Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter (WON) Hall of Fame is a professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) hall of fame that recognizes people who make significant contributions to their professions. It was founded in 1996 by Dave Meltzer, editor of WON. Like many other wrestling halls of fame, such as the WWE, TNA, ROH and WCW halls of fame, WON's Hall of Fame is not contained in a building. There are no ceremonies for inductions other than a highly detailed biographical documentation of their career in the newsletter. Inductees include wrestlers/fighters, managers, promoters, trainers, and commentators. On select occasions, groups, either tag teams, trios, or quartets, have been inducted rather than the individual members of the group. This first occurred in 1996, when The Fabulous Kangaroos and The Road Warriors entered the hall. The Fabulous Freebirds, The Midnight Express, The Rock 'n' Roll Express, The Assassins, The Holy Demon Army, The Sharpe Brothers, Los Misioneros de la Muerte, and Los Brazos among others all also entered as groups. Occasionally entire wrestling families have been inducted into the hall. This first occurred in 1996 when The Dusek Family entered the hall; in 2022, the five man familial team of Los Villanos was inducted.

Starting in 2022, it became possible for a wrestler to be placed in the Hall of Fame multiple times, much like inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. So far, five people have achieved this double honor: Toshiaki Kawada, Villano III, Antonino Rocca, Jack Brisco, and Jackie Sato. Each are inducted as a singles performer and a team member (Kawada as part of Holy Demon Army, Villano III as part of Los Villanos, Rocca as part of Rocca and Perez, Jack Brisco as part of the Brisco Brothers, and Jackie Sato as part of Beauty Pair).

Meltzer began the Hall of Fame by choosing a list of 122 inaugural inductees in 1996. Since then, wrestlers from past and present, others employed in the professional wrestling industry, and wrestling journalists and historians have been selected by Meltzer to cast secret ballots to determine annual groups of inductees. Voting criteria include the length of time spent in wrestling, historical significance, ability to attract viewers, and wrestling ability.[1] Inductees must have at least 15 years of experience or be over 35 years old and have 10 years of experience. To gain membership in the hall, potential inductees must receive 60% support on the ballots from their geographic region.[2] Any person that gets less than 10% of the vote is eliminated from the ballot. If a person fails to get inducted 15 years after being put on the ballot, they must get 50% of the vote or be eliminated.[3] There are over 200 inductees, including the multiple teams, trios, and stables.

In 2008, a recall vote was held asking if 2003 inductee Chris Benoit, who killed his wife and son before committing suicide in June 2007, should remain in the hall. To have Benoit removed, Meltzer required that 60% of voters must agree with the proposal.[4] Although the majority voted for Benoit's removal, they only represented 53.6% of the votes, falling short of the number required. Benoit remains on the list of inductees.[5]

Inductees

edit
# Year Image Ring name
(Birth name)
Inducted for Notes
1 1996   Abdullah the Butcher
(Larry Shreve)[6]
Wrestling Won the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship (3 times), NWA United National Championship (1 time), and PWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[6]
2 1996 Perro Aguayo
(Pedro Aguayo Damián)[7]
Wrestling Won the Mexican National Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Mexican National Middleweight Championship (1 time), and Mexican National Tag Team Championship (2 times)[8][9][10]
3 1996   André the Giant
(André Roussimoff)[11]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the WWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time)[12]
4 1996 Bert Assirati Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the British Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and European Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[13]
5 1996   Giant Baba
(Shohei Baba)
Wrestling and promoting Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and PWF World Heavyweight Championship (4 times); founded All Japan Pro Wrestling[14]
6 1996 Jim Barnett Promoting Founded Australia's World Championship Wrestling; owned Georgia Championship Wrestling[15][16]
7 1996 Red Berry
(Ralph Berry)[17]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (9 times) and NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[17][18]
8 1996   "The Destroyer" Dick Beyer[19] Wrestling Won the WWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[19][20]
9 1996   Freddie Blassie Wrestling and managing Won the NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (14 times) and NAWA/WWA World Heavyweight Championship (4 times); worked as manager after retiring as a competitor[21]
10 1996   Blue Demon
(Alexander Muñoz Moreno)[22]
Wrestling Won the Mexican National Welterweight Championship (3 times) and appeared in several luchador films[23][24][25]
11 1996   Nick Bockwinkel Wrestling Won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (4 times), AWA World Tag Team Championship (3 times), and NWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[26]
12 1996 Paul Boesch Commentating and promoting Posthumous inductee; promoted the Houston, Texas territory of National Wrestling Alliance[27]
13 1996   Bobo Brazil
(Houston Harris)[28]
Wrestling Won the Detroit version of NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (9 times) and Mid-Atlantic version (1 time)[29][30]
14 1996   Jack Brisco
(Fred Brisco)[31]
Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), NWA World Tag Team Championship (3 times), and NWA National Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[32][33]
15 1996   Bruiser Brody
(Frank Goodish)[34]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the WCWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), NWA International Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and PWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[35]
16 1996   Mildred Burke
(Mildred Bliss)[36]
Women's wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won the Women's World Championship (3 times) and NWA World Women's Championship (1 time); founded World Women's Wrestling Association.[36]
17 1996   El Canek
(Felipe Estrada)
Wrestling Won the UWA World Heavyweight Championship (15 times), CMLL World Tag Team Championship (1 time) and CMLL World Trios Championship (1 time)[37]
18 1996   Negro Casas
(José Casas Ruiz)[38]
Wrestling Won the CMLL World Tag Team Championship (6 times), CMLL World Middleweight Championship (2 times), UWA World Lightweight Championship (1 time) and UWA World Middleweight Championship (1 time)[39][40]
19 1996   Riki Choshu
(Mitsuo Yoshida)[41]
Wrestling Won the PWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and IWGP Tag Team Championship (3 times)[41][42]
20 1996   Jim Cornette Managing and promoting Founded Smoky Mountain Wrestling and managed wrestlers in National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation[43][44]
21 1996   The Crusher
(Reginald Lisowski)[45]
Wrestling Won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), AWA World Tag Team Championship (9 times), and WWA World Tag Team Championship (6 times)[46][47]
22 1996   Ted DiBiase Wrestling and managing Won the NWA/Mid-South North American Heavyweight Championship (5 times), PWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time), NWA National Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and WWF World Tag Team Championship (3 times); managed the Million Dollar Corporation and New World Order stables[48][49]
