{"id":2776,"date":"2017-02-25T09:34:46","date_gmt":"2017-02-25T14:34:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/?p=2776"},"modified":"2017-02-25T09:34:46","modified_gmt":"2017-02-25T14:34:46","slug":"top-class-ranking-every-wwe-hall-of-fame-induction-class","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2017\/02\/25\/top-class-ranking-every-wwe-hall-of-fame-induction-class\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Class: Ranking Every WWE Hall of Fame Induction Class"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tis the season. The Road to WrestleMania<\/strong><\/em>. Where year long storylines come to fruition and new ones begin. But it’s also the time when WWE starts to slowly roll out its induction class of this year’s class for the WWE Hall of Fame<\/strong>. For many wrestling fans, the WWE Hall of Fame is a joke – a fictional bodiless entity that resides in Vince McMahon<\/strong>‘s mind only. But to be fair, in today’s digital age, it’s home on WWE.com is still a destination to peruse the Legends within, and it’s expanding body of entrants tell a far greater story of wrestling’s industry than just what the WWE has accomplished. But as we pointed out last year at this time<\/a>, the WWE has covered far more historical eras and promotions than most people give it credit for.<\/p>\n

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“See Lou! I told ya you’d get in! Only 26 years after your retirement and 14 years after your death!”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Part of the problem is that people tend to compare the WWE Hall of Fame against existing pro sports hall of fame, such as the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Pro Hockey Hall of Fame or Pro Baseball Hall of Fame. The reality is though, that unlike those sports, professional wrestling cannot be quantified with titles or “records” in the same fashion. In real sports, championships are often the end result of hard work from the athletes – but in pro wrestling (especially in the pre-1990’s), championships only signified the top draws, not necessarily the hardest working. Rowdy Roddy Piper<\/strong>\u00a0was a bigger force in the industry in the Randy Orton<\/strong> is, but the 12-time World Champion and third generation wrestler has twelve more world titles than Piper has. But before people criticize the WWE for not putting the belt on him, consider that in his 31 year wrestling career (not including his waning years as more of an ambassador), Piper only spent 11 years in the WWE (1983-1987, 1989-1996). So the AWA<\/strong> (2 years, 1973-1975), the NWA<\/strong> (10 years, 1973-1983) and WCW<\/strong> (4 years, 1996-2000) all never put the World title on him either. To be more accurate, the WWE Hall of Fame is actually more comparable to the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It’s enshrined entertainers aren’t there because they were the best director or best actor, but because they entertained a lot of people during their careers and are remembered fondly for doing so. With that in mind, WWE’s selections make far more sense than crunching numbers and comparing Koko B. Ware’s selection to that of Joe Montana<\/strong> or Wayne Gretzky<\/strong>. Anyone who lived in the 80’s knows that Koko B. Ware was a hugely entertaining character in the Rock N’ Wrestling Era<\/em> in the WWF, and his time prior in Mid-South Wrestling<\/strong> scored him heaps of championships. Also, Montana or Gretzky never had a music video like this!<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=wZfMsBitPIQ<\/p>\n

With this year’s Class of 2017 inductees underway – with\u00a0Kurt Angle, The Rock N’ Roll Express, Teddy Long\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0Diamond Dallas Page\u00a0<\/strong>already officially announced – many fans are starting to use words like “best ever” for this class. All four announced inductees are certified Legends of the industry and deserving of a spot in the WWE Hall of Fame – imaginary or not. But is it the best individual class that we’ve seen enter the HOF? There have been 17 Induction Classes for the WWE Hall of Fame since its inaugural opening class in 1993 (there was an eight year hiatus between 1996 and 2004), with 147 individual performers being inducted. Here’s a look at the seventeen classes of inductees, from the least exciting class to the most interesting class.<\/p>\n

Note:\u00a0<\/strong>For the sake of each segment,\u00a0Legacy<\/em> refers to any early or pre-TV performers, inspired by the creation of the Legacy wing of the WWE Hall of Fame last year.\u00a0Builders\u00a0<\/em>refers to behind the scenes performers, such as promoters.\u00a0Announcers\u00a0<\/em>refers to commentators, play by play or ring announcers. And simply because they’re dumb, we’re not going to mention the Celebrity Wing.<\/p>\n

