WWE Hall Of Fame Candidate Selection

WrestleMania is just weeks away and with it comes the annual WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony. In 2010, the audience will gather to see Wendy Richter, Antonio Inoki, and Ted Dibiase inducted. Other rumored inductees for this years gathering are Owen and Stu Hart. 

The WWE Hall of Fame started in 1993 with the induction of Andre the Giant. The Hall shut down from 1997 to 2003. The Hall was reopened in 2004 with 11 professionals being inducted, the largest class to date.

In this article, I am going to address three issues with the Hall of Fame. Should there be an actual location and where, should the class size be limited, and who are the future candidates.

The location question seems easy, yes, but where to put a WWE Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame. The easy answer is Stamford, Conn.

But would pro wrestling fans actually travel that far east, especially if the fan lives in California or Washington. More realistic and travel friendly locations are St. Louis, Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago, New York, and Las Vegas. St. Louis has a long history of pro wrestling.

Atlanta continues to grow.

Dallas and Chicago are in the Midwest.

New York is, well, New York, but poses the same problem as Stamford. There is so much to do in New York and visiting a pro wrestling Hall of Fame would not be on the agenda, no matter how big the fan.

Vegas would be a nice alternative. After losing money at the tables and slots, going to the pro wrestling Hall of Fame may take away some pain of losing the house payment. 

For now the best solution for the WWE is to have a traveling Hall of Fame exhibit travel on the Road to Wrestle Mania Tour and perhaps through the Wrestle Mania revenge tour. 

The class size seems to represent how upset or generous Vince McMahon is during the particular year. Future Hall of Fame members on the WWE roster are The Undertaker, HHH, and HBK. John Cena, Edge, Randy Orton, Batista, and Chris Jericho seem to be paving their own roads to the Hall.

Each of these superstars do not appear to be retiring within the next few years with the exception of Undertaker, HBK, and perhaps Batista, so if the class size continues to be seven to 10 strong, then the Hall of Fame may actually lose prestige if more like Koko B. Ware, Pete Rose, an Refrigerator Perry are in the classes.

Larger classes mean in a few years the Hall will run out of exceptional candidates and start inducting the likes of Rocky King, the Mulkeys, and Giant Gonzalez. We all know Vince McMahon does not like to relinquish any power, but maybe he should appoint a Hall of Fame committee, similar to the NFL and MLB.

The committee would elect no more than five per year with one veteran, old-school, choice. This would be radical, but allow a fan vote starting in December with a list of 20 candidates and the fan vote would constitute 10 percent of the decision.

Remember, without the fans, pro wrestling would not be worldwide and would be in the back alleys.

On a side note, since the WWE owns possibly 80 percent of the pro wrestling industry, should wrestlers who never worked for WWE in a large capacity such as Sting and Lou Thesz be inducted?

If they should, then maybe rename the WWE Hall of Fame to the Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame. Harley Race, the seven-time NWA World champion did not have a great run in the WWE, but yet he is in the Hall of Fame. Two great AWA champions, Verne Gagne and Nick Bockwinkel, are in the Hall. So why not Lou Thesz and Sting.

Should the WWE only allow former World champions into the Hall?

Should any former World champion be an automatic Hall of Famer?

Both question are definitely no. Dan Marino, perhaps the greatest quarterback ever, did not win a title, but Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl. So is Dilfer a Hall of Fame QB, while Marino is not?

Anyone who ever watched a football game knows the answer. 

As of 2010, there are quite a bit of exceptional possibilities for the Hall of Fame. Stu Hart seems to be the main attraction this year, but is Owen Hart more deserving to go to the Hall than his father?

Other names potentially foreseen in the future are the Rock, the Ultimate Warrior, Rick Rude, Mick Foley, and Trish Stratus. The name every fan wants called is Randy Savage. For whatever reasons, the Macho Man appears to be blacklisted.

The other two wrestlers noticeably absent from the Hall of Fame are Bob Backlund and Bruno Sammartino. Backlund may not have been the most colorful champion, but he held the strap and was a technical master and workhorse for the better part of four years.

Mr. Sammartino has some ethical issues with being associated with the WWE, so that one may never happen. 

The WWE should include some more stables and tag teams as Hall of Fame candidates. Stables and tag teams are a vital part of the industry and a few have made lasting impacts in the history books. John Lennon is in the Rock and Roll Hall as a Beatle and as an individual, so why should Ric Flair not be in as a Horsemen and an individual.

Allowing stables into the Hall would let those borderline candidates such as an Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard into the Hall of Fame.

Arn and Tully were great singles competitors, but not really Hall of Fame careers—the same for Barry Windham, Jim Niedhart, and Davey Boy Smith. 

Davey Boy may have had a longer career as a singles competitor, but his work with the British Bulldogs makes him a Hall of Fame candidate.

The Hall of Fame should start including more of the great tag teams and stables. The tag team scene of the 1980's was so deep in talent one wonders why only six teams are in the Hall of Fame. The top team candidate not in the Hall of Fame is the Road Warriors.

The Warriors impact on the tag team scene made other promoters copy them, from the Powers of Pain, to Demolition and the Blade Runners. Demolition, once considered Road Warrior rip-offs, actually set themselves apart and became a great tag team and Hall of Fame candidates.

It's amazing to see the Samoans and Blackjacks in the Hall of Fame but no Fabulous Freebirds. The 'Birds were amazing in the ring and with Michael Hayes on the microphone. They kept the fans entertained and wanting more of the Freebirds.

Other tag teams to consider are the Sheepherders, even though they were neutered as the Bushwhackers, the Hart Foundation, The British Bulldogs, the Steiners, Crusher and Bruiser, Ivan and Nikita Koloff, the Outsiders, Harlem Heat, the Midnight Express, and even the Rockers and Rock and Roll Express.

It is time to include more than just six teams in the Hall of Fame. 

The NWO and Four Horsemen are the top two stables which should be included. Evolution and D-X have an outside chance, but are hurt because of longevity.

Families, such as the Briscos, who are in the Hall, along with the Von Erichs, should also be debated as candidates. The Hart Family along with the McMahons have had a great influence on the industry. 

The Hall of Fame Ceremony is only four weeks away.

It is always fun to debate who is a Hall of Fame candidate and every wrestler who ever laced up the boots and put their body on the line in the ring deserves credit, but the Hall of Fame should be for those unique and talented enough to make a lasting impact on the wrestling industry.