23 1996   Dick the Bruiser
(William Afflis)[50]
Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won the Indianapolis version (13 times) and the Los Angeles version (1 time) of the WWA World Heavyweight Championship, AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and AWA World Tag Team Championship (5 times); owned and promoted the World Wrestling Association in Indianapolis, Indiana[51][52]
24 1996 Alfonso Dantés
(Jose Luis Amezcua Diaz)[53]
Wrestling Won the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (5 times), Mexican National Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[53][54]
25 1996   The Dusek Family (Ernie, Emil, Joe, and Rudy)
(The Hason Family)[55]
Wrestling and promoting Emil and Ernie Dusek won the Central States version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (3 times) and San Francisco version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 times); Joe Dusek promoted wrestling events in Omaha, Nebraska[55]
26 1996   Dynamite Kid
(Tom Billington)[56]
Wrestling Won the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time), All Asia Tag Team Championship (1 time), Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time)[56][57]
27 1996 The Fabulous Kangaroos (Al Costello, Roy Heffernan, and Don Kent)
(Giacoma Costa, Laurence Roy Heffernan, and Leo Smith Jr.)[58][59][60]
Tag team wrestling Won the Northeast version of the NWA United States Tag Team Championship (3 times) and Mid-America version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (3 times)[58][61]
28 1996   Jackie Fargo
(Henry Faggart)[62]
Wrestling Won the Mid-America version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship (10 times) and Mid-America version of NWA Southern Tag Team Championship (22 times)[61][63]
29 1996   Ric Flair
(Richard Fliehr)[64][n 1]
Wrestling Won the WWF Championship (2 times), NWA World Heavyweight Championship (8 times), and WCW World Heavyweight Championship (6 times)[65]
30 1996   Tatsumi Fujinami Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (6 times), NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[33][66][67]
31 1996   Dory Funk Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and NWA North American Heavyweight Championship multiple times; promoted for the National Wrestling Alliance[68][69]
32 1996   Dory Funk Jr. Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[68][70]
33 1996   Terry Funk Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), ECW World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time)[71][72][73]
34 1996   Verne Gagne
(LaVerne Gagne)
Wrestling and promoting Founded the American Wrestling Association; won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (10 times)[74]
35 1996 Cavernario Galindo
(Rodolfo Galindo Ramírez)[75]
Wrestling Won the Mexican Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time); appeared in several luchador films[75][76]
36 1996   Ed Don George Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time) and Boston's AWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[77]
37 1996   Gorgeous George
(George Raymond Wagner)[78]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and Boston's AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[78]
38 1996   Frank Gotch Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time) and American Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[79]
39 1996 Karl Gotch
(Karl Istaz)[80]
Wrestling Won the IWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), WWWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time), and Ohio's AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[80]
40 1996   "Superstar" Billy Graham
(Wayne Coleman)[81]
Wrestling Won the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and San Francisco version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[82][83]
41 1996 Eddie Graham
(Edward Gossett)[84]
Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won the NWA World Tag Team Championship (7 times) and NWA United States Tag Team Championship (4 times); owned Championship Wrestling from Florida and served as president of National Wrestling Alliance[84]
42 1996 René Guajardo
(Manuel Guajardo Mejorado)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the Mexican National Middleweight Championship (2 times), Mexican National Tag Team Championship (1 time), and the UWA World Middleweight Championship (2 times) [85][86]
43 1996 Gory Guerrero
(Salvador Guerrero Quesada)[87]
Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won the NWA World Welterweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Middleweight Championship (1 time), and Mexican National Middleweight Championship (1 time)[87]
44 1996   George Hackenschmidt Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the European Greco-Roman Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time)[88]
45 1996   Stan Hansen
(John Hansen)[89]
Wrestling Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (4 times) and AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[89][90]
46 1996   Bret Hart Wrestling Won the WWF Championship (5 times), WWF Tag Team Championship (2 times), and WCW World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[91][92][93]
47 1996 Stu Hart Wrestling, promoting and training Owned and promoted Stampede Wrestling; trained many well-known wrestlers[94]
48 1996   Bobby Heenan
(Raymond Heenan)[95]
Managing and commentating Managed wrestlers in the American Wrestling Association, Georgia Championship Wrestling, and World Wrestling Federation; provided color commentary for the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling[95]
49 1996   Danny Hodge Wrestling Won the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (7 times)[96]
50 1996   Hulk Hogan
(Terry Bollea)[97]
Wrestling Won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship (6 times) and WCW World Heavyweight Championship (6 times)[91][93]
51 1996   Antonio Inoki
(Kanji Inoki)[98]
Wrestling and promoting Won the All Asia Tag Team Championship (3 times), NWA International Tag Team Championship (4 times), and IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time); founded New Japan Pro-Wrestling[99]
52 1996 Rayo de Jalisco
(Maximino Linares Moreno)[100]
Wrestling Won the Mexican National Tag Team Championship (2 times) and appeared in luchador films[101][102][103]
53 1996   Tom Jenkins Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the American Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[104]
54 1996 Don Leo Jonathan
(Don Heaton)[105]
Wrestling Won the NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (15 times) and Omaha's World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[105]
55 1996   Gene Kiniski Wrestling Won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[106]
56 1996   Fred Kohler
(Fred Koch)[60]
Promoting Posthumous inductee; promoted wrestling events in Chicago, Illinois and helped popularize tag team wrestling in the United States[107]
57 1996   Killer Kowalski
(Edward Spulnik)[108]
Wrestling and training Won the IWA World Heavyweight Championship (6 times) and WWWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time); trained many well-known wrestlers[109]
58 1996   Ernie Ladd Wrestling Won the Mid-South North American Heavyweight Championship (4 times), WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and NWF Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[110]
59 1996 Dick Lane Commentating Posthumous inductee; worked as commentator for wrestling shows in Southern California[111]
60 1996   Jerry Lawler Wrestling and promoting Won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship (27 times), and Memphis Wrestling Southern Heavyweight Championship (40 times)[112]
61 1996   Ed Lewis
