Bray Wyatt will not be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year, but his father Mike isn’t all that upset about his late son being snubbed. 

The WWE Hall of Fame will take place on April 5, following that night’s episode of WWE SmackDown. This year’s class includes Paul Heyman, the US Express, Bull Nakano, Muhammed Ali, and Thunderbolt Patterson. 

Mike Rotunda On the WWE Hall of Fame

While Mike Rotunda will be inducted this year as one-half of the US Express, his son Windham ‘Bray Wyatt’ Rotunda won’t be inducted as many had expected. Sitting down with Sportskeeda’s Wrestle Binge podcast, Rotunda expressed his initial surprise at this. 

“With Windham passing, I thought they were going to immediately put Windham into the Hall of Fame — which he will be at some point.”

Rotunda then explained that WWE likely felt it was too soon for Windham’s induction, which is hardly a bad thing for the family considering all they’ve been through. 

“I think that WWE reassessed stuff and thought it was too soon to go there with our family and the reactions and the stress on us.”

WWE Honors Bray Wyatt

While the three-time World Champion will not be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year, WWE is doing what it can to honor Bray Wyatt. On April 1, a new documentary about Wyatt’s life and career will be released via WWE and Peacock. The new doc will be narrated by The Undertaker and include interviews with Bray’s family and colleagues. It has been reported that the release of the documentary is linked to why Wyatt won’t be inducted this year. 

Following Wyatt’s passing, WWE announced that proceeds of his merchandise would go to benefit his widow JoJo and Bray’s four children. WWE also hosted a tribute episode of SmackDown in August 2023 following his passing. 

WWE is honoring Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham with a WWE Hall of Fame induction as the U.S. Express. Rotunda had quite a career in WWE, but he was okay with how things ended.

Mike Rotunda was placed on furlough, along with numerous other WWE personnel, on April 15, 2020, and subsequently received his official release on September 10, 2020. Rotunda says he was okay with this decision to release him, because he was considering pulling the plug on his career with WWE at that time.

Mike Rotunda Speaks On WWE Release

Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham spoke to Paul Rosenberg about his career in pro wrestling. Rosenberg asked the former I.R.S. about his final days as a producer in WWE, and Rotunda said that he was thinking about calling it quits prior to his release.

My last year as a producer in WWE, I think it was [2020], when COVID hit they furloughed a bunch of people, and I was one of them. Then I came back for a short time after that, but then they let quite a few producers go like myself and Arn Anderson and Dean Malenko — guys who had been there.”

“This was fine by me, because I was about ready to pull the plug myself. I had my hip operated on and replaced. So, I was out for a couple of months. I told my wife — and this was after a good 13 years of doing it — and I said, ‘after being home for a couple of months, I don’t know if I want to go back to work.’ So, it just kinda worked itself out like that, so it was okay with me.”

Rotunda After His WWE Release

Mike Rotunda made a couple WWE appearances even after his release. In January 2021, during Raw Legends Night, Rotunda, going under his I.R.S. character, returned for the first time after his WWE release, appearing backstage with Ric Flair. Then, on January 23, 2023, Rotunda, still as I.R.S., was seen backstage during Raw is XXX alongside Ted DiBiase.

Rotunda will also be featured in the upcoming documentary Bray Wyatt: Becoming Immortal, which is set to debut on April 1.

Rotunda’s Other Accolades

Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham will receive a WWE Hall of Fame honor as the U.S. Express, but this isn’t the only honor he’s received. Rotunda captured the WWF Tag Team Championship a total of five times. He won the titles twice alongside Barry Windham and three times with Ted DiBiase as his partner.

On September 3, 2021, the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame revealed that Rotunda would join its 2022 Class, alongside announcer Jim Ross and Trish Stratus. 

The Hall Of Fame reveals came as a surprise to both Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda, but both couldn’t be happier about doing so together.

It was revealed on Friday that the U.S. Express would be the third Hall Of Fame induction announcement for 2024.

Speaking with Peter Rosenberg on “Cheap Heat,” Mike Rotunda comments how he didn’t see it coming.

“It was kind of out of the blue. I wasn’t expecting it. It means a lot. You’re getting rewarded for a lifetime of work. So a nice honor to have and have the respect of the officials that elect to put you in there and all the guys that I worked with to make me look good.”

Going in with Rotunda will be Windham’s second induction into the Hall as he went in as a member of the Four Horsemen originally. Despite that, Windham notes how much this particular induction means to him.

“It was a really big surprise and this one is special because I get to go in with my best friend and that makes it all that much bigger.”

Rotunda then went on to detail how he and Windham came to meet and talked about wrestling Jesse Ventura for only a minute and a half. Then him and Barry ended up bonding in Toronto.

They didn’t see one another for about a year-and-a-half, but then Dusty Rhodes called and got Rotunda down in Florida. Dusty ultimately put them together as a tag team. Rotunda would note that he and Windham would go thirty minutes while Dusty would work a main event that was seven minutes.

As of now, Windham and Rotunda join Bull Nakano and Paul Heyman as the current class for 2024.

Please credit Peter Rosenberg and h/t to SEScoops for the transcription.

The US Express will take their place as WWE Hall of Famers next month as part of this year’s class of inductees.

The legendary team consisted of Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham and wowed fans with their dynamic offense during the 1980s. One of several highlights of the team’s run saw them defend the WWF World Tag Team Championships at WrestleMania 1. Unfortunately for the pair, they’d lose the gold to The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff, marking the first title change in the show’s history. 

Despite the patriotic nature of the team, the pair were introduced to each other in a Toronto dressing room in 1982. The pair would work for various NWA territories before coming to the WWF. 

Family Ties

The pair’s bond extended beyond the ring though. Rotunda would marry Windham’s sister Stephanie. The pair would welcome two children, Taylor (Bo Dallas) and the late Windham (Bray Wyatt) Rotunda. 

Seeing Double

This induction will be the second for Windham. He was inducted in 2012 as part of the legendary Four Horsemen stable. Ironically, Windham’s first induction marked the first-ever two-time induction, as Ric Flair had become a WWE Hall of Famer four years prior. 

WWE Hall of Fame 2024

The US Express is the first tag team announced for this year’s class of indcutees and the third announcement overall. Earlier this month, Paul Heyman was announced as an inductee after turning down the honor in the past. More recently, Bull Nakano was announced as a WWE Hall of Fame inductee. The Japanese star is a former WWE Women’s Champion and is currently the commissioner for the all-women’s Sukeban promotion. 

The 2024 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony will stream live on Peacock directly after WWE SmackDown on April 5.