The Confirmed Deals: Big Men and Brief Speeches

The professional wrestling industry operates on its own bizarre version of a transfer window. Every spring, as WrestleMania approaches, the rumour mill shifts from who is jumping promotions to who is securing a coveted WWE Legends deal and a Hall of Fame ring. Paul "Triple H" Levesque is currently assembling his Class of 2026. With WrestleMania 41 looming in Las Vegas just 25 days away, the board is officially starting to take shape.

We already have our marquee confirmations locked in. Sid Vicious and AJ Styles are officially on the books. But the real intrigue always lies in the lobbying, the whispers, and the politicking for the final few open spots. Managers, former partners, and even ex-husbands are currently working the wrestling media hard to get their preferred candidates over the line.

Let’s break down the confirmed business first. The late Sid Vicious—real name Sid Eudy—will finally take his rightful place in the Hall of Fame. Triple H made the announcement directly on X, confirming what many insiders had suspected for months. Sid’s family has already spoken to the media. They expressed their profound gratitude and explained exactly how the deal came together behind the scenes.

Sid’s induction is a fascinating piece of business. For years, "Sycho Sid" was the poster boy for everything the hardcore internet wrestling fan hated. He was notoriously stiff. He was clumsy in the ring. His live television promos often derailed into pure, unintentional comedy. He famously botched live interviews and seemed more interested in playing in his local softball league than refining his in-ring craft.

But you simply cannot deny the man's terrifying aura. When Sid walked into an arena, the temperature changed immediately. He looked like an absolute monster. Fans in the 1990s reacted to him unlike almost anyone else on the roster. Look back at Survivor Series 1996 in Madison Square Garden. Sid challenged the ultimate babyface, Shawn Michaels, for the WWF Championship. The notoriously smarky New York crowd turned on Michaels entirely and cheered wildly for the villainous Sid. It is a well-deserved, if slightly overdue, nod to a guy who headlined two WrestleManias and left a massive footprint on the Monday Night Wars.

Then we have the active roster anomaly. WWE securing AJ Styles for the 2026 class while he is still an active, contracted competitor is a highly unique move. It strongly signals a winding down of one of the greatest in-ring careers of the modern era. Styles has done it all, from carrying TNA on his back to winning the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, before finally debuting in WWE at the 2016 Royal Rumble.

Styles has already made one thing crystal clear to the wrestling media. He intends to keep his induction speech strictly "short & sweet." He flat-out stated that he wants to avoid frustrating the other wrestlers and the live audience during the ceremony.

This is a desperately needed breath of fresh air. The WWE Hall of Fame ceremony is historically an exhausting endurance test. Fans and exhausted wrestlers alike are routinely subjected to bloated, self-indulgent, 45-minute rambles from veterans who refuse to give up the microphone. Styles recognizing the sheer agony of the live crowd and choosing to be brief is perhaps his greatest babyface move yet. He knows how to read a room. He knows that nobody wants to sit in an arena until 1:00 AM listening to inside jokes.

The Lobbying Campaign: Tag Team Royalty

Now we move from the confirmed signings to the active rumour mill. The tag team division has a massive historical vacancy. The lobbying has officially begun for the Midnight Express to get their elusive Hall of Fame rings.

Following the recent, tragic passing of Dennis Condrey, the wrestling world has rallied around his legacy. The tributes have poured in from every corner of the industry. Booker T went on record this week with heavy praise. He called Condrey and his legendary partner Bobby Eaton "the blueprint for tag team wrestling."

Bully Ray took the campaign a step further on his podcast. He stated publicly that there is "no doubt" the Midnight Express belongs in the Hall. When guys with the credibility of Booker T and Bully Ray start applying public pressure, the front office usually listens. The probability on this one feels like it is rapidly shifting from a nostalgic long shot to a heavy favorite for the 2026 class.

Condrey and Eaton, alongside their loudmouth manager Jim Cornette, defined tag team psychology in the 1980s. They were the perfect, arrogant heels. Their bloody, chaotic feuds with the Rock 'n' Roll Express built the foundation of Jim Crockett Promotions. From scaffold matches to classic two-out-of-three falls clinics, they were lightyears ahead of their time.

