WWE has announced that Mick Foley will be honored at this year's Hall of Fame ceremony. The New York Post had announced the honor on Friday, with the WWE website following up with the confirmation on Friday evening. This year's WWE Hall of Fame ceremony will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the site of the first, tenth and twentieth Wrestlemania event. This year's Wrestlemania will be taking place in nearby Metlife Stadium in New Jersey.
For Mick Foley, the induction at Madison Square Garden will be extra special. The former WWE Heavyweight Champion is a long time resident of New York. In addition, it was at Madison Square Garden that Mick Foley watched one of his defining life moments. As has been documented by WWE throughout the years, Mick Foley was in attendance on the fateful night that "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka leapt off the top of a steel cage and crushed his opponent.
In his late teenage years, Foley would recreate this moment in his own backyard. It was there that Foley jumped off the top of his garage and onto a prone friend. The video was played several times on WWE television in the late 90s. This video birthed Mick Foley's alter ego, Dude Love. As Mankind, Dude Love and his early persona Cactus Jack, Foley established a gimmick called the "3 Faces of Foley."
Foley's most memorable moment came in January 1999, when the underdog wrestler shocked the world and won the WWE Heavyweight Championship from The Rock. Fans often credit the championship bout as the moment that finally swayed the rating tide in the Monday Night Wars. Mick Foley's win over The Rock won the Monday Night War ratings for WWE, and WCW never regained momentum. The company went out of business in 2001.
During his entire career, Mick Foley was known for his reckless and savage style. In 1993, it was his car crash nature that led to him losing part of his ear in a match against Big Van Vader. Years later, Mick Foley would be a part of an even bigger wrestling incident. At the 1998 King of the Ring event, the Undertaker launched Foley off the top of the Hell in a Cell steel cage. Foley fell well over 15 feet through a table at ringside. In that match, he followed it up with another monstrous bump. He was choke slammed through the top of the cage and fell onto the unforgiving ring mat. At the time, the WWE rings were notoriously stiff.
There is no doubt that Mick Foley deserves this recognition. Whether as Mick Foley, Cactus Jack, Mankind or Dude Love, the man has proved that he is worthy of legend status. No word yet on whom will induct Mick Foley at the Hall of Fame ceremony, though early indicators put Terry Funk and Jim Ross at the forefront.
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