Ted DiBiase isn’t holding back when it comes to celebrities getting spots in the WWE Hall of Fame — and he made it clear he thinks Dennis Rodman doesn’t belong there.
Speaking on Everybody’s Got a Pod, DiBiase took aim at the idea of Rodman being inducted, saying he doesn’t believe someone with only a handful of wrestling appearances should be honored the same way as full-time wrestling legends. DiBiase made his stance clear right away, questioning why a celebrity with limited involvement in wrestling would receive such an honor.
“He wasn’t a wrestler. You’re gonna put a guy who might have been in a wrestling ring two or three times in the Hall of Fame just because of his name. Put him in the Basketball Hall of Fame where he belongs, but not the wrestling Hall of Fame.”
DiBiase didn’t stop there. He said the celebrity wing of the Hall of Fame has gone too far over the years, pointing to other celebrity names who were inducted despite never being full-time wrestlers.
“Jimmy Hart was never a wrestler. He was a great mouthpiece, and I think that is deserving. Because he put in a lot of time,” DiBiase explained before drawing a line between long-time contributors and celebrities. “But to put a guy in the wrestling Hall of Fame just because he has a celebrity name in baseball or basketball, that just irks the hell out of me. What did they really do to deserve being in a wrestling Hall of Fame? Nothing.”
He also compared the situation to his own background in sports, using his football experience as an example of why he believes celebrity inductions don’t make sense.
“I was a pretty good football player. Why don’t they put me in the NFL Hall of Fame?” DiBiase said. “I think that’s stupid.”
Even knowing his comments could upset people behind the scenes, DiBiase said he’s not worried about the reaction and stands by his opinion.
“I’m in the WWE Hall of Fame because I was a wrestler. I grew up in wrestling. Wrestling was virtually my whole life,” DiBiase added. “You take somebody who’s a great athlete in one sport, put him in the ring one time or two times, and then make him a Hall of Famer. See ya.”
DiBiase’s comments are likely to spark debate among fans, especially as WWE continues honoring celebrities who helped bring mainstream attention to the business.
Do you agree with Ted DiBiase’s take on celebrity Hall of Fame inductions, or do you think names like Dennis Rodman deserve their place in wrestling history? Let us know your thoughts.