{"id":123528,"date":"2024-03-23T08:26:11","date_gmt":"2024-03-23T12:26:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=123528"},"modified":"2024-03-23T08:26:11","modified_gmt":"2024-03-23T12:26:11","slug":"aew-hall-of-fame-discussing-the-hypothetical-first-class","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2024\/03\/23\/aew-hall-of-fame-discussing-the-hypothetical-first-class\/","title":{"rendered":"AEW Hall of Fame: Discussing The Hypothetical First Class"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Tony Khan<\/strong> recently commented during an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-rhveIWVvlE\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">interview with<strong> ComicBook Nation<\/strong><\/a> that has created some interesting conversations throughout the week. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Khan referred to a hypothetical <strong>AEW<\/strong> Hall of Fame, explaining that he had &#8220;never talked about it&#8221; but provided a good indicator of some names that would likely be included if something like this ever came to fruition. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With that in mind, I\u2019ve brainstormed a few more names that ought to be considered for a hypothetical Hall of Fame, should AEW get around to it.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Sting<\/h3>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/C4Wi4DEvEA3\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\">\n<div style=\"padding: 16px;\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\">\n<div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: auto;\">\n<div style=\"width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;\"><a style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/C4Wi4DEvEA3\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">A post shared by Sting (@stinger)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of the names mentioned by Tony Khan himself, \u2018The Icon\u2019 should be one of the first names on this list.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although <strong>Sting<\/strong> had a Hall of Fame-worthy career way long before AEW even existed, it can\u2019t be understated how incredible his work in AEW has been. From his debut in 2020 to his retirement in early 2024, Stinger cemented his legacy and used his star power to help the likes of <strong>Darby Allin<\/strong> rise through the ranks.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">His undefeated run in AEW, paired with the fact that he retired with the AEW Tag Team Championships are just a couple of factors that play into his undebatable position in any hypothetical AEW Hall of Fame.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Brodie Lee<\/h3>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CEU_d_HJAgk\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\">\n<div style=\"padding: 16px;\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\">\n<div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: auto;\">\n<div style=\"width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;\"><a style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CEU_d_HJAgk\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">A post shared by Brodie Lee (@brodielee)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The second man mentioned in Khan\u2019s comments, the late <strong>Mr. Brodie Lee<\/strong> automatically gains entry to any hypothetical Hall of Fame as far as this writer is concerned.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After a mixed bag of success in WWE, Brodie Lee made his way to AEW amid the pandemic era and immediately captivated audiences, which made his work even more admirable.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2018The Exalted One\u2019 claimed the TNT Championship relatively early on in his AEW career, and his run with the Dark Order was thoroughly entertaining. Unbelievably, his stint in AEW only lasted around seven months, as Lee\u2019s untimely passing in December 2020 cruelly cut his career short.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s no secret that Brodie Lee is held in high regard within the world of professional wrestling, and he undoubtedly deserves a spot in this hypothetical AEW Hall of Fame.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\">&#8220;Two of the greatest champions and two of the greatest people we\u2019ve ever had in AEW, and in very different circumstances. Sting and Mr. Brodie Lee would be great people to build any Hall of Fame class around.&#8221;<\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3>The Elite<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Za3UhbVQNXQ?si=1toHpsn7d99zsVM2\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It wouldn\u2019t be an AEW Hall of Fame without the creators, the EVPs, and <strong>The Elite<\/strong>. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Matthew<\/strong> and <strong>Nicholas Jackson<\/strong>, <strong>Kenny Omega,<\/strong> and <strong>Adam Page<\/strong> will certainly end up in an AEW Hall of Fame in the future, as the men behind the biggest competitor to <strong>WWE<\/strong> in decades. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sure, this is unlikely to be something that will happen any time soon, but there\u2019s no question that these four men deserve recognition for their services to professional wrestling.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Of course, the fifth member of the group was <strong>Cody Rhodes<\/strong>. It\u2019s hard to imagine that WWE would allow their competition to enter their biggest babyface into their Hall of Fame, but he deserves a place alongside his former Elite stablemates.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Whether or not Cody is included, The Young Bucks, Omega and Page are deserving of a spot in an eventual AEW Hall of Fame.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Chris Jericho<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Zj8Mju6_aq0?si=i__MGKPkzZvEUY5V\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although the <strong>Chris Jericho<\/strong> of 2024 is a far cry from previous years, he will forever be a pivotal figure from the early days of AEW.\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">His statement signing in 2019 came as a surprise to many within the world of professional wrestling, which helped the up-start AEW reach new heights. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As a recognizable legend, Jericho made perfect sense to be the top guy and helped carry the company forward during its early days.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jericho\u2019s run as the inaugural AEW World Champion captured the interest of casual fans, as the biggest name amongst a relatively small roster. It\u2019s this run that makes the case for his position in a hypothetical Hall of Fame.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jericho\u2019s current standing amongst pro wrestling fans would make this an understandably contentious decision, but it seems hard to argue against this hypothetical entry for \u2018Y2J\u2019 into an AEW Hall of Fame.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Jay Briscoe<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/QkqMf4uEaOg?si=urYdSubIjcXNZ1iz\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although he never managed to compete within AEW, <strong>Jay Briscoe<\/strong> should be another name considered when thinking about this hypothetical topic.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tony Khan touched on this during his interview, explaining that Briscoe needs to be \u201ctalked about and honored\u201d. What better way to do so, than by entering him into an AEW Hall of Fame?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Both Briscoe brothers had stellar careers and their work for tag team wrestling will never go unrecognized. Potentially, Jay could be welcomed in alongside <strong>Mark Briscoe<\/strong> as a team, but Mark could also be the man to induct his brother later down the line.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Either way, Jay Briscoe undoubtedly deserves a place in an eventual AEW Hall of Fame.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Dustin Rhodes<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rxRwDl7eaz4?si=lYsDiyAhMzBr6EGD\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Much like Chris Jericho, another man who helped the company thrive during the first few years was <strong>Dustin Rhodes<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2018The Natural\u2019 put on one of AEW\u2019s most iconic matches at <em><strong>AEW Double or Nothing 2019<\/strong><\/em>, opposite his brother Cody, which helped highlight exactly what to expect from WWE\u2019s competition.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dustin had a spectacular career prior to his run in AEW, of course, but his ability to continue to show up and put on matches at his age is exemplary. If Tony Khan wants to reward Rhodes for his commitment to AEW and willingness to help put over younger talent, a spot in a hypothetical Hall of Fame would be a logical step.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>The Von Erich Family<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/imvfv4NAjVE?si=qJCoPP6Rhyed99IY\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A slightly more surprising entry, perhaps, but one that I believe makes sense.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Taking inspiration from the WWE Hall of Fame, there is typically an entrant or two that goes in for their notable work within the world of professional wrestling.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We\u2019ve seen the <strong>The <\/strong><strong>Von Erichs<\/strong> perform on AEW television a couple of times now, which suggests that there is a good relationship between them and Tony Khan. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As a fan of wrestling, Khan will understand the legacy of the Von Erichs and, if he decides, should consider honoring them by making them an entrant in any hypothetical Hall of Fame. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In my opinion, a fitting tribute to the Von Erich dynasty and one that should happen, if an AEW Hall of Fame comes around.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While all of the above are worthy entrants, there are sure to be current AEW stars that go down as legends for the company in another ten, fifteen, or more years. Until then, however, I believe that this would make for a fitting first class, should Tony Khan ever be interested.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>More From LWOS Pro Wrestling<\/h3>\n<p><em>Header photo \u2013 AEW \u2013 Stay tun<\/em><em>ed to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\" data-linkindex=\"1\" target=\"_self\">Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/a>\u00a0for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world. As well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.\u00a0 You can catch AEW Dynamite on Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TBS. AEW Rampage airs on TNT at 10 PM EST every Friday night. AEW Collision airs Saturday at 8pm Eastern on TNT. More AEW content available on their\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@AEW\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">YouTube<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tony Khan recently commented during an interview with ComicBook Nation that has created some interesting conversations throughout the week. Khan referred to a hypothetical AEW Hall of Fame, explaining that he had &#8220;never talked about it&#8221; but provided a good indicator of some names that would likely be included if something like this ever came [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5065,"featured_media":123539,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4677,6,2192],"tags":[5024,107,5032,588,423,4132],"class_list":["post-123528","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aew","category-north-america","category-wrestling","tag-brodie-lee","tag-chris-jericho","tag-dustin-rhodes","tag-sting","tag-the-elite","tag-tony-khan"],"modified_by":"Michael Joseph Sugue, Manager","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123528","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5065"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=123528"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123528\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/123539"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=123528"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=123528"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=123528"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}