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WWE Hall of Fame 2013: Who's Left to Induct This Year?

Posted: Feb 26th 2013 By: mikeiles

The WWE Hall of Fame 2013 is growing increasingly crowded with legends and champions more than deserving of induction, but who is left to join them this April?

Bruno Sammartino, Bob Backlund, Mick Foley and Trish Stratus are all on their way into WWE's Hall of Fame. As WWE announced on Monday's Raw, Donald Trump is going in as well.

If WWE isn't done with compiling this year's class, there is a plethora of potential honorees.

A number of deserving wrestlers are still out there, but not all will get the nod in 2013. Randy Savage deserves to be in. Jake Roberts and Bruiser Brody have strong arguments for induction as well.

One must take into account, though, that this class is already so overflowing with star power that someone like Savage would either be overshadowed by Sammartino's entry or he could potentially overshadow Foley or Backlund.

Looking back at WWE's recent trends for the Hall of Fame, the company has inducted one celebrity, several big names and also a team or stable. 2013 already has its celebrity in Trump. It has big names aplenty, likely leaving just an opening for a team.

In 2012, The Four Horsemen earned induction. In 2011, it was the Road Warriors and in 2009, the Von Erichs. The Blackjacks, The Brisco Brothers and the Wild Samoans received invitations in consecutive years. If WWE follows this pattern, the 2013 class could add one of the remaining deserving teams.

Should WWE decide to go outside of itself to find a tag team, the company has a number of intriguing options.

Choices From Other Promotions

The WWE Hall of Fame has inducted wrestlers who spent much of or their entire careers outside of the company. Verne Gagne, the Von Erichs and Nick Bockwinkel are prime examples of that category.

The Midnight Express is a team that WWE could honor despite its success primarily being with NWA.

Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane delivered exciting matches thanks to their quickness and cohesive teamwork. The former NWA tag champs had a memorable rivalry with The Road Warriors, had the iconic Jim Cornette at their helm and are among wrestling's all-time best pairings.

The Fabulous Freebirds also beg to be inducted at some point.

They should be honored as innovators and as performers who ignited a crowd like few others.

The strongest argument against their induction, though, is the lack of time they spent with WWE. Most of the titles they won, most of their sold-out matches happened with Dallas-area World Class Championship Wrestling.

The Rock 'n' Roll Express has a similar story.

Taking into account their runs and title wins with USWA, AWA and NWA, this is a team that should have been among the first inducted. Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson are multi-time champions who inspired teams like the Rockers.

However, they came to WWE later in their careers and had a forgettable run with the company.

he Steiners performed their blend of technical wrestling and high-flying moves most successfully in WCW and Japan, but have the WWE tag titles on their resume as well.

WWE could choose any of these teams with little argument from older fans. Selection from this group is a tribute to the wrestling world beyond WWE, something the company has done in the past.

In-House Choices

With so few of WWE's teams in the Hall of Fame right now, a litany of deserving candidates and borderline candidates remain.

The Nasty Boys' exciting rough and rugged style made them a notable pair of brawlers. They were a team longer than many others and that may give them an edge.

Demolition held the WWE tag titles for a record 698 combined days.

That statistic along with how memorable their characters, costumes and dominance were could earn them induction as well.

The Hart Foundation and The British Bulldogs were two great teams from the '80s, an era overloaded with quality tag teams.

WWE could instead decide to draw from more recent history, asking the Hardy Boyz or Dudley Boyz to join the class of 2013. Jeff Hardy, Bubba and Devon Dudley are all current TNA wrestlers, though, and the tenuous relationship between those companies makes that a long shot, at least for now.

The New Age Outlaws may get a look, but could be more likely to enter as a stable with the whole D-Generation X crew.

In the end, though, WWE may decide that the 2013 Hall of Fame induction ceremony has its fill of icons. These tag teams may have to wait until 2014 and beyond.

With WWE's longest reigning champion, one of the best Divas ever, a hardcore legend and the underappreciated Backlund all getting inducted at Madison Square Garden, there just may not be any more room.