(DISCLAIMER:\u00a0<\/strong>This listing is purely a subjective opinion of the author. Let us know your own opinions of your favourite classes (or least favourite) and tell us why, in the comments section following the article. Also, the author would like to say he gets it that you probably think very differently. His list changed order at least 15 times in the three days it took to publish. And it will probably be different by the time you read this yourself.)<\/em><\/p>\n

#17. Class of 1996 (4th<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees: <\/strong><\/em>9
\nSingles Performers, Male:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Baron Mikel Scicluna, Cpt. Lou Albano, Jimmy Snuka, Johnny Rodz, Killer Kowalski, Pat Patterson
\nSingles Performers, Female: <\/strong><\/em>none
\nTag Team or Faction:<\/strong><\/em> The Valiant Brothers (Johnny & Jimmy Valiant)
\nLegacy:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>none
\nBuilders: <\/strong><\/em>Vincent J. McMahon, Sr.
\nAnnouncers:<\/strong><\/em> none<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, a lot of WWE’s early icons and legends were either on bad terms with the company (such as Bruno Sammartino<\/strong>) or working for WCW (Hulk Hogan<\/strong>), so they were very limited with some of their early inductees. The first ever Intercontinental Champion Pat Patterson<\/strong>, who was also a backstage mastermind for much of the 1990’s, was a solid selection, as was legendary wrestler-turned-manager Captain Lou Albano<\/strong>. Killer Kowalski<\/strong>, the first Canadian to be inducted, is deservedly enshrined, as one of the WWWF’s top heels in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Vince Sr. was a no-brainer, as the founder of the WWE empire. But two career WWF jobbers – Scicluna and Rodz – were hardly heart racing selections. And while the Valiants were decent enough draws, they didn’t exactly create world wide applause with their announced selection in 1996. And while it was a deserved induction for “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka, the past year and the legal issues that preceded his death last year has put a huge taint on his entire career.<\/p>\n

#16. Class of 2011 (12th<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees: <\/strong>8<\/em>
\nSingles Performers, Male:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Shawn Michaels, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, “Bullet” Bob Armstrong, Abdullah The Butcher
\nSingles Performers, Female: <\/strong><\/em>Sunny
\nTag Team or Faction:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0The Road Warriors\/Legion of Doom (Hawk, Animal and “Precious” Paul Ellering)
\nLegacy:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>none
\nBuilders:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Bob Armstrong
\nAnnouncers:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0none<\/p>\n

The 2011 Class starts off with two Icons – “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels<\/strong> and The Road Warriors<\/strong> – but then takes a significant downturn for huge star power. Sunny has become more of a punchline than a boyhood dream (though still deservedly an inductee for her impact in the 1990’s) and “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan<\/strong>, while deserving, would have been a nostalgic seal of approval if the #7 or #8 name on the list, but as the clean up hitter, he’s no Superstar Billy Graham<\/strong>. While there’s no denying he made an impact in the Southern United States for the NWA, the Armstrongs names are sadly a niche name for many. And what once was lauded in seeing hardcore wrestling pioneer\u00a0Abdullah The Butcher<\/strong> enter the WWE Hall of Fame is now viewed with disdain after he was charged with spreading Hep-C to another wrestler by bleeding on him, knowing he was infected.<\/p>\n

#15. Class of 2015 (16th<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees: <\/strong><\/em>8
\nSingles Performers, Male: <\/strong><\/em>“Macho Man” Randy Savage, Rikishi, Larry Zybysko, Tatsumi Fujinami
\nSingles Performers, Female: <\/strong><\/em>Alundra Blayze
\nTag Team or Faction:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>The Bushwhackers (Luke & Butch)
\nLegacy:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>none
\nBuilders:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Tatsumi Fujinami
\nAnnouncers:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>none<\/p>\n

Having “Macho Man” Randy Savage<\/strong> headline and\u00a0finally\u00a0<\/em>go into the WWE Hall of Fame was an out of the park moment. But it almost seemed like WWE was counting on that euphoria to cover the rest of the inductees. To be fair, Alundra Blayze<\/strong>, aka Madusa Micelli<\/strong>, is an outstanding choice. She was a trailblazer in the 1980’s and 1990’s and her moment of dropping the WWE Women’s title in the trash on WCW’s\u00a0Nitro<\/strong><\/em> is iconic. Larry Zybysko<\/strong> was a solid worker in his day and Tatsumi Fujinami<\/strong>‘s career, both in the ring as a builder with NJPW, is nothing to laugh at. The Bushwhackers<\/strong> are more deserving as the Sheepherders<\/strong>, but their inclusion before more influential tag teams like the Freebirds<\/strong>, Hart Foundation<\/strong> or Rock N’ Roll Express was baffling. Rikishi<\/strong> was the recipient of the Koko B. Ware Participation Award. He was fun and all during his time, but I’m pretty sure he’s not going in for his days on the Samoan SWAT Team<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

