If not the WWE HOF, would Chris Benoit ever get in the Professional Wrestling HOF?

[mister_b1LL]

I was looking at the forum for whether or not Chris Benoit would ever get into the WWE Hall of Fame and I pretty much saw the exact same things I've heard over and over again about how WWE wil never let that happen because of what he did, or how they already eliminated his name from WWE history. Heard it all before right?

But what about Professional Wrestling's Hall Of Fame? I'm talking about the one in Amsterdam, New York. The real HOF in Wrestling that doesn't pick people based on who left on good terms with the company but based on talent skill and how much they advanced the business.

I believe Benoit did all of that.

I will say the exact same argument that the OP of the WWE HOF thread said as well. Chris Benoit was a workhorse that gave 110% to the wrestling business, putting his body and his life on the line every single night he was in a wrestling ring. During his career, he became a World Heavyweight Champion, a United States Champion, and was well respected from many of his peers for his technique in the ring.

The murder/suicide really put a black mark on his chances of making it in the WWE HOF, but I feel that the PWHF would look over that and just place him in just because of his career in the ring.

What do you think? Could Chris Benoit make it in the Professional Wrestling Hall Of Fame?

 

[THTRobtaylor]

No... because any organisation with credibility will not touch his legacy... IF... and its a big IF Nowinski's foundation can prove the link in 10-20 years time... maybe... IF someone else fesses up to it on their death bed ala conspiracy theories... maybe... otherwise, its no different than a Robert Blake or as someone said before OJ... legacy can be wiped out in a moment... that Benoit was the guy to manage it was unfortunate, I as a fan will always seperate his work from the final acts... but any organisation that needs sponsors, funding or works in the commercial arena would not touch him...

 

[Davi323]

Yep, gonna agree with THTRobtaylor. Chris Benoit's in ring accomplishments stopped mattering the day he killed Daniel, Nancy and himself. Nobody is going to touch Benoit. The only reason OJ Simpson is in the NFL HOF, is because he was in it BEFORE he "allegedly" killed Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. If OJ had killed two people before being inducted, do you think the NFL would have inducted him? If you commit something like a double murder-suicide, you can kiss any chance at the HOF goodbye, period. It doesn't matter who you are. If the Undertaker, an absolute guaranteed HOFamer, were to kill a family member, he never gets in, and his name starts getting scrubbed from all WWE controlled media, immediately. That would happen with a guaranteed HOFamer. Benoit may not have gotten in anyway. The professional wrestling HOF would receive so much bad press for doing it, it simply wouldn't be worth the aggravation, just like it wouldn't be worth it for the WWE HOF. There is a saying that there is no such thing as bad publicity. This would be the exception to that rule.

 

[justinept]

This is a complete joke.

The answer is No. Chris Benoit will NEVER be elected to any Hall of Fame... WWE HOF or Pro Wrestling HOF....

Posting this second argument was like a five-year old kid asking his mother for something, and then asking his dad for the same thing five minutes later because his mother didn't give him the answer he wanted.

CHRIS BENOIT IS A MURDERER. HE FUCKING KILLED HIS FAMILY.

I can't for the life of me figure out why the 15-year olds on this board can't comprehend that those actions JUSTIFIABLY overshadow anything he did in the ring. It is completely ludicrous for the OP to say that the Pro Wrestling HOF doesn't base their nominees on who left the company on good terms when discussing Chris Benoit.... as if Benoit leaving the WWE on bad terms has played a role in this... NEWS FLASH. Benoit didn't leave the company. He killed himself. And oh yea, the douchebag took his family with him.

 

[waylonmercy]

No hall of fame is going to recognize a murderer! I dont understand why people think a murderer will get into a hall of fame. Based on wrestling he's a 1st ballot type hall of famer but because of his tarnished reputation he will never get into the WWE or wrestling hall of fame until it becomes acceptable to recognize murderers! We haven't evolved to allow cheaters to be recognized, murderers are the last type of person to be recognized.

