There is a distinct lack of British entries into the WWE Hall of Fame. The only wrestler from the UK to be inducted is the British Bulldog, while his partner, the Dynamite Kid, remains on the periphery.
This seems odd. The Englishman is one of the most influential wrestlers of all time. However, once you learn more about the Dynamite Kid’s controversial moments from, you can understand why WWE don’t want to honour him.
While he was a supreme worker in the ring, behind the scenes he was simply a bully. He terrorised wrestlers backstage, including Honky Tonk Man, John Foley and Jacques Rougeau. His ribs went way too far, ending in drugging other wrestlers and causing them physical harm on numerous occasions.
His abuse of Jacques Rougeau was particularly egregious. He physically assaulted the Canadian wrestler, mistakenly thinking he pulled a prank on him by messing with his bad. This ended in Rougeau laying him out with a roll of quarters, which humbled the aggressive Englishman.
Dynamite Kid’s treatment of his wife is probably the biggest factor for his Hall of Fame exclusion. While he was a lovely husband when he met Michelle Billington, things soon turned sour when he started hitting the steroids and suffering injuries.
He was abusive towards his wife. He would flip out on her small things, like not wanting to have an alcoholic drink. Dynamite would hit her, lock her in cupboards and kick her out of the house.
The worst incident was after Michelle bought him a one-way plane ticket back to England. She wanted him to leave the family, as his pregnant wife was tired of her two children seeing him abuse her.
Dynamite Kid did not take that well. He took a shotgun and put it to her chin, threatening to blow her head off. She called his bluff, telling him to do it as their two children watched on in fear.
Eventually, she called the police and left the house with the kids. Dynamite Kid returned to England, bitter, angry and injured. His back injury, suffered in a WWE ring in 1986, should have ended his career there and then. However, he defied doctor’s orders and continued to wrestle until 1996.
The rest of his life was spent in a wheelchair. The WWE have always had issues inducting wrestlers who suffered injuries from wrestling. Lex Luger is the biggest name missing from the WWE Hall of Fame, with the company hesitant to show a wrestler in a wheelchair on stage in front of the fans.
Dynamite Kid isn’t in the WWE Hall of Fame for three main reasons. His conduct backstage, his treatment of his wife and his physical health. Its unlikely the company trusted what he would say on stage, which is also a factor.
Now that he has passed away, the chance of him being inducted has gone up. His behaviour wasn’t quite as bad as Chris Benoit, so the door shouldn’t be shut forever. There are many who thinks Dynamite Kid should be inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame, as he is one of the greatest British wrestlers of all time.
Bryan Danielson Thinks Dynamite Kid Should Be In The WWE Hall Of Fame
One man who thinks Dynamite Kid should be in the WWE Hall of Famer is Bryan Danielson. The former WWE Champion said he owes a lot of his career to the English legend.
He said in an interview with Sky Sports that Dynamite Kid created the style of wrestling used by modern wrestlers. He wasn’t sure if he should go in as a singles star, or as part of the British Bulldogs, but he does want him honoured in some way.
“That’s an interesting question. I would… to me, yes. And I don’t know if as a tag team or even as an individual, Davey Boy Smith… One of the highlights of my fandom was SummerSlam ’92 when Davey Boy Smith beat Bret Hart. Like, to me, when I thought as a kid of epic matches, I thought of Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat, I thought of Bret Hart vs. Davey Boy Smith. So, yeah, in my opinion, yes. But I don’t make those calls.”
If you use any quotes in this article, please give a H/T to BritWrestling for the transcription.