(Robert Friedrich)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (4 times) and Boston version of the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[113]
62 1996   Jim Londos
(Chris Theophelos)[114]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time) and NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[114]
63 1996 Salvador Lutteroth
(Salvador Lutteroth Gonzalez)[115]
Promoting Posthumous inductee; founded Empresa Mexicana de la Lucha Libre[116]
64 1996   Akira Maeda Wrestling and promoting Won the UWF Heavyweight Championship (1 time), European Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and IWGP Tag Team Championship (2 times); founded Fighting Network Rings and the Newborn Universal Wrestling Federation[117][118][119]
65 1996 Devil Masami
(Masami Yoshida)[120]
Women's wrestling Won the WWWA World Single Championship (1 time), AAAW Single Championship (1 time), and WCW Women's Championship (1 time); trained several well-known wrestlers[121][122]
66 1996   Mil Máscaras
(Aaron Rodríguez)[123]
Wrestling Won the WWA/NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (4 times), Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and Georgia's IWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[123]
67 1996   Dump Matsumoto
(Kaoru Matsumoto)[124]
Women's wrestling Won the AJW Championship (1 time) and WWWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[124][125]
68 1996   Earl McCready Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA British Empire Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[126]
69 1996 Leroy McGuirk Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and World Light Heavyweight Championship (2 times); promoted shows for National Wrestling Alliance in Oklahoma[69][127][128]
70 1996   Vince McMahon Sr. Promoting Posthumous inductee; founded the World Wide Wrestling Federation[129]
71 1996   Vince McMahon Jr. Promoting Owned and provided commentary for the World Wrestling Federation[91][130][131]
72 1996   Danny McShain Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Light Heavyweight Championship (11 times) and NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (9 times)[18][132]
73 1996 Ray Mendoza
(Jose Diaz)[133]
Wrestling Won the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (6 times) and UWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (4 times)[133]
74 1996   Mitsuharu Misawa Wrestling Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (5 times), GHC Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and World Tag Team Championship (6 times); founded Pro Wrestling Noah[134][135]
75 1996 Toots Mondt
(Joseph Mondt)
Promoting Posthumous inductee; invented "Slam Bang Western Style Wrestling", founded the Gold Dust Trio, and ran the World Wide Wrestling Federation[136]
76 1996 Sam Muchnick Promoting Founded the National Wrestling Alliance and served as its president from 1950 to 1960 and from 1963 to 1975; owned and promoted the St. Louis Wrestling Club[137][138]
77 1996   Bronko Nagurski
(Bronislau Nagurski)[139]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time)[139]
78 1996   Pat O'Connor Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[140]
79 1996   Kintarō Ōki
(Kim Tae-sik)
Wrestling Won the WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), All Asia Heavyweight Championship (4 times) and NWA International Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[141]
80 1996   Atsushi Onita Wrestling and promoting Won the NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship (3 times), All Asia Tag Team Championship (1 time), and FMW Brass Knuckles Heavyweight Championship (7 times); founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling[142]
81 1996   Pat Patterson
(Pierre Clermont)[83]
Wrestling Won the San Francisco version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (11 times), AWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time), and WWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time)[83]
82 1996 Antonio Peña
(Antonio Peña Herrada)[141]
Promoting Founded Asistencia Asesoría y Administración[141]
83 1996 John Pesek Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[69]
84 1996   Roddy Piper
(Roderick Toombs)[143]
Wrestling Won the NWA/WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and WWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time)[143]
85 1996   Harley Race Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (8 times); founded World League Wrestling[69]
86 1996   Dusty Rhodes
(Virgil Runnels Jr.)[144]
Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (10 times)[145]
87 1996   Rikidōzan
(Kim Sin-Nak)[146]
Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won the NWA International Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Japanese Heavyweight Championship (1 time), All Asia Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time), and All Asia Tag Team Championship (4 times); founded the Japanese Wrestling Association[146]
88 1996   The Road Warriors (Hawk and Animal)
(Michael Hegstrand and Joseph Laurinaitis)[147]
Tag team wrestling Won the AWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time), NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time), and WWF Tag Team Championship (2 times)[92][147]
89 1996   Yvon Robert Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and Boston's AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[148]
90 1996   Billy Robinson Wrestling Won the PWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), European Heavyweight Championship (1 time), British Heavyweight Championship (1 time), AWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times), and AWA British Empire Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[6][149][150]
91 1996   Antonino Rocca
(Antonino Biasetton)[151]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the Ohio version of the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA North American Tag Team Championship (1 time) and WWWF International Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[152]
92 1996   Buddy Rogers
(Herman Rohde)[153]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and WWWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[33][91]
93 1996 Lance Russell
(Lanier Russell)
Commentating Worked as commentator and ring announcer for wrestling shows in Memphis, and to a lesser extent, World Championship Wrestling and Smoky Mountain Wrestling[154]
94 1996   Bruno Sammartino Wrestling Won the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), WWWF United States Tag Team Championship (1 time), and WWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[155]
95 1996 Billy Sandow
(Wilhelm Baumann)
Promoting and managing Posthumous inductee; managed Ed "Strangler" Lewis and was part of the Gold Dust Trio[156]
96 1996   El Santo
(Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta)[102]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the Mexican National Welterweight Championship (2 times), Mexican National Middleweight Championship (4 times), and Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time); appeared in several luchador films[9][23][102][157]
97 1996 Jackie Sato
(Naoko Sato)[158]
Women's wrestling Won the WWWA World Single Championship (2 times)[158]
98 1996   Randy Savage
(Randy Poffo)[159]
Wrestling Won the WWF Championship (2 times), WWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time), and WCW World Heavyweight Championship (4 times)[91][93][160]
99 1996   The Sheik
(Ed Farhat)[161]
Wrestling and promoting Won the Detroit Version of NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (12 times) and NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (2 times); owned and promoted Big Time Wrestling[161][162]
100 1996   Hisashi Shinma Promoting Chairman of New Japan Pro-Wrestling, founder of Japanese Universal Wrestling Federation and on-screen president of the World Wrestling Federation[99][163]
