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Every year, the WWE has a Wrestlemania weekend tradition; The Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
It's a chance for the WWE to honor the legacy and contributions of men and women who gave their bodies and souls to sports entertainment and professional wrestling. Each year, there is one thing that is absolutely guaranteed; Someone is going to be left off the list, and people on the internet will complain about it.
Since pro wrestling has been around for more than a hundred years, and the WWE only inducts around a dozen wrestlers each year, there are bound to be fans who feel miffed that one of their favorites didn't make the cut. However, there are times when the criticism is absolutely on point.
With decidedly non-wrestling talent Torrie Wilson an inductee for 2019, and Sunny being a past inductee, there are definitely some people who should have made it into the hall of fame first.
Here are ten wrestlers who deserve to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2019.
#1 Big Van Vader
Big Van Vader was born Leon White, and his massive size was noticed at an early age. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Raiders but was forced to retire before completing his first season due to a ruptured patella.
Vader was scouted by Lou Thesz's AWA promotion while working out in a gym. He debuted as Baby Bull and was pushed as a face because the promoters thought he was too handsome to be a believable heel. He would challenge AWA champion Stan"the Lariat" Hansen for the world title, unsuccessfully.
It was in Japan where Vader became a megastar. After he defeated legendary Japanese wrestling star Antonio Inoki in a brief squash match, the fans in Sumo Hall rioted, which wound up banning pro wrestling events for over a decade.
He would bear the coveted IWGP championship, and also won the WCW World title when he returned to America.
Why he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame: Vader redefined what it meant to be a superheavyweight in the world of wrestling, performing moonsaults and splashes with the greatest of ease. A true international star, Vader wrestled all over the world and left behind an impressive legacy before his death.
#2 Sam Muchnik
Modern wrestling fans probably don't know who Sam Muchnik is, but his contributions to the sport cannot be discounted.
Muchnik cut his teeth as a wrestling promoter under the tutelage of Tom Packs, the top wrestling promoter of the 1930s and 1940s. However, when Packs short shifted Sam Muchnik on his fair share of the gate for a 14,000 dollar show--that's a quarter of a million adjusted for inflation--Muchnik broke out on his own.
Through grit and determination, he managed to book shows in the St. Louis area despite heavy resistance from Packs, who had myriad political connections. Muchnik would go on to co-found the National Wrestling Alliance and served as its president for two stints.
Why he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame: Muchnik may never have performed in the ring, but he helped grow sports entertainment to doing major arena shows, a debt which cannot be re-payed.
#3 Kane
While most fans know him as the Undertaker's kayfabe brother--or the Mayor of Knox County, Tennessee--but his long career has lasted over twenty-seven years.
Kane got his start under the name Doomsday but was perhaps more well known in his early career as Unabomb. Being nearly seven feet tall and well over three hundred pounds, his ability to fly off the top rope was almost unheard of at the time for a man that size.
Kane wrestled exactly one match in WCW, a loss to Sting, before joining the WWE as Dr. Issac Yankem, DDS, Jerry Lawler's personal dentist.
He would feud with Bret Hart before disappearing for a time, and making his re-debut as the ill-received 'fake' Diesel character when Kevin Nash left WWE for WCW.
However, when he became the masked Kane his career finally took off. Kane would wind up holding the WWE World title on two separate occasions, and also held the ECW championship and the world tag team championship.
Why he deserves to be in the hall of fame: Kane has been in the sport for a very long time, a true ring general who was always willing to play any role given to him for the good of the company.
#4 Billy Sandow
Billy Sandow is not a name that many modern wrestling fans recognize, but he was crucial to the development of modern wrestling as we know it today.
When Sandow got his start, pro wrestling meant greco-roman or catch wrestling, and matches could go on for over an hour with little action as the two athletes sought an advantage. As audiences continued to dwindle, Sandow realized that something had to change.
Sandow, along with Ed Lewis and Toots Mondt, would change the wrestling ring to more closely resemble a boxing ring, and would modify wrestling from a pure athletic contest to more of a performance, with flashier holds and moves as well as larger than life personas for the talent.
He would also famously challenge pro boxing legend Patrick Dempsey to a bout, but the match never happened.
Why he deserves to be in the hall of fame: As one of the Gold Dust Trio, Sandow would help change pro wrestling into a scripted dramatic entertainment form, which dramatically increased the audience attendance and set the stage for modern pro wrestling.
#5 Demolition
In the 1980s, tag team wrestling grew very, very hot. Teams like the Rock N Roll Express, the Fantastics, and the Sheepherders were international stars.
But the biggest name of all in tag team wrestling was the Road Warriors. When Vince McMahon failed to get Hawk and Animal under contract, he took the next logical step; he created his own version of the Legion of Doom, Demolition.
Despite their being essentially a knock off of the Road Warriors, Demolition were quite successful in their own right. Both were veteran grapplers who could work the mike and wrestle with great aplomb.
