It’s the final week before WrestleMania as the WWE ties up any loose ends in the build to Sunday’s big show in Dallas. One more episode of Monday Night RAW . One more episode of Smackdown! And today, news of one final inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2016. In somewhat of a surprise, the final member of what will amount to a ten-member class, is none other than Snoop Dogg, according to a report from Wrestling Inc.
The Doggfather will be inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame, and not Regis Philbin, whom had been speculated for months would round out this year’s class. The official announcement is expected to come Monday night on RAW , after the WWE Network emailed out this graphic, which included Snoop Dogg in the picture.
Of course, it’s not set in stone that Snoop Dogg is the final inductee, but it’s highly unlikely the WWE would announce any additional members on Monday, or even on Smackdown!And for the most part, the celebrity has been announced last among each year’s Hall of Fame class. So Snoop Dogg will join Sting, The Godfather, the Fabulous Freebirds, the Big Boss Man, Jacqueline, and Stan Hansen in the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2016.
Other members of the WWE’s celebrity wing of the Hall of Fame include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mr. T, Mike Tyson, Donald Trump, Pete Rose, Drew Carey, Bob Uecker, and William “Refrigerator” Perry. Schwarzenegger is the most recent celebrity inductee, having gone in just last year the night before WrestleMania 31 . It is well known that he and Triple H have forged a positive relationship which has covered not only the WWE, but professional bodybuilding, as well.
Often times with Hall of Fame inductees, there are motives outside of a performer’s overall impact that accompany an induction nod. For instance, the Inquisitr reported last week that Stan Hansen’s induction was a tactic to generate more WWE Network subscribers in Japan. Jacqueline isn’t a transcendent female performer, but she was a Diva’s Champion and made her mark in Texas, which is where the Hall of Fame ceremony and WrestleMania will emanate from. No word on why Snoop Dogg got the call over Regis Philbin, or if Regis was ever truly considered for this year’s event.
Snoop Dogg is the cousin of current WWE Diva Sasha Banks, who will be making her WrestleManiadebut in a triple threat match with Charlotte and Becky Lynch for the Divas Championship. Snoop hosted an episode of RAWin 2009, and has been a part of two WrestleManias(XXIV and XXVII). He had the unenviable task of following Ric Flair’s retirement match against Shawn Michaels, when he appeared as the master of ceremonies for a BunnyMania lumberjack (or lumberjill) extravaganza.
Snoop Dogg had the opportunity to pose and flex with Hulk Hogan during a segment on RAW that also featured Curtis Axel during the latter’s Axel-Mania gimmick.
The next logical question then becomes, “Who will have the honor of inducting Snoop Dogg?” No confirmations on that as of yet, but wrestlingnews.co is reporting that Banks will actually induct her cousin. Banks would join The New Day and The Dudley Boyz as current WWE superstars to induct a member(s) in this year’s class. The New Day is set to induct the Fabulous Freebirds, while the Dudley Boyz will induct Jacqueline.
From WWE’s business point of view, the objective of the Hall Of Fame is to sell tickets, attract new WWE Network subscribers, and appeal to a mainstream audience. Snoop Dogg should assist in checking off some of, if not all, of those boxes. He might just have more worldwide appeal than Regis Philbin, and the thought of some combination of he and the Godfather strutting around the podium together is certainly appealing.
[Image via YouTube]