101 1996   Dara Singh
(Dara Singh Randhawa)[164]
Wrestling Won the World Wrestling Championship, NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Championship (1 time) and Commonwealth Championship.[42][165][166]
102 1996   Gordon Solie
(Francis Labiak)[167]
Commentating Worked as commentator for the National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling[168]
103 1996   El Solitario
(Roberto González Cruz)[169]
Wrestling Won the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and NWA World Middleweight Championship (1 time)[169][170]
104 1996   Ricky Steamboat[171]
(Richard Blood)
Wrestling Won the NWA/WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (4 times), NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and WWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time)[171][172]
105 1996 Joe Stecher Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (3 times)[173]
106 1996   Tony Stecher
(Anton Stecher)[173]
Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; won several regional championships; co-founded the National Wrestling Alliance[173]
107 1996 Ray Steele
(Peter Sauer)[174]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[69]
108 1996 Ray Stevens
(Carl Stevens)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco version) (2 times), the AWA World Tag Team Championship (4 times) and the AWA United States Heavyweight Championship (7 times)[69]
109 1996   Nobuhiko Takada Wrestling and promoting Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Pro-Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time); founded the Union of Wrestling Forces International[67][175]
110 1996   Genichiro Tenryu
(Genichiro Shimada)[176]
Wrestling and promoting Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (3 times), World Tag Team Championship (5 times); founded Wrestle Association R[177][178][179]
111 1996   Lou Thesz
(Aloysius Martiz Thesz)[180]
Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (6 times)[180]
112 1996   Tiger Mask
(Satoru Sayama)[181]
Wrestling, MMA and promoting Won the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times) and NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times);[181] founded Shooto
113 1996 Jumbo Tsuruta
(Tomomi Tsuruta)[182]
Wrestling Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[182]
114 1996 Frank Tunney Promoting Posthumous inductee; promoted wrestling events in Toronto, Ontario and served as president of the National Wrestling Alliance[183]
115 1996   Mad Dog Vachon Wrestling Won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (5 times), AWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times), and Central States version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[184]
116 1996   Big Van Vader
(Leon White)[185]
Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (3 times), Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (2 times), WCW World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and UWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[93][186]
117 1996   Johnny Valentine
(Jonathan Wisniski)[187]
Wrestling Won the NWF Heavyweight Championship (2 times) and NWA/WWWF United States Tag Team Championship (4 times)[188]
118 1996   Fritz Von Erich
(Jack Adkisson)[189]
Wrestling and promoting Won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and NWA American Heavyweight Championship (13 times); served as president of the National Wrestling Alliance and founded World Class Championship Wrestling[189][190]
119 1996   Whipper Billy Watson
(William Potts)[191]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and NWA British Empire Heavyweight Championship (12 times)[191]
120 1996   Bill Watts Wrestling and promoting Won the Mid-South North American Heavyweight Championship (8 times), AWA United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and WWWF United States Tag Team Championship (1 time); founded Mid-South Wrestling and served as president of World Championship Wrestling[192][193][194]
121 1996   Jaguar Yokota
(Rimi Yokota)[195]
Women's wrestling Won the UWA World Women's Championship (1 time), and WWWA World Single Championship (2 times)[196]
122 1996   Stanislaus Zbyszko Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (3 times)[197]
123 1997   Édouard Carpentier
(Edouard Wiercowicz)[198]
Wrestling Won the Boston's Atlantic Athletic Commission World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Omaha's World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and NAWA/WWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[198]
124 1997   El Hijo del Santo
(Jorge Guzmán)[199]
Wrestling Won the AAA World Tag Team Championship (1 time), Mexican National Middleweight Championship (1 time), and Mexican National Welterweight Championship (1 time)[9][23][200]
125 1997   Toshiaki Kawada Wrestling Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (5 times)[177]
126 1997 Jimmy Lennon Ring announcing Posthumous inductee; worked as a ring announcer in Los Angeles[201]
127 1997   William Muldoon Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won American Greco-Roman Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[202]
128 1997   Chigusa Nagayo Women's wrestling Founded Gaea Japan; won the AAAW Single Championship (2 times)[203][204]
129 1998   Dos Caras
(José Rodríguez)
Wrestling Won the UWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and Mexican National Trios Championship (1 time)[157][205]
130 1999   Lioness Asuka
(Tomoko Kitamura)
Women's wrestling Won the AJW Championship (2 times), WWWA World Single Championship (2 times), and AJW Junior Championship (1 time).
131 1999   Jushin Thunder Liger
(Keiichi Yamada)[206]
Wrestling Won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship (11 times), GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time), CMLL World Middleweight Championship (1 time), J-Crown (1 time), WCW Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times).[207][208]
132 1999   Keiji Mutoh Wrestling Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and IWGP Heavyweight Championship (4 times) and NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[118][177]
133 1999   Jim Ross Commentating Worked as commentator for Universal Wrestling Federation, WCW, and WWF/E[209]
134 2000   Stone Cold Steve Austin
(Steven James Williams)[210][n 2]
Wrestling Won the WWF Championship (6 times), WWF Intercontinental Championship (2 times), and WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[91][160][172]
135 2000   Mick Foley Wrestling Won the WWF Championship (3 times) and TNA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[91]
136 2000   Shinya Hashimoto Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[177][212][213]
137 2000   Akira Hokuto
(Hisako Uno Sasaki)
Women's wrestling Won the WCW Women's Championship (1 time), All Pacific Championship (2 times), and CMLL World Women's Championship (1 time)[214]
138 2000 Bill Longson Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[215]
139 2000   Frank Sexton Wrestling Won the Boston-based AWA World Heavyweight Champion (2 times)[216]
140 2000   Sándor Szabó Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and Boston-based AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[217]
141 2001 Black Shadow
(Alejandro Cruz Ortíz)[60]
Wrestling Won the Mexican National Tag Team Championship (1 time) and Mexican National Lightweight Championship (1 time)[101][218]
142 2001 Diablo Velasco
(Cuahutémoc Velasco)[60]
Training Posthumous inductee; trained many well-known wrestlers[69][219]
143 2001 Lizmark
(Juan Baños)
Wrestling Won the Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Mexican National Middleweight Championship (2 times), and Mexican National Welterweight Championship (1 time)[9][23][157]
