Breaking News: George "The Animal" Steele passes away

As first broken by WWE legend Hulk Hogan, George “The Animal” Steele passed away. Hogan tweeted the following:

George"the Animal"Steel,RIP my brother,only love,only grateful. HH

— Hulk Hogan (@HulkHogan) February 17, 2017

We previously reported that George “The Animal” Steele was in hospice care, where he had terminal health issues. The Animal had been battling health issues the past two years(that is publicly known) and tweeted last year about his health.

Long time wrestling agent Eric Simms posted on Facebook that he had said his goodbyes to The Animal. Former WWE champion Bob Backlund also took to Facebook to mention that he had spoken to Steele’s wife, and she said that he wouldn’t be returning home.

Many other pro wrestling personalities such as Jim Ross, Cody Rhodes, Court Bauer, Shane “Hurricane” Helms, and more have come forth on twitter to pay their condolences and respects to the fallen legend.

George “The Animal” Steele began his journey in the WWE(then known as WWWF) in 1967 when he had a feud with then-WWE Champion Bruno Sammartino. The heated rivalry led to Steele getting signed, and he would spend the next 21 years with the company.

Steele is credited with being one of the first ever “monster” heels in pro wrestling. However, he played a babyface for a long time in the 80s, during the “wrestling boom” period. Steele is perhaps most known for being involved in the classic Randy Savage vs Ricky Steamboat Intercontinental Championship match at WrestleMania 3. He was with Ricky Steamboat and helped The Dragon win the Intercontinental Championship from Randy Savage.

We at Sportskeeda would like to offer our condolences to the family and friends of George “The Animal” Steele. Steele is a legend to the business of professional wrestling whose contributions will never be forgotten.