Mike Rotunda recently revealed why his late son Bray Wyatt will not be inducted into the 2024 WWE Hall of Fame.
The annual ceremony will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at the start of WrestleMania XL weekend on April 5. Rotunda will be among the inductees alongside his brother-in-law and U.S. Express tag team partner Barry Windham.
Many expected Wyatt to headline the first WWE Hall of Fame class following his passing in 2023. However, in an interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling Senior Editor Bill Apter, Rotunda said the company did not want to give the family any further stress:
"I was surprised because my son, with Windham passing, I thought they were gonna immediately put Windham into the Hall of Fame, which he will be at some point, but I think that WWE reassessed stuff and thought it was too soon to go there with our family and the reactions and the stress on us." [From 11:04 – 11:29]
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Watch the video above to hear more from Mike Rotunda about the help he received from The Rock and Triple H after Bray Wyatt's death.
Mike Rotunda's reaction to his own WWE Hall of Fame induction
WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H is ultimately responsible for deciding which legends enter the Hall of Fame.
Mike Rotunda added that he expected to receive news about a potential WrestleMania XL appearance before Triple H informed him of his surprise WWE Hall of Fame induction:
"We got a call from WWE and said, 'Hunter [Triple H] wants to do a Zoom call,' and we were thinking they were gonna tell us what was gonna happen at WrestleMania, and Hunter said, 'You guys are gonna get inducted, you and Barry. You were part of the first show ever at WrestleMania.' It was kinda very flattering, obviously, and actually less stressful on us because of all the stuff we've had to go through with Windham passing, and just the mental capacity of it. Obviously, it's a great honor because you're getting rewarded for what you spent 40 years doing." [From 11:30 – 12:21]
As Rotunda referenced, The U.S. Express lost the tag titles to The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff at the first WrestleMania in 1985. Rotunda later portrayed the I.R.S. character between 1991 and 1995.
Who do you think should induct Bray Wyatt into a future WWE Hall of Fame? Hit the discuss button and let us know.
Also watch: Glenn Jacobs (FKA Kane) remembers his good friend Bray Wyatt.
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