10 great deceased wrestlers not in the WWE Hall Of Fame (videos)

5. Ivan Koloff

"The Russian Bear"

The oldest veteran in this list, The Russian Bear was one of the most hated villains in the 70s and 80s. Taking advantage of the Cold War tensions, Oreal Donald Perras from Canada became Ivan Koloff from the USSR and wrestled all around the world in a storied career.

Without a doubt, his best moments happened under the NWA and WWWF promotions. As an NWA wrestler, he won the astonishing amount of 36 Titles, including 6 Heavyweight Championships. In WWWF though, he had one of the most globally significant achievements of his era: in January 18, 1971 he beat Bruno Sammartino, ending his 2,803 days reign and becoming the WWWF World Heavyweight Champion in front of a speechless Madison Square Garden crowd.

It's worth noting that he never missed a year of wrestling from 1961 to 1994, fighting also for NJPW, WCW and ECW when the acronym still stood for Eastern Championship Wrestling (1992-93).

Koloff died in February 18, 2017 at the age of 74 from liver cancer, and he might be the most important athlete of his generation that died over the age of 70 but was still not inducted to the WWE Hall of Fame alive.

When he is eventually inducted to the WWE HOF, it will most likely be in the Legacy Wing with a short mention and no ceremony, but still it will be a day of rightful recognition to a true pioneer when it finally happens.

Information sources: Ten Bell Salute, Wikipedia