 

[Rated R SuperFan]

For his wrestling career Chris Benoit IS in the Pro Wrestling Observer HOF . Now last I checked after the horrible events over the last three days of his life , for which he will always be remembered you can throw his wrestling legacy in the trash because no one will remember any of that The Wrestling Observer Hall Of Fame were looking into removing him from the HOF the October of that year . They never released weather or not they removed him or not . Chris Benoit will NEVER be inducted to the WWE ( Vince likes me ) HOF and really wrestlers shouldn't hope to be inducted in the WWE Hall Of Fame but instead hope tp be inducted into the Wrestling Observer Hall Of Fame . The WWE Hall Of Fame is a place where wrestlers that Vince McMahon likes are put in where as the Wrestling Observer Hall Of Fame is a place where wrestlers are truely elected to the Hall Of Fame by their peers . a true Hall Of Fame . Thank you all for taking the time to read my post .

 

[JJohns]

To give you a (somewhat) perfect example, look at the Professional Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York. No, I'm not going to mention Pete Rose or Shoeless Joe Jackson, because of their lifetime bans from Baseball.

I'm looking at Mark McGwire, who will have a hard time getting elected because of the fact that he took steroids, something that is nowhere near as serious as what Benoit did. The fact that McGwire did something that DID NOT BREAK THE RULES of baseball at the time, the fact that he put up monster numbers, and is still not going to get in based on that stain on his legacy tells you something.

So while McGwire did something that was illegal, considered to be cheating, but technically did not break the rules in baseball and will have a hard time getting in, you honestly think that Benoit will get in after how his life ended?

If you do, I have a bridge to sell you.

If you don't......

 

[EGfan4life]

I'm not trying to get any heat, but if you think about it, Pro Wrestling killed Benoit. Not directly, but this guy was a workhorse, always trying to get better. The wrestling biz demands alot out of a guy, especially a small guy like Benoit. I'm not trying to defend his actions, I'm just saying, the wrestling business killed him.

Now to answer the question, I'd say no because the guy killed an innocent kid and his wife....now if he only took his own life, maybe.....I hope that doesn't sound sick or anything. But yeah, if he only took his own life, maybe he'd get in to the Pro Wrestling HOF and possibly the WWE HOF, I mean look at the Von Erichs, they killed themselves and the whole damn family gets in....but since it was a double murder-suicide, his chances are slim to none...and by slim, I mean Stacey Kiebler slim.

It's just a shame, because Benoit was quite possibly the best technical wrestler in any industry.

 

[Rated_R_Edgehead]

No. Nuff said!

Chris Benoit will not make it into any hall of fame after what happened, I would liketo see it happen sometime in the very near future, but it would be extremly bad for business and would not help anyone. I mean for the hall of fame ceremony anyway people tend to get up and applaud the work that the wrestlers have done, and would you stand up and applaud the legacy of Benoit after what happened? I don't think anyone would or should for that matter.

 

[XgringolocoX]

Christ on a stick when the fuck will everyone wraps they're brains around the fact the guy KILLED HIS SON AND WIFE!!!!!!!!
No hall of fame, no tribute videos, no RIP tshirts, nada.
Yes this was a terrible trajedy all the way around but that doesn't change the facts. Benoit will never get credit for what he did prior to murdering his wife and son.

 

[Fallen Angel 21.3]

hey i really don't want to be this guy, but the man made mistakes in his life that he regrets. If he can be forgiven in the eyes of the Lord then surely the people can forgive him sooner or later. Maybe in about 10 years he can be inducted. Now i know a lot of people disagree with me but the man was a workhorse and could give a 4 star match. The man just took roids and testoserone which caused his roid rage that night. I do think the Lord can forgive because in his eyes you all all his children and if you beg for his forgiveness he will give it. I was a big fan of his and i do hope sooner or later he can make it into either WWE HOF or the PWHOF

 