#14. Class of 2016 (17th<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>16
\nSingles Performers, Male:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Sting, The Godfather, Big Boss Man, Stan Hansen
\nSingles Performers, Female: <\/strong><\/em>Jacqueline
\nTag Team or Faction:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0The Fabulous Freebirds (Michael PS Hayes, Buddy Roberts, Terry ‘Bam Bam’ Gordy, ‘Gorgeous’ Jimmy Garvin)
\nLegacy:<\/strong><\/em> Mildred Burke, Frank Gotch, George Hackenschmidt, Ed ‘Strangler’ Lewis, Pat O’Connor, Lou Thesz, ‘Sailor’ Art Thomas
\nBuilders:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Ed Lewis, Frank Gotch, George Hackenschmidt
\nAnnouncers:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0none<\/p>\n

Sting and The Fabulous Freebirds were the big guns for last year’s class, as well as finally seeing one of wrestling’s best big men, in North America and Japan, Stan Hansen. Godfather and Big Boss Man seemed to enter like they were crashing the party because they heard Michael Hayes was throwing a party. Jacqueline was a solid choice, but felt a little rushed considering all the women before her that may have been more deserving. The creation of the Legacy wing\u00a0reeked\u00a0<\/em>of Triple H’s influence. Trips is a bona fide\u00a0historian<\/em> of the industry and he’s getting ready to open the gates on the legends of the early and pre-television era coming in once his father-in-law’s influence diminishes.<\/p>\n

#13. Class of 2008 (9th<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>8
\nSingles Performers, Male:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>“Nature Boy” Ric Flair, “High Chief” Peter Maivia, “Soulman” Rocky Johnson
\nSingles Performers, Female:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Mae Young
\nTag Team or Faction:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0The Brisco Brothers (Jack & Jerry Brisco)
\nLegacy:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0Mae Young
\nBuilders:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Eddie Graham, Peter Maivia
\nAnnouncers:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0Gordon Solie<\/p>\n

Ric Flair<\/strong>‘s induction after suffering his career ending loss the same weekend was one of the WWE Hall of Fame’s most memorable moments. Mae Young<\/strong> was deservedly given her place in the history books – while most younger fans just remember her Attitude Granny Era, she was a huge travelling star in the early days of the sport. She was a Living Legend. The Brisco Brothers<\/strong> were studs, both individually and as a tag team unit – although Jack had far greater success as a singles star. Jerry still had a decent career, and continues to have an impact with the WWE today as a talent scout. Peter Maivia<\/strong> is absolutely deserving, from his stardom as a performer and promoter for the NWA Hawaii\/Mid-Pacific territory, the gateway for much of the Samoan Dynasty. Eddie Graham<\/strong>‘s work with his own Championship Wrestling in Florida to President of the NWA during its boom in the 1970’s, he was also a stand out wrestler in his day. Gordon Solie<\/strong> is considered by most in the wrestling broadcast industry to be the Gold standard. But the addition of Rocky Johnson<\/strong>\u00a0(The Rock’s father) alongside Peter Maivia (The Rock’s grandfather) felt like pandering to The Rock for some reason, like bait to lure him back. Johnson was a great worker, but was he really a Hall of Famer? Tough to say.<\/p>\n

#12. Class of 1995 (3rd<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees:<\/strong><\/em> 7
\nSingles Performers, Male:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>“Big Cat” Ernie Ladd, George “The Animal” Steele, Ivan Putski, The Grand Wizard, Pedro Morales
\nSingles Performers, Female: <\/strong><\/em>The Fabulous Moolah
\nTag Team or Faction:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0none
\nLegacy: <\/strong><\/em>Antonino Rocca
\nBuilders:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>none
\nAnnouncers:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0none<\/p>\n

