The 2020 Hall of Fame class will forever be remembered as the inductee’s that never was, with the 2020 Hall of Fame ceremony being cancelled due to the Covid-19 Pandemic.
The 2020 class were set to be inducted over Wrestlemania 36 weekend until the pandemic put a kibosh to all of the weekend’s festivities. The inductees are set to take their place in the Hall of Fame at the 2021 ceremony alongside the latest name to be announced, Molly Holly.
This week, we take a look at the inductee’s who are set to take their place in WWE’s Hall of Fame and see where they are now.
John Bradshaw Layfield
The former WWE Champion John Bradshaw Layfield was one of the first names to be announced for the 2020 class of inductees during his appearance on the March 3rd episode of WWE Backstage.
JBL will forever be remembered for his WWE title reign, as well as his long-term commentary role on Smackdown. Layfield is also remembered for his excellent role as part of the APA alongside fellow Hall of Famer Farooq aka Ron Simmons.
JBL can still be found contributing towards pay-per-view kick-off shows, being a regular panellist for the build-up to these shows. Layfield also appeared as part of the Undertaker’s retirement ceremony at the 2020 Survivor Series. He also serves as a Business Commentator for the Fox News Channel and the Fox Business Network.
Batista
Batista was a no brainer to be a part of the WWE Hall of Fame, with the two-time WWE Champion and four-time World Heavyweight Champion being one of the biggest stars to come out of the company. The two-time Royal Rumble winner retired a year before he was set to join the Hall of Fame, losing to Triple H at Wrestlemania 35 in his final match.
Batista has gone on to cultivate an incredible acting career for himself, cementing himself in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Drax the Destroyer in Guardians of the Galaxy. He is set to appear in Volume three of the Guardians of the Galaxy series as well as appearing in Army of the Dead and Groove tails.
The British Bulldog
The sole posthumous inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame, the British Bulldog was announced to be joining the Hall of Fame in 2020. Davey Boy Smith is most remembered for his incredible Intercontinental Championship win at Summerslam 1992 in his home country at Wembley Stadium. Smith also won the European Championship and the Hardcore Championship twice.
Bulldog is also remembered for his tag team career, winning the WWF World Tag Team Championships at Wrestlemania 2 as part of the British Bulldog’s as well as winning the titles with Owen Hart.
Smith tragically passed away in 2002 age 39 from a heart attack, but his legacy lives on through his son Davey Boy Smith Jr. who is rumoured to be rejoining WWE this year.
Jushin Thunder Liger
Jushin Thunder Liger was one of the more surprising names to be announced for the 2020 Hall of Fame, with the New Japan Pro Wrestling having very few appearances for WWE.
Liger is considered to be one of the most revolutionary competitors in wresting history, holding the record for the most IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship reigns, with eleven. But Liger’s influence is not just felt in Japan, having wrestled the first ever match in WCW Nitro history against Brian Pillman.
Liger retired at Wrestle Kingdom 14, tagging with Naoki Sano in a losing effort against Hiromu Takahashia and Ryu Lee which is seen as a passing of the Junior Heavyweight torch. Liger can often be seen as part of the Japanese commentary team for New Japan Pro Wrestling, most recently appearing at the announcers table for the New Japan Cup.
Bella Twins
The Bella Twins, Nikki and Brie, were set to be inducted as a pairing into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2020.
Nikki and Brie have won a combined three Divas Championship and are recognised as being two pioneers of the ‘Women’s Revolution’ in WWE that saw more time and higher profiles given to the women within the company.
The Bella’s have also been influential for WWE outside of the ring, being the stars of reality shows Total Divas and spin-off show Total Bella’s that document their lives. Both Nikki and Brie announced their retirement from the ring in March 2019 on Total Bellas, with Nikki being the last to wrestle in a losing effort against Ronda Rousey at WWE Evolution.
Brie Bella is married to current WWE star Daniel Bryan whilst Nikki married Russian dancer Artem Chigvintsev. Both twins also delivered children in 2020, with the two giving birth less than 24 hours apart.
The Bella’s currently host their own podcast, the Bella’s Podcast, and have expressed an interest in returning to challenge for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships.
NWO
Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash and X-Pac were chosen to be the representatives of the NWO in the Hall of Fame. The inclusion of X-Pac raised a few eyebrows across the internet, with his contribution to the NWO not quite matching that of the three founding members that he will be inducted alongside.
The induction will have all four men two-time WWE Hall of Famers, with X-Pac having been previously inducted as part of DX. Hulk Hogan appeared at WWE’s Legends Night in January, giving his endorsement to then WWE Champion Drew McIntyre ahead of his match against Keith Lee.
Hogan is also set to have a biopic about his life released, with Chris Hemsworth starring as the Hulkster. Kevin Nash last wrestled in 2018 for Big Time Wrestling in Rhode Island. Nash appeared for the Undertakers retirement ceremony at Survivor Series 2020.
Nash has also appeared in the movie ‘Chick Fight’ which is currently in post-production. After long term struggles with substance abuse, Scott Hall has managed to turn his life around thanks to supporting from Diamond Dallas Page who invited Hall into his home as well as fundraising nearly $110,000 to pay for hip replacement surgery and dental work for Hall. Scott last wrestled in 2016, beating Chuck Taylor for the DDT Iron Man Heavy Metal Title.
The surprise entrant for the NWO, X-Pac, currently hosts the X-Pac 1 2 360 podcast where he continues to discuss professional wrestling. X-Pac also voice acted in the most recent instalment of the WWE 2k series, lending his likeness for the campaign mode of the now-infamous video game.