[JJohns]

hey i really don't want to be this guy, but the man made mistakes in his life that he regrets. If he can be forgiven in the eyes of the Lord then surely the people can forgive him sooner or later. Maybe in about 10 years he can be inducted. Now i know a lot of people disagree with me but the man was a workhorse and could give a 4 star match. The man just took roids and testoserone which caused his roid rage that night. I do think the Lord can forgive because in his eyes you all all his children and if you beg for his forgiveness he will give it. I was a big fan of his and i do hope sooner or later he can make it into either WWE HOF or the PWHOF

I know, Wrestling Message Board, not really the place to have religious discussions.....BUT......at least from my Catholic upbringing I was always under the assumption that suicide was always considered to be an unforgivable action in the eyes of God. If the teachings that I had growing up were right, Benoit's eternal soul could beg all that it wanted, but it would still burn in Hell. Or be exiled for all of eternity in Wisconsin.

 

[Fallen Angel 21.3]

I know, Wrestling Message Board, not really the place to have religious discussions.....BUT......at least from my Catholic upbringing I was always under the assumption that suicide was always considered to be an unforgivable action in the eyes of God. If the teachings that I had growing up were right, Benoit's eternal soul could beg all that it wanted, but it would still burn in Hell. Or be exiled for all of eternity in Wisconsin.

You know for the longest time i thought that too, what you thought brother. but i learned from a funeral that if somebody kills him/herself that God can forgive them and it was up to Chris if he wanted forgiveness. I realy didn't want to be the preacher of this discussion but i do think that somebody shouldn't be judge by what he/her did i mean Benoit should be forgiven and i hope i am quoting this right but isn't "He who is without sin cast the first stone" and i know i am no Staint and i know that alot of us have commented a sin a couple times but if the dude wanted forgivness God is all forgiving

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

Even though you may have "heard all of this already," the answer is NO!! ABSOLUTELY NOT! He will never make it into ANY hall of fame. It's not like he spit in the face of a fan. He didn't get drunk and into a fight. He didn't get caugh drunk driving. He didn't ACCIDENTALLY kill someone.

HE MURDERED HIS FAMILY!! This guy was one of my personal favorites, top 5 easily. I watched his career and felt he never got the respect he deserved. But that time is over with. He MURDERED his wife and CHILD! Do you know the kind of media scrutiny that would come down on ANY organization that put him into any kind of hall of fame? A company would never recover from that kind of negative publicity.

This guy should be forgotten. He shouldn't even be talked about. I understand his actions were most likely due to all the concussions he had from wrestling, but it doesn't matter. No one will EVER remember that, or use that as an excuse.

Do I think wrestling was partly to blame for their deaths? Absolutely. WWE doctors should have known that this guy barely had a brain left. The medical testing wrestlers recieve, especially in terms of brain functions, is pitiful. It's terrible. But this guy killed his family, murdered them. His HOF chances are as dead as he is, no matter which hall of fame you are talking about.

 

[harrythem]

Great wrestler, but died as scum! I can't understand how anyone would want him in any Hall Of Fame! The fact that this topic exists, and people are even discussing rewarding his career after what he did, is just another example of why the world looks down on us wrestling fans!

 

[Tastycles]

No. Firstly, I don't think anyone would celebrate somebody that murdered a child for their life's work, especially when doing so may result in other, legitimate, candidates for the hall of fame may refuse entry as a result. But I'll ignore all of that to ask why would they induct him anyway? What was his contribution to pro wrestling? He had decent mid card matches, yes, but in an era when Chris Jericho is a 6 time world heavyweight Champion, his combined reign with a World Heavyweight Championship is 155 days, which is less than Ron Simmons. The only way Benoit deserves to be in a hall of fame is if you let in just about everyone who has ever had a WHC, which totally defeats the point of it really.

 

[DL23]

For what he accomplished in the ring he's very much deserving, for what happened outside the ring, probably not, that crazy shit will hinder him and his family for the rest of their lives.

Saying that at the HOF 2008 when Ric Flair mentioned Benoit's name (9 month after the killing of his family) the crowd popped, so you never know, but doubtful, unless something comes out that someone else murdered his family and he couldn't hack the two killings and topped himself, which we know to be unture.