144 2001   Bull Nakano
(Keiko Nakano)[220]
Women's wrestling Won the WWWA World Single Championship (1 time), All Pacific Championship (1 time), WWF Women's Championship (1 time) and CMLL World Women's Championship (1 time)[124]
145 2001 El Satánico
(Daniel López)[221]
Wrestling Won the Mexican National Middleweight Championship (3 times) and Mexican National Trios Championship (3 times)[9][205]
146 2002   Martin Burns Wrestling and training Posthumous inductee; won the American Heavyweight Championship (1 time); trained many well-known wrestlers[222][223]
147 2002   Jack Curley
(Jacques Armand Schuel)[224]
Promoting Posthumous inductee; promoted wrestling events and helped popularize professional wrestling in the United States[224]
148 2002   Kenta Kobashi Wrestling Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and GHC Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[177][225]
149 2002   Wahoo McDaniel
(Edward McDaniel)[226]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the NWA United States Championship (5 times), NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (5 times), and NWA National Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[227]
150 2002   Manami Toyota Women's wrestling Won the WWWA World Single Championship (4 times), AAAW Single Championship (1 time) and All Pacific Championship (2 times)[204]
151 2003   Chris Benoit Wrestling Won the World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), WCW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), WWE Intercontinental Championship (4 times), and WWF/World Tag Team Championship (3 times)[228]
152 2003   Earl Caddock Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time)[229]
153 2003 Francisco Flores Promoting Promoted wrestling events in Mexico; founded the Universal Wrestling Association[230]
154 2003   Shawn Michaels
(Michael Shawn Hickenbottom)[231]
Wrestling Won the WWF Championship (3 times), World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and WWF/World Tag Team Championship (4 times)[91][92][232]
155 2004   The Undertaker
(Mark Calaway)[233]
Wrestling Won the WWF/E Championship (4 times), World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and WWF Tag Team Championship (6 times)[91][92][232]
156 2004   Bob Backlund Wrestling Won the WWWF Heavyweight Championship/WWF Championship (2 times) and WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time)[91][92]
157 2004   Masahiro Chono Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and IWGP Tag Team Championship (7 times)[212]
158 2004 Tarzán López
(Carlos Lόpez Tovar)[60]
Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (3 times), Mexican National Middleweight Championship (1 time), and Mexican National Welterweight Championship (1 time)[9][23][157]
159 2004   Kazushi Sakuraba Wrestling and MMA Competed in several professional wrestling organizations as well as in mixed martial arts fighting[234]
160 2004   Último Dragón
(Yoshihiro Asai)[235]
Wrestling Won the J-Crown (1 time), IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times), AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and WCW Cruiserweight Championship (2 times)[207][208]
161 2004   Kurt Angle Wrestling Won the WWF/E Championship (4 times), WCW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and TNA World Heavyweight Championship (6 times) [91][232]
162 2005   The Fabulous Freebirds (Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, and Buddy Roberts)
(Michael Seitz, Terry Gordy, and Dale Hey)[236][237]
Tag team wrestling Won the WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship/Texas version of the NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship (6 times) and WCW World Six-Man Tag Team Championship (1 time)[238]
163 2005   Paul Heyman Managing and promoting Owned and promoted Extreme Championship Wrestling; managed wrestlers in American Wrestling Association, National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling and WWE[239]
164 2005   Triple H
(Paul Levesque)[240]
Wrestling Won the WWF/E Championship (9 times), World Heavyweight Championship (5 times)[91][232] WWF/E Intercontinental Championship (5 times), and WWF European Championship (2 times)
165 2006 Paul Bowser Promoting Posthumous inductee; promoted Boston's American Wrestling Association[241]
166 2006   Eddy Guerrero Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the WWE Championship (1 time), WWF/E Intercontinental Championship (2 times), and WCW/WWE United States Championship (2 times)[242]
167 2006   Hiroshi Hase Wrestling Won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times) and IWGP Tag Team Championship (4 times) and WCW International World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[243][244]
168 2006   Masakatsu Funaki Wrestling, MMA and promoting Won the King of Pancrase Openweight Championship (2 times) and Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (1 time); founded Pancrase Hybrid Wrestling[245][246][247]
169 2006   Aja Kong
(Erika Shishido)
Women's wrestling Won the AAAW Single Championship (3 times), WWWA World Single Championship (2 times), and WWWA World Tag Team Championship (4 times)[204][248]
170 2007   The Rock
(Dwayne Johnson)[249]
Wrestling Won the WWF/WWE Championship (8 times), WCW/World Championship (2 times), WWF/E Intercontinental Championship (2 times), and WWF World Tag Team Championship (5 times)[91][250]
171 2007   Evan Lewis Wrestling Posthumous inductee; won the American Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[222]
172 2007 Tom Packs Promoting Posthumous inductee; promoted wrestling events in St. Louis, Missouri and the Midwestern United States[251]
173 2008 Paco Alonso
(Francisco Alonso)
Promoting Promoted the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre[252]
174 2008   Martín Karadagian Wrestling and promoting Posthumous inductee; competed in Argentina[253]
175 2009   Konnan
(Charles Ashenoff)
Wrestling Won the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), AAA Americas Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times), WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time), WCW World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[69]
176 2009 Everett Marshall Wrestling Won the MWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA/NBA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Texas Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[69]
177 2009 The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton, Stan Lane, and Dennis Condrey) Tag team wrestling Won the NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time), Mid-South Tag Team Championship (2 times), NWA American Tag Team Championship (1 time), NWA United States Tag Team Championship (3 times), and NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[69]
178 2009 Bill Miller Wrestling Won the AWA United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time), AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), WWWF United States Tag Team Championship (1 time)
179 2009   Masa Saito
(Masanori Saito)
Wrestling Won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (1 time), WWF World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[69]
180 2009 Roy Shire
(Roy Shropshire)
Wrestling and promoting Won the Amarillo version of NWA North American Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and NWA Southwest Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time); founded and promoted Big Time Wrestling in the Bay Area[69]
181 2010   Chris Jericho
(Christopher Irvine)
Wrestling Won the Undisputed WWF Championship (1 time), World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), AEW World Championship (1 time), WCW/World Championship (2 times), and WWF/E Intercontinental Championship (9 times),[69]
182 2010   Rey Misterio Jr.
