10 Early WWE Hall Of Fame 2018 Predictions 

2. Victoria

Christian Hall of Fame
WWE.com

The issue with inducting Sable and Sable alone is that it exposes WWE's historical treatment of women's wrestling as the misogynistic flesh parade it was for years.

WWE remains in full Public Relations mode with the Women's Revolution, but that exercise exists within an awkward paradox. WWE needs to portray the preceding era as something close to what it was - otherwise, the achievements of the Four Horsewomen et al. wouldn't resonate as much - but it can't very well directly reference that time Debra captured the Women's title from Sable because Commissioner Shawn Michaels thought she had nicer t*ts.

Inducting Beth Phoenix this year was sort of damage limitation. Phoenix never wrestled any classic matches but was, reductively, the best of a bad bunch. Her induction was an acknowledgement that she was given sh*t and turned it into something that didn't entirely stink.

Similarly, Victoria was never given a great deal of time with which to work in WWE, but as Tara in TNA she proved herself both dedicated to and damn good at her craft. Her achievements there will have zero bearing on her Hall of Fame consideration, but she commands the respect to occupy the new token diversity niche even if her WWE body of work doesn't particularly justify it.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!