Again, another class where many potential inductees were working for other companies or where on bad terms. But even still, the filled in a lot of important names from the 70’s. Ernie Ladd<\/strong> was a huge success transitioning from the NFL to pro wrestling, becoming a huge star and Pedro Morales<\/strong> picked up the ball from Bruno Sammartino in the early 70’s and carried the company for years until Bruno returned. The Grand Wizard<\/strong> was one of the first iconic wrestling managers, through the 60’s and 70’s, guiding such Legends as Killer Kowalski, Superstar Billy Graham, Bruiser Brody, Sgt. Slaughter, Kamala,<\/strong> and Ox Baker<\/strong>. Antonino Rocca<\/strong> is one of the founding fathers of what would become the aerial style that most indie stars employ now. The Fabulous Moolah<\/strong>‘s remarkable career is growingly getting overshadowed by stories of her dark past and treatment of former students. Ivan Putski<\/strong> was a decent mid-card hero, but always felt like a smaller jacked up Bruno Sammartino rip-off.<\/p>\n

#11. Class of 1994 (2nd<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees: <\/strong><\/em>7
\nSingles Performers, Male:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Arnold Skaaland, Bobo Brazil, “Nature Boy” Buddy Rogers, Chief Jay Strongbow, “Classy” Freddie Blassie, Gorilla Monsoon
\nSingles Performers, Female: <\/strong><\/em>none
\nTag Team or Faction:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0none
\nBuilders:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>James Dudley
\nAnnouncers:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0Gorilla Monsoon<\/p>\n

The inaugural WWE Champion, and original “Nature Boy”, Buddy Rogers<\/strong> finally enters the WWE Hall of Fame, as well as the first African-American World Champion Bobo Brazil<\/strong>. “Classy” Freddie Blassie<\/strong> was blessed with a classic (and frightening) villain career as a wrestler, followed by an equally memorable managerial run. Gorilla Monsoon<\/strong> is still considered by many to be original voice of the WWE and his behind the scenes involvement was essential during the 1970’s and 1980’s. He was a fantastic heel in the ring as well during the 1960’s and 1970’s. Speaking of legendary managers, Arnold Skaaland<\/strong> was another one. This man was the essential coach for\u00a0the\u00a0<\/em>Good Guys in the WWE in the 1970’s, managing Bruno Sammartino<\/strong>, Andre The Giant\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0<\/em>Bob Backlund<\/strong>. James Dudley<\/strong> was an odd choice. A former WWE building manager. Classy move of respect though. Chief Jay Strongbow<\/strong> had a solid career in the 1970’s, but he felt like the weak link in this class (it didn’t have the sentimental mystery of James Dudley).<\/p>\n

#10. Class of 2012 (13th<\/sup> Class)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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All photos: WWE.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Total Inductees: <\/strong><\/em>9
\nSingles Performers, Male:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Edge, Ron Simmons, Yokozuna, Mil M\u00e1scaras
\nSingles Performers, Female: <\/strong><\/em>none
\nTag Team or Faction:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0The Four Horsemen (Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, Barry Windham, J.J. Dillon)
\nBuilders: <\/strong><\/em>none
\nAnnouncers:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0none<\/p>\n

A solid round all the way through, with nine very deserving men enshrined. Ron Simmons<\/strong> was a huge impact in early WCW, becoming the first nationally recognized African-American World Champion, followed by an underrated run in the Nation of Domination<\/strong>, a resurgence in APA<\/strong>, and a comedic ride out with a\u00a0DAMN<\/em>. Mil M\u00e1scaras<\/strong>\u00a0is Mexican Legend and Yokozuna<\/strong> was as frightening a heel as you could imagine in the early 90’s. His believability was his greatest asset and became the first true heel to have substantial World Champion runs in the WWE. Edge<\/strong> definitely had a WWE Hall of Fame worthy career, but it felt like a sentimental rush job because of his early retirement. I’m sure Adam Copeland would have understood if Rick Rude<\/strong> or Owen Hart got into the WWE Hall of Fame before him. But the coup de grace of the evening was arguably the most important faction in the history of the business, the Four Horsemen<\/strong>. Yes, it should have been Ole Anderson<\/strong> instead of Barry Windham<\/strong>, but we all know that Ole is so cantankerous and mad at Vince that it would never happen, even with “The Miracle Worker” Paul Leveque on the case. And Windham is definitely WWE Hall of Fame material. And there’s no Horsemen without Dillon. And for the last time,\u00a0NO, Paul Roma should NOT have gone in.<\/em><\/p>\n