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What's the story?
As we near WrestleMania and the Hall of Fame ceremony during the weekend, there is sad news for WWE fans.
WWE Hall of Famer, Thomas Sullivan, better known as Johnny Valiant, passed away after an unfortunate accident in Ross Township, Pennsylvania. Thanks to Wrestling Inc for the heads up.
In case you didn't know...
During his career, he wrestled in a tag team in the WWWF who went by the name of The Valiant Brothers. They won the WWWF Tag Team Titles twice, but long after his in-ring career was over, Johnny Valiant enjoyed a career as a manager.
Early on, he managed Hulk Hogan in the AWA before he signed with the WWE (then known as the WWF). In WWE, he managed the likes of Brutus 'The Barber' Beefcake, Greg Valentine, Dino Bravo, and the Tag Team duo of the Demolition. For a brief while, he also commentated on WWE shows.
He left the company in 1988 and finished his career in the AWA. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 1996.
The heart of the matter
Johnny Valiant, former WWE Superstar and WWE Hall of Famer passed away aged 71, after he was hit by a pickup truck on Wednesday morning. Valiant was hit by the truck when he was crossing a busy road, and had reportedly not been using the crosswalk.
Police are treating the death as an accident, although the investigation is still in progress.
Ross Township Detective Brian Kohlepp commented on the incident, saying that there were witnesses to the accident, whom they had been able to speak to. He also revealed that the driver of the truck stayed on the scene.
"The driver of the truck stayed here on the scene. There's no indication that this was anything other than a terrible accident at this point, but we're still investigating."
What's next?
The investigation is still in progress, although it appears that the passing of Johnny Valiant was nothing but an unfortunate accident.
Our tribute
Johnny Valiant will forever be remembered in the world of professional wrestling as an excellent wrestler and a colourful personality. His presence added more to the characters that he was managing, and his loss is unquantifiable.
We at Sportskeeda mourn the loss of one of the greatest personalities in wrestling history and extend our condolences to his family and friends in these trying times.
