WWE Hall Of Fame – 2009

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame wasn’t the only Hall Of Fame ceremony happening on Saturday  night.  As they have since Wrestlemania XX, the WWE held their Hall Of Fame inductions the night before Wrestlemania. 

Gathering old and new wrestlers alike, along with fans and celebrities (such as Mickey Rourke this year) the WWE pays tribute to the men and women that paved the way for the wrestlers of today, although not every inductee has been a wrestler.  While there are some questionable entries, for the most part, the WWE has gotten it right.

Ricky “The Steamboat” Dragon, Terry and Dory Funk Jr., Bill Watts, Koko B. Ware (with Frankie), ring announcer Howard Finkle and the Von Erich family were inducted into the Hall Of Fame, joining a long list of greats that is impossible to pick only a handful from without feeling like someone’s left out. 

But there was still one to go.

Just like the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame was Metallica’s night, the WWE Hall Of Fame belonged to Steve Austin.

Chants of “Thank You, Austin” and “One More Match” threatened to upstage  and rattle Stone Cold, but he managed to gain control of the crowd.  Austin seemed much more subdued than normal, but this wasn’t an occasion where he needed to “stay in character”.  At times, he seemed on the verge of choking up, but managed to keep in under control, delivering one of the better speeches I’ve seen from the HOF ceremonies.

But what would a night with Stone Cold be without downing some beer.  And as the confetti dropped, Austin asked for two more, passing one down to John Cena, perhaps a passing of the beer can torch.  Love him or hate him, John Cena could be the one to bring the WWE to another level.  The two men are very different, but there’s a lot that’s the same as well.  Both have a passion for the business unlike many others and the fan reaction to both is something only a few others have had.

While we might not get another match, I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Steve Austin in the WWE.