(Oscar Gutierrez)
Wrestling Won the World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), WWE Championship (1 time), and WCW/WWE Cruiserweight Championship (8 times)[69]
183 2010   Wladek Zbyszko
(Władysław Cyganiewicz)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the Boston version of AWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[69]
184 2011 Kent Walton Commentating Posthumous inductee. World of Sport commentator[254]
185 2011 Steve Williams Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (1 time), UWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[254]
186 2011 Curtis Iaukea Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the IWA World Heavyweight Championship (4 times), NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Championship (4 times), and WWWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[254]
187 2012 Mick McManus
(William Matthews)
Wrestling Won the European Middleweight Championship (4 times), British Welterweight Championship (2 times) and British Middleweight Championship (1 time)[255]
188 2012 Alfonso Morales
(Gilberto Alberto Morales Villela)
Commentating Commentator for both AAA and CMLL on Televisa[255]
189 2012   John Cena Wrestling Won the WWE Championship/WWE World Heavyweight Championship (13 times), World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and WWE United States Championship (5 times)[255]
190 2012   Hans Schmidt
(Guy Larose)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the Montreal version of AWA International Heavyweight Championship (2 times), Chicago version of NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and Los Angeles version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[255]
191 2012   Lou Albano Wrestling and managing Posthumous inductee. Won the WWWF United States Tag Team Championship. Manager of 15 different WWF World Tag Team Champions[255]
192 2012   Gus Sonnenberg Wrestling Posthumous inductee, Original World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and Boston version of AWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[255]
193 2013 Takashi Matsunaga Promoting Posthumous inductee. Founder and promoter of All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling[256]
194 2013 Henri Deglane Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won Olympic gold medal in men's Greco-Roman wrestling, won the Boston version of the AWA World Heavyweight Championship[256]
195 2013 Dr. Wagner
(Manuel González)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and Mexican National Tag Team Championship (1 time). Patriarch of the Wagner wrestling family[256]
196 2013   Atlantis Wrestling Won the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship (2 times), CMLL World Tag Team Championship (5 times), Mexican National Middleweight Championship (1 time), Mexican National Tag Team Championship (1 time), NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and NWA World Middleweight Championship (3 times)[256]
197 2013   Kensuke Sasaki Wrestling Won the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (3 times), IWGP Heavyweight Championship (5 times), GHC Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Tag Team Championship (7 times), GHC Tag Team Championship (1 time) and WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[256]
198 2013   Hiroshi Tanahashi Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (8 times), IWGP Tag Team Championship (2 times), IWGP Intercontinental Championship (2 times) and the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[256]
199 2014   The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson)
(Richard Morton and Ruben Cain)
Tag team wrestling Won the NWA World Tag Team Championship (5 times), the Mid-Atlantic version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship (4 times), SMW Tag Team Championship (10 times), and USWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times)[257]
200 2014 Ray Fabiani
(Aurelio Fabiani)
Promoting Posthumous inductee. Philadelphia promoter[257]
201 2015   Brock Lesnar Wrestling and MMA Won the WWE Championship/WWE World Heavyweight Championship (7 times), WWE Universal Championship (3 times), IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and UFC Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[3]
202 2015   Shinsuke Nakamura Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (3 times), IWGP Intercontinental Championship (5 times), IWGP Tag Team Championship (1 time), NXT Championship (2 times), WWE United States Championship (2 times) and WWE Intercontinental Championship (1 time)[3]
203 2015 Perro Aguayo Jr.
(Pedro Aguayo)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (1), Mexican National Tag Team Championship (3 times), CMLL World Trios Championship (1 time), and WWA Tag Team Championship (3 times)[3]
204 2015 The Assassins (Jody Hamilton and Tom Renesto) Tag team wrestling Won the Florida version of NWA United States Tag Team Championship (2 times), NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (12 times), Vancouver version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time), and Mid-America version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[3]
205 2015   Ivan Koloff
(Oreal Perras)
Wrestling Won the NWA Florida Tag Team Championship (5 times), NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (7 times), NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (4 times), NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship (1 time), Mid-Atlantic version of NWA Television Championship (5 times), NWA United States Tag Team Championship (2 times), Mid-Atlantic version of NWA World Tag Team Championship (5 times), and WWWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[3]
206 2015   Carlos Colón Wrestling and promoting Won the WWC World/Universal Heavyweight Championship (26 times), WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Championship (9 times), WWC North American Heavyweight Championship (8 times), WWC North American Tag Team Championship (11 times), WWC World Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time), WWC World Tag Team Championship (3 times) and WWC World Television Championship (4 times)[3]
207 2015 Eddie Quinn
(Edmund Quinn)
Promoting Posthumous inductee; Montreal promoter[3]
208 2016   Bryan Danielson Wrestling Won the World Heavyweight Championship (WWE, 2002–2013) (1 time), WWE Championship/WWE World Heavyweight Championship (4 times) and ROH World Championship (1 time).[258]
209 2016   Gene Okerlund
(Eugene Okerlund)
Commentating Worked as interviewer and announcer for American Wrestling Association, World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling.[258]
210 2016   Sting
(Steve Borden)
Wrestling Won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), WCW World Heavyweight Championship (6 times), WCW International World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and TNA World Heavyweight Championship (4 times).[258]
211 2016   James McLaughlin Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Generally considered the first American professional wrestling champion.[258]
212 2017   Mark Lewin Wrestling Won the IWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times) and WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time).[259]
213 2017   AJ Styles
(Allen Jones)
Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (2 times), NWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times), TNA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), WWE Championship (2 times), WWE United States Championship (3 times) and WWE Intercontinental Championship.[259]
214 2017 The Sharpe Brothers (Ben and Mike) Tag team wrestling Posthumous inductees. Introduced modern professional wrestling to Japan. Won the San Francisco version (18 times) and the Chicago version (1 time) of the NWA World Tag Team Championship.[259]
215 2017   Minoru Suzuki Wrestling, MMA and promoting Co-founder of Pancrase. Won the King of Pancrase Openweight Championship (1 time), Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (2 times), GHC Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NEVER Openweight Championship (1 time), and the IWGP Intercontinental Championship (1 time).[259]
216 2017   Pedro Morales Wrestling Won the WWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), WWC North American Heavyweight Championship (2 times) and WWWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time).[259]
217 2018   LA Park
(Adolfo Tapia)
Wrestling Won the IWC World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), the CMLL World Tag Team Championship (1 time) and MLW World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[260]
218 2018 Jerry Jarrett Wrestling and promoting Wrestler and promoter of Continental Wrestling Association, United States Wrestling Association and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling[260]
219 2018   Jimmy Hart Managing Managed wrestlers in Continental Wrestling Association, World Wrestling Federation, and World Championship Wrestling[260]
220 2018   Bill Apter Journalism Staff member for several magazines during the 1970s, 80s and 90s, notably Pro Wrestling Illustrated.[260]
221 2018   Howard Finkel Ring announcing Announcer for the WWE since 1975, when it was known as the World Wide Wrestling Federation. He was the longest tenured employee of the organization.[260]
222 2018   Gary Hart
(Gary Williams)
Wrestling and managing Posthumous inductee. Booker for World Class Championship Wrestling and longtime manager for several promotions[260]
223 2018   Yuji Nagata Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (2 times), GHC Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Tag Team Championship (2 times), and NEVER Openweight Championship (1 time)[260]
224 2019   Último Guerrero
(José Gutiérrez)
Wrestling Won the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), CMLL World Tag Team Championship (6 times), CMLL World Trios Championship (5 times), CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time[261]
225 2019   Villano III
(Arturo Díaz)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the UWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time), UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time), UWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (2 times), UWA World Welterweight Championship (1 time), WWF Light Heavyweight Championship (7 times), CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time), and the Mexican National Trios Championship (1 time)[261]
226 2019   Dr. Wagner Jr.
