For a while, the WWE Hall of Fame was more well-known for who wasn’t in its theoretical halls than who was actually enshrined. If this latest news is any indication, Bam Bam Bigelow’s induction might be closer than most fans believe.
Bigelow first appeared on the initial rumored list for induction this year, and strangely, he was the only person mentioned in those first rumors who HASN’T been announced yet. With the surprise additions of Jeff Jarrett, Hillbilly Jim, and Mark Henry, it seems likely he won’t be.
Any hardcore wrestling fan knows who Bam Bam Bigelow was, the man was as graceful as a swan in the ring, with the power of a Mack truck. There wasn’t a platform that Bigelow didn’t take his talents to as his career spanned 14 years with tenures in WWE, ECW, Japan and WCW as well.
As one of the one memorable big men in the ring with the trademark tattoo on his skull, it was always a question of when Bigelow would be inducted, not if. According to BodySlam.net, WWE’s reasoning behind not inducting him in this year’s class is a matter of location instead of timing.
BodySlam with a WWE official who speculates that because WrestleMania 35 is in MetLife Stadium next year, the decision to hold Bigelow back a year was made because the big man was from New Jersey. Considering that Bigelow named his finishing move after his hometown, and was a fixture in both east coast wrestling and ECW, it makes complete sense to honor the man when the big event comes to the Tri-State area.
Hopefully this new piece of speculation is accurate, as Bigelow deserves recognition as one of the best big men from the ’80s and ’90s, and one of the best of all time. He never won a major title in WWE, but he did headline WrestleMania XI, and that should count for something when it comes to being honored by the company.
And hey, the dude is Nia Jax’s favorite wrestler, so let’s make this happen next year at the latest.
