On March 4, 2024, manager and former promoter Paul Heyman was announced as the first inductee.[3] WWE had proposed the induction to Heyman in the past, but he declined, arguing he was an active worker. However, he accepted in 2024 due to WrestleMania taking place in Philadelphia, the home of his previous company, Extreme Championship Wrestling, the assets of which WWE acquired in 2003.[4] The next day, WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H announced former WWF Women's Champion, Bull Nakano, as the second inductee.[5] On March 8, The U.S. Express (Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda) were announced as the next inductees.[6] On March 11, Muhammad Ali was announced as an inductee into the Celebrity Wing.[7] On March 13, Thunderbolt Patterson was announced as the fifth inductee.[8] On April 1, Lia Maivia was announced as the sixth inductee.[9]
Former WWE Champion and WWE Universal ChampionBray Wyatt (Windham Rotunda), who passed away in August 2023 at the age of 36, was a fan favourite to be inducted in this class. WWE instead decided to induct the U.S. Express, as they felt the Rotunda family were still mourning Windham's passing and such an induction would be premature under those circumstances.[10]
This is the third straight year the WWE Hall of Fame has not inducted any new inductees into the Legacy Wing. This is the first year since its introduction that there was no recipient of the Warrior Award.
A fixture in various National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) territories from the 1960s through the 1980s Recognized as having won championships across North America.
Posthumous inductee: Represented by her grandson Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson One of wrestling's first female promoters. Ran Polynesian Pro Wrestling (PPW), a territory of the NWA in Hawaii in the mid-1980s. Her promotion ran a show called Polynesian Pacific Pro Wrestling on the Financial News Network.