They held the record for longest WWE tag team title reign until the New Day broke it recently. Demolition were a fixture of WWE's classic era and are well remembered by many fans and wrestlers--like Kyle O'Reilly, who named his Ax and Smash combo after the duo.
Why they deserve to be in the Hall of Fame: Demolition wrestled all of the best tag teams of the 1980s--names like the British Bulldogs, the Hart Foundation, and Strike Force--and left them laying in a heap. Their historic tag team title run is not to be discounted, and makes them worthy of the Hall of Fame all on its own.
#6 Danny Hodge
Danny Hodge was a standout amateur wrestler. During his tenure at the University of Oklahoma, he was undefeated with forty six wins, and allegedly was never even taken off his feet by an opponent.
Not only was he a skilled grappler, but a supreme pugilist as well, capturing the coveted Golden Gloves status. Hodge would become a pro wrestler in 1959 and went on to become an NWA stalwart, holding their junior heavyweight title and international tag team title among other championships.
Hodge is tremendously strong even at his venerable age, and can still crush an apple with one hand as he did at the 2006 NCAA championships.
Why he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame: Danny Hodge was a true wrestling legend, and his amateur champion status helps legitimize both sports entertainment and the Hall of Fame with his mere presence.
#7 Jim Cornette
Jim Cornette was a huge wrestling fan from early childhood, so much so that he climbed atop his steep roof at ten years of age and installed a fifteen-foot antenna just so he could catch as much wrestling shows as possible.
Cornette would serve many functions in pro wrestling, as timekeeper, booker, and announcer, but it's his time as a manager that made him a legend. Cornette's gift of gab was a boon to anyone he managed, and he coined many phrases that are used outside of the wrestling industry such as 'hitting someone so hard their grandchildren will be born dizzy' and 'that guy is so ugly he has to ambush breakfast!'
Jim Cornette managed the Midnight Express in multiple promotions and has also worked for a variety of wrestling companies like Ohio Valley Wrestling behind the scenes.
Why he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame: Cornette's contributions to the pro wrestling industry go far beyond his role as a manager and mouthpiece--and he was one of the best managers of all time.
#8 Keiji Muto (the Great Muta.)
Keiji Mutoh was a multi-time Judo champion in Japan before making the transition to pro wrestling. As was common in those days, he was sent on a learning sabbatical to the United States, where he worked for the NWA promotion.
Mutoh was changed into the Great Muta character while in the United States and adopted the face paint and green mist of his kayfabe 'father,' the Great Kabuki. Muta's springboard elbow, moonsault, and spinning kicks are more commonplace in wrestling today, but in the 1980s they had seldom been seen in the USA.
Muta would hold the NWA Television Title and the NWA world title and is one of the few wrestlers to have held the IWGP championship as well. Mutoh is mostly retired but still pops up for matches from time to time.
Why he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame: Muta was crucial to the development of modern American wrestling styles and was a major star all over the world and in his native Japan. He has faced many legends, such as Hulk Hogan, Sting, and Ric Flair, and beaten them.
#9 The Midnight Express
If current WWE Hall of Fame members Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson--known jointly as the Rock and Roll Express--are the pro wrestling equivalent of Luke Skywalker, then the Midnight Express is their Darth Vader.
While ostensibly a heel tag team, the Midnight Express were so good in the ring they got a great deal of support from the audience.
Innovative with tandem moves, such as the double goozle and the rocket launcher, the duo would be one of the few tag teams to hold both the NWA United States and World Tag team titles (yes, tag wrestling was once so hot there were two tiers of championships.)
Why they deserve to be in the Hall of Fame: The Midnight Express were true wrestling legends and one of the most iconic teams of the 1980s. Their smooth execution, great teamwork, and ability to work a crowd makes them more than worthy for induction into the Hall of Fame.
#10 Hot Stuff Eddie Gilbert
As a child, Eddie Gilbert was a huge pro wrestling fan, which is understandable since his father was famous grappler Thomas Gilbert. Not only did Eddie love wrestling, he also loved to toy around with booking ideas. He would often create entire match cards instead of paying attention in school.
Eddie became a pro wrestler in the early 1980s and worked briefly for the WWE, but it was his time in the UWF and NWA for which he is best known. During his career, he racked up over thirty championship reigns and was also one of the most respected bookers in the industry.
He was credited for coming up with the Battle of New Orleans, one of the early mega events of wrestling before the days of Pay per view.
Gilbert also mentored some legendary wrestlers, like Ric Steiner and Sting, and was widely recognized as being very generous with his time and teaching young talent his many secrets.
Why he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame: Hot Stuff Eddie Gilbert may not have been the biggest pro wrestler, or capable of doing moonsaults and 450 splashes, but his mind for the business helped foster the careers of many legends.
There you have it; Ten wrestlers who deserve to be in the Hall of Fame class of 2019. Questions or comments? Please leave them below the article and as always thanks for reading!
