Ron Simmons To Be Inducted Into WWE Hall of Fame

Former WCW World Heavyweight Champion Ron Simmons (aka Faarooq in the WWE) is the latest name revealed for this year's WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2012. Simmons's most notable achievement was becoming the first officially recognised African-American singles World Heavyweight Champion when he defeated Big Van Vader for the WCW World Title on August 2nd, 1992. During his time with the company he also won the WCW World Tag Team Title (with Butch Reed) as Doom, and the WCW United States Tag Team Titles with Big Josh. He joined the WWE in 1996 and was the first leader of the African American Group the Nation of Domination. A botched feud with The Rock over the leadership of the Nation (where Simmons wasn't made to look particularly strong) led Faarooq to the tag team division where he would remain for the rest of his career. He held the WWE World Tag Team Championship three times with Bradshaw as The Acolytes and was known to be one of the toughest and stiffest competitors in the squared circle. Whether he is 'Hall of Fame' status is an interesting question but you can't deny the accomplishment of being the first black World Champion and that he dominated the Tag Team division for so many years. Ron Simmons joins Edge, The Four Horseman (Arn Anderson, Ric Flair, Barry Windham, Tully Blanchard and J.J. Dillon), Mil Mascaras and Mike Tyson to be induced into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 31st, 2012.