WWE loves a posthumous induction that pops the older demographic, and honoring Condrey right now makes perfect logistical and emotional sense. The only real hurdle has always been the strained relationship between WWE management and Jim Cornette. But with Triple H running the board instead of Vince McMahon, those old grudges matter less. I would put the probability of a Midnight Express announcement at a solid 85 percent before we touch down in Las Vegas.

The Controversial Push: Can Sable Return?

The most surprising campaign currently running in the wrestling media is the push for Sable. Marc Mero, her ex-husband and former on-screen partner, is making a highly public, vocal push for her induction. Mero is actively backing her case, arguing that her impact on the business warrants a permanent spot in the Hall.

Sable’s relationship with WWE has always been highly radioactive. She was an absolute ratings juggernaut during the peak of the Attitude Era. At the height of her popularity, her merchandise sales and television segment quarters were rivaled only by Stone Cold Steve Austin. She crossed over into the mainstream, gracing the cover of Playboy and driving millions of teenage boys to tune into Monday Night Raw.

But she also left the company on incredibly ugly, scorched-earth terms. She filed a massive $110 million lawsuit against the World Wrestling Federation in 1999. She cited unsafe working conditions and rampant sexual harassment behind the scenes. While she briefly returned to the company in 2003 for a short run, her legacy has largely been ignored by the modern, sanitized WWE PR machine.

The current corporate structure prefers to highlight Trish Stratus, Lita, and Charlotte Flair as the foundation of the women's evolution. Sable represents the chaotic, controversial bra-and-panties era that WWE desperately wants its modern sponsors to pretend never happened. Acknowledging her immense drawing power means acknowledging the crass television product that built their current empire.

Mero backing her is a strange, unexpected twist, especially given their highly publicized divorce. But it adds a fascinating layer of legitimacy to the rumour. Is Triple H willing to do business and acknowledge the uncomfortable parts of the Attitude Era? The probability here is much lower. I give the Sable induction a 20 percent chance. It makes undeniable historical and financial sense, but the corporate risk might keep her out of the 2026 class entirely.

Political Shadows and Independent Outliers

And speaking of PR headaches, the Hall of Fame always has a lingering political shadow. Jesse Ventura made sure to remind everyone of that uncomfortable fact this week.

Ventura went completely out of his way to attack Donald Trump’s spot in the celebrity wing. He bluntly stated that Trump "never earned" his Hall of Fame ring. According to the former Governor, the entire induction was a transactional favor.

"He stopped an investigation against Vince McMahon."

It is a sharp, brutal accusation. It highlights the often cynical reality of these induction deals. The Hall of Fame isn't always about work rate, drawing money, or respecting the business. It is frequently about settling personal debts, scratching political backs, and burying old grudges. Ventura pulling the curtain back on the Trump deal is a stark reminder that the credibility of the entire institution is entirely dependent on the whims of management.

Finally, we have to look completely outside the WWE bubble. While Triple H hands out expensive rings in stadiums, there is actual, terrifying in-ring business happening on the independent circuit.

The legendary "Boogie Woogie Man" Jimmy Valiant has officially been booked for what is being billed as his final match. The event will take place in front of a small crowd in South Carolina. Valiant is an astonishing 83 years old.

Let that fact marinate for a second. Valiant came out of retirement in 2023. He has wrestled several matches since then, and he is now taking physical bumps in his seventh decade of life. It is absolute, unfiltered madness.

There is something fundamentally broken about the wrestling industry when an octogenarian is still lacing up his boots for an independent payday. There is no pension plan here. There is only the next booking. But there is also something deeply romantic about his refusal to walk away. Valiant is going out on his own terms, in South Carolina, miles away from the corporate glitz of the WrestleMania weekend machine.

As we close in on April 19, expect the final Hall of Fame roster spots to be locked in. Triple H still has a few massive cards left to play. The Midnight Express feels inevitable. Sable feels like a highly contested pipe dream. But in professional wrestling, the rumour mill never stops churning until the ink on the contract is completely dry.