-Generation X this year) are the only other two-time WWE Hall of Famers.
“I was speechless for a couple of seconds. The last thing I was thinking about was the Hall of Fame,” Stevie Ray told USA Today. “I’m going to be honest with you, I hadn’t really thought about it. You know, I get the fans hitting me all the time with different things about Harlem Heat needs to be in the Hall of Fame, so on and so forth. But you never know, so I never gave it very much thought.”
“It was surprising, actually, I guess because one reason, my brother and I, we never actually wrestled in the WWE,” Booker T said. “My brother took a step aside at that point in time because he had a daughter, and he wanted to see her grow up and see her go to college. He got a chance to do that. But our career in WCW was awesome.
“My brother and I were together for eight and a half years in WCW and together another two years prior in the Global Wrestling Federation. So we had a career as a tag team, and to be recognized as one of the great tag teams of all time…. [there were] a lot of great tag teams that we competed against back in the day, like the Steiners, the Nasty Boys and the Road Warriors, Sting and Lex Luger, Public Enemy — so many guys we got a chance to grapple with back then, and to be recognized, it’s pretty awesome.”
Harlem Heat held the WCW Tag Team titles 10 times during their career.
D-Generation X (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg & Billy Gunn), Honky Tonk Man, Torrie Wilson, and Harlem Heat have now been announced for this year’s Hall of Fame class. The induction ceremony is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday, April 6.
Torrie Wilson is being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of this year’s class.
WWE announced the news via espnW today. D-Generation X (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg & Billy Gunn) and the Honky Tonk Man are the other acts that have been confirmed for the 2019 class thus far.
“This feels like a sweet closure,” Wilson told espnW. “Since I retired, so many people have asked me, ‘Do you feel bad you’ve never won a title?’ And I have always said no, because I felt like I got the value — even though it would have been nice [to win a title]. But being inducted into the Hall of Fame feels like a championship belt to me, because it really makes me feel appreciated.”
Wilson, who started her career with WCW and joined the WWF after WCW closed its doors, had two matches for WWE last year. She took part in the company’s first women’s Royal Rumble and was a participant in the battle royal at Evolution. Wilson also made an appearance at Raw’s 25th anniversary episode.
With Chyna being inducted as part of D-X and Wilson going into the Hall of Fame, there will be at least two women inducted this year.
This year’s Hall of Fame ceremony is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday, April 6.
This year’s WWE Hall of Fame class has its second confirmed act.
WWE announced via CBS Sports today that the Honky Tonk Man will be inducted into their Hall of Fame over WrestleMania 35 weekend. The ceremony is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday, April 6.
“WWE is the place to be. For me, it’s the only place I have ever wanted to be,” Honky Tonk Man (Wayne Farris) told CBS Sports on their State of Combat podcast. “It’s the place that if I’m ready to finish up, that’s where I want to be. It’s home for me because I have so many fond memories of everything that has been accomplished by WWE and from what I’ve accomplished myself. It wasn’t me alone, it was a huge team effort.
“That is what’s amazing and what is so great about being part of the WWE. The door is open to you and it’s up to you if you want to walk through it. I look back on everything and for some unknown reason, everything has a meaning. The timing, everything about this year in the 2019 Hall of Fame, everything was lining up perfectly. I never dreamed it was going to happen and would tell people that it’s something I don’t think about every day of my life. But to be able to be part of this, it’s hard to explain.”
Honky Tonk Man’s 454 days as champion is the longest Intercontinental title reign in WWE history. He won the title from Ricky Steamboat on June 2, 1987 and dropped it to the Ultimate Warrior on August 29, 1988.
D-Generation X (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg, and Billy Gunn) were the first act to be announced for the 2019 WWE Hall of Fame class.
While WWE has yet to make any official announcements for this year’s Hall of Fame class, it appears that the first act for it has been confirmed.
PWInsider reported this afternoon that the original Hart Foundation (Bret Hart, Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart, and Jimmy Hart) will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of this year’s class. The Hall of Fame ceremony is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday, April 6.
Bret and Jimmy Hart have already been inducted into the Hall of Fame individually. Bret headlined the 2006 class, while Jimmy was part of the 2005 class.
Neidhart passed away in August 2018. He was 63 years old.
Bret & Neidhart were two-time Tag Team Champions together in the WWF.
This year’s Hall of Fame ceremony was originally scheduled to take place on the Friday of WrestleMania weekend before being moved to Saturday.
After announcing that Big Show would be an entrant in the Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia later this month, WWE also confirmed today that he’ll be playing a role at this year’s Hall of Fame ceremony.
“I’ve spent a lot of time going up and down the road with Mark Henry,” Big Show said while speaking with WWE.com. “I’ve had battles with him, and I know what kind of a human being and community leader he is. I can’t think of anyone more deserving of the WWE Hall of Fame. It is my honor to induct my friend.”
Big Show hasn’t wrestled since undergoing hip resurfacing surgery last year and dealing with a surgical infection after the operation. While ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange this morning, he said that he signed a new multi-year contract with WWE in January.
Here’s the updated 2018 Hall of Fame lineup:
Goldberg (inducted by Paul Heyman)
The Dudley Boyz (inducted by Edge & Christian)
Ivory (inducted by Molly Holly)
Jeff Jarrett (inducted by Road Dogg)
Hillbilly Jim (inducted by Jimmy Hart)
Mark Henry (inducted by Big Show)
Warrior Award recipient Jarrius “JJ” Robertson (award presented by Dana Warrior)
Jim did an interview with TMZ Sports after being announced for this year’s Hall of Fame class and was asked about Hulk Hogan potentially inducting him. Jim said he’d love it if Hogan were chosen to do the speech, but WWE put out a statement this week noting that Hogan isn’t scheduled for any of the company’s upcoming events.
Along with Hogan, Hart was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the 2005 class.
The updated 2018 Hall of Fame lineup is listed below:
Goldberg (inducted by Paul Heyman)
The Dudley Boyz (inducted by Edge & Christian)
Ivory (inducted by Molly Holly)
Jeff Jarrett (inducted by Road Dogg)
Hillbilly Jim (inducted by Jimmy Hart)
Warrior Award recipient Jarrius “JJ” Robertson (award presented by Dana Warrior)
