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by Joe Otterson | Variety
Muhammad Ali will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2024, Variety has learned exclusively.
Ali will be inducted during the Hall of Fame ceremony taking place on April 5 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He will be inducted by his widow, Lonnie Ali. The ceremony will be livestreamed on Peacock beginning at 10 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CT.
Ali dabbled in professional wrestling at different times in his career. He famously fought an exhibition match against Japanese pro wrestling legend Antonio Inoki in Tokyo in 1976. In the leadup to that matchup, he appeared at a WWWF (now WWE) show, where he entered the ring and challenged Gorilla Monsoon. Ali would go on to appear as a special guest referee for the main event of WrestleMania I in 1985, which saw Hulk Hogan and Mr. T face off against Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff. Ali also appeared as the guest of honor at the infamous “Collision in Korea” pay-per-view event held in North Korea in 1995.
Widely considered to be one of the best, if not the best, boxers of all time, Ali won an Olympic gold medal for the United States in boxing in 1960 and went on to become the undisputed world heavyweight champion. He holds notable wins over opponents such as Sonny Liston, Ken Norton, Joe Frazier, and George Foreman among many others. His final professional boxing match came in 1981. He finished his career with 56 wins, 5 losses, with 37 knockouts.
He was also noted for his social activism, including refusing to be drafted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. His refusal led to him being stripped of his heavyweight championships and being largely forced out of boxing for years.
He passed away in 2016 at the age of 74.
Ali is the latest inductee for the Class of 2024 to be announced. He joins fellow inductees Paul Heyman, Bull Nakano, and the tag team the U.S. Express (Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham).