WWE Hall of Fame News: Jimmy Hart to Induct Hillbilly Jim

It was announced today that WWE Hall of Famer (class of 2005) Jimmy Hart will do the induction speech for 2018 WWE Hall of Famer Hillbilly Jim. The 2018 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony takes place this Friday, April 6th.

In the WWE.com explanation of Jimmy Hart inducting Hillbilly Jim, they explained that even though they were rivals on screen in the storylines, they became friends over the years.

Hillbilly Jim arrived on the scene in WWE in late 1984 as the protégé of Hulk Hogan, which made him a prime target for Hart and his collection of evildoers. The man from Mudlick, Ky., did battle with the likes of The Honky Tonk Man, Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Earthquake, all as “The Mouth of The South” lurked at ringside, ready to help his charges gain victory by any means necessary.

But after the two men stepped away from the ring, they grew to become close friends. Hart and Hillbilly Jim even lived under the same roof on the hit WWE Network reality show “Legends House.”

I guess that explanation works. Hillbilly Jim recently said he wanted Hulk Hogan to do the induction, but WWE is not going to use Hogan any time soon (allegedly), so they opted for Hart, who is a close friend of Jim and Hogan.

Here’s the updated list of inductors at the Hall of Fame.

Bill Goldberg will be inducted by Paul Heyman.

The Dudley Boyz will be inducted by Edge and Christian

Ivory will be inducted by Molly Holly

Jeff Jarrett will be inducted by Road Dogg

I assume Warrior Award winner Jarrius “JJ” Roberts will be inducted by Dana Warrior.

That means they need to announce names for Mark Henry and Kid Rock, which will likely happen in the next couple of days.