(Juan Manuel González Barron)
Wrestling Won the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship (2 times), CMLL World Tag Team Championship (4 times), CMLL World Trios Championship (4 times), AAA Mega Championship (3 times), UWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), UWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and the WWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[261]
227 2019 Jim Crockett Sr. Promoting Posthumous inductee. Founder of Jim Crockett Promotions[261]
228 2019   Gedo
(Keiji Takayama)
Wrestling Booker for New Japan Pro-Wrestling since 2010. Won the WAR International Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times), IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (4 times), and the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (1 time)[261]
229 2019 Bearcat Wright
(Edward Wright)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. First African American world wrestling champion. Won the WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and the IWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[261]
230 2019   Paul Pons Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Early Greco-Roman wrestling pioneer. Won over 40 tournaments.[261]
231 2019 Los Misioneros de la Muerte (El Signo, El Texano, and Negro Navarro)
(Antonio Sánchez, Juan Conrado Aguilar, and Miguel Calderón Navarro)
Tag team wrestling Won the UWA World Trios Championship (6 times)[261]
232 2020   Kenny Omega
(Tyson Smith)
Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Intercontinental Championship (1 time), IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship (2 times) AAA Mega Championship (1 time), AEW World Championship (1 time), AEW Tag Team Championship (1 time) and the Impact World Championship (1 time) [262]
233 2020 Médico Asesino
(Cesáreo Manríquez González)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Also known as El Medico in Texas. Won the Mexican National Heavyweight Championship (1 time), the NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (3 times), and the NWA World Tag Team Championship (Texas version) (2 times). One of the first Luchadores to act in television and movies.[262]
234 2020 Karloff Lagarde
(Carlos Lagarde)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the Mexican National Welterweight Championship (1 time), the NWA World Welterweight Championship (3 times), the Mexican National Middleweight Championship (1 time), and the Mexican National Tag Team Championship (1 time).[262]
235 2020   Jun Akiyama Wrestling Won the GHC Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (2 times).[262]
236 2020 Dan Koloff
(Doncho Danev)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee. Won the European Heavyweight Championship (2 times).[262]
237 2021   Kazuchika Okada
Wrestling Won the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship (2 times), IWGP Heavyweight Championship (5 times), G1 Climax winner (3 times), New Japan Cup winner (2 times)[citation needed]
238 2021   Jim Crockett Jr. Promoting Posthumous inductee. Part owner of Jim Crockett Promotions 1973 to 1989. President of the National Wrestling Alliance four occasions[citation needed]
239 2021 Los Brazos (Brazo de Oro, Brazo de Plata, and El Brazo) Tag team wrestling Posthumous inductees. Part of the Alvarado wrestling family[citation needed]
240 2021 Don Owen Promoting Posthumous inductee. Owned and operated Pacific Northwest Wrestling for six decades.[citation needed]
241 2022 Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) Tag team wrestling Won the AJPW World Tag Team Championship (6 times) and the World's Strongest Tag Determination League (2 times)
242 2022   Místico
(Luis Ignacio Urive Alvirde)
Wrestling Won the CMLL World Tag Team Championship (5 times), CMLL World Welterweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time), Mexican National Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship (1 time), NWA World Middleweight Championship (2 times)
243 2022   Kota Ibushi Wrestling Won the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Heavyweight Championship (1 time), IWGP Intercontinental Championship (2 times), IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship (3 times), IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (1 time), IWGP Tag Team Championship (1 time), NEVER Openweight Championship (1 time), and the G1 Climax (2 times)
244 2022   Tetsuya Naito Wrestling Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship (3 times), IWGP Intercontinental Championship (6 times), IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (1 time), IWGP Tag Team Championship (2 times), NEVER Openweight Championship (1 time), and the G1 Climax (2 times)
245 2022 Los Villanos (Villano I, Villano II, Villano III, Villano IV, and Villano V)
(José de Jesús Díaz Mendoza, José Alfredo Díaz Mendoza, Arturo Díaz Mendoza, Tomás Díaz Mendoza, Raymundo Díaz Mendoza Jr.)
Tag team wrestling Villanos I, II, and III were posthumous inductees.
Held numerous tag team, trios, and atómicos championships.
Part of the Mendoza wrestling family.
246 2022 Mark Rocco
(Mark Hussey)
Wrestling Posthumous inductee.
Won the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time).
247 2022 Lou Daro Promoting Posthumous inductee.
Promoter in Los Angeles.
248 2022 Johnny Doyle Promoting Posthumous inductee.
Promoter and booking agent.
249 2023   Tomohiro Ishii Wrestling Won the IWGP Tag Team Championship (1 time), NEVER Openweight Championship (6 times), NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship (3 times), British Heavyweight Championship (2 times), and the ROH World Television Championship (1 time)
250 2023   Sgt. Slaughter
(Robert Remus)
Wrestling Won the WWF Championship (1 time), and the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
251 2023 Blue Panther
(Genaro Nevarez)
Wrestling Won the CMLL World Middleweight Championship (1 time), CMLL World Tag Team Championship (1 time), CMLL World Trios Championship (2 times), Mexican National Trios Championship (2 times), and the Mexican National Middleweight Championship (2 times)
252 2023 George Kidd Wrestling Posthumous inductee.
First entrant into the Hall of Fame for Scotland.
253 2023   Jack Brisco and Jerry Brisco Tag team wrestling Jack Brisco is a posthumous inductee.
Won the NWA Florida Tag Team Championship (8 times), NWA North American Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (2 times), NWA United States Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (5 times), NWA World Tag Team Championship (Mid-Atlantic version) (3 times), and the NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (2 times)
254 2023 Beauty Pair (Jackie Sato and Maki Ueda) Tag team wrestling Jackie Sato is a posthumous inductee.
Won the WWWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times)
255 2023 Antonino Rocca and Miguel Pérez Tag team wrestling Posthumous inductees.
Won the NWA World Tag Team Championship (Northeast version) (1 time), and the WWC North American Tag Team Championship (1 time)
256 2024   Roman Reigns
(Joe Anoa'i)
Wrestling Won the WWE Championship/WWE Universal Championship (6 times), the WWE Intercontinental Championship (1 time) and the WWE United States Championship (1 time)
257 2024   Shingo Takagi Wrestling Won the Open the Dream Gate Championship (4 times), the Open the Twin Gate Championship (5 times), the Open the Triangle Gate Championship (6 times), the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and the NEVER Openweight Championship (5 times)
258 2024   Paul Orndorff Wrestling Posthumous inductee.
Won the Mid-South North American Heavyweight Championship (5 times), the NWA National Heavyweight Championship (3 times) and the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
259 2024 Johnny Rougeau Wrestling Posthumous inductee.
Won the IWA International Heavyweight Championship (6 times), the MAC World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) and the All-Star Wrestling Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
260 2024   Young Bucks
(Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson)
Tag team wrestling Won the AEW World Tag Team Championship (3 times), the AEW World Trios Championship (2 times), the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (7 times), the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship (3 times), the ROH World Tag Team Championship (3 times) and the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship (3 times).
261 2024 Los Hermanos Dinamita
(Cien Caras, Máscara Año 2000 and Universo 2000)
Tag team wrestling Won the Mexican National Trios Championship (1 time)
262 2024   Cima Wrestling Won the Open the Dream Gate Championship (3 times), the Open the Brave Gate Championship (1 time), the Open the Twin Gate Championship (5 times) and the Open the Triangle Gate Championship (12 times)
263 2024   Johnny Saint Wrestling Won the British Lightweight Championship (1 time), the European Lightweight Championship (2 times), and the World Lightweight Championship (10 times)
264 2024 Bobby Davis Managing Posthumous inductee.
Influential wrestling mananger

Footnotes

edit
  1. ^ According to his autobiography, Flair does not know his actual birth name. His listed birth name was given to him upon his adoption as an infant.
  2. ^ Austin's actual birth name is Steven James Anderson. His name was changed to Williams in early childhood when he was adopted by his stepfather.[211] He has since legally changed his name to Steve Austin.

References

edit
General
  • "Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2017-09-02. Retrieved 2009-05-10.
Specific
  1. ^ Hubbard, Nathan. "The Not the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame Hall of Fame". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 2009-05-09.
  2. ^ Dove, Jeuron. "Jeuron Dove talks the Hall of Fame". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Meltzer, Dave (November 9, 2015). "November 9, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: 2015 Hall of Fame Issue". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California: 1. ISSN 1083-9593.
  4. ^ Wahlers, Dan. "Dan Wahlers on Chris Benoit and the Hall of Fame". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 2009-05-09.
  5. ^ Meltzer, Dave, Wrestling Observer Newsletter, September 8, 2008, p. 6.
  6. ^ a b c Nevada, Vance. "Abdullah the Butcher". SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2009-01-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ Reynaga, Ricardo Rocha (1993). Conversaciones para gente grande. Aguilar. p. 285.
  8. ^ "Official Ratings". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. 19 (2). London Publishing Co.: 65 February 1999. ISSN 1043-7576.
  9. ^ a b c d e f Duncan, Royal; Gary Will (2000). "Mexico: National Middleweight Championship". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 392. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  10. ^ Duncan, Royal; Gary Will (2000). "Mexico: National Tag Team Titles". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. pp. 396–397. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  11. ^ Hornbaker, Tim (2006). National Wrestling Alliance: The Untold Story of the Monopoly That Strangled Pro Wrestling. ECW Press. p. 192. ISBN 1-55022-741-6.
  12. ^ "Andre the Giant". World Wrestling Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2008-01-10. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
  13. ^ Willoughby, David P. (1970). The Super-athletes. A. S. Barnes. p. 274. ISBN 0-498-06651-7.
  14. ^ Pantozzi, John. "Giant Baba". Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on 2009-02-01. Retrieved 2009-01-31.
  15. ^ Oliver, Greg (2004-09-19). "Jim Barnett's Australian legacy". SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2012-07-17. Retrieved 2009-01-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  16. ^ Rhodes, Dusty; George Steinbrenner; Howard Brody (2006). Dusty: Reflections of an American Dream. Sports Publishing LLC. p. 103. ISBN 1-58261-907-7.
  17. ^ a b Patrick, Nikki (2008-07-23). "Military Teacher". Pittsburg Morning Sun. Archived from the original on 2009-09-24. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
  18. ^ a b "History of NWA Southwest/NWA Texas Titles". NWA Southwest. Archived from the original on 2009-03-08. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
  19. ^ a b Tenay, Mike. "Dick Beyer". Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on 2008-08-20. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
  20. ^ "Dick "Destroyer" Beyer". Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 2008-10-25. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
  21. ^ "Fred Blassie". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2008-11-21. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
  22. ^ "Hispanic Link Weekly Report". 1 (12). Hispanic Link News Service. 21 November 1983: 16. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  23. ^ a b c d e Duncan, Royal; Gary Will (2000). "Mexico: National Welterweight Championship". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 392. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
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