The Great Muta Reportedly Set For 2023 WWE Hall Of Fame Class

Japanese wrestling legend The Great Muta is reportedly headed to the WWE Hall of Fame. 

According to PWInsider, Muta will soon be announced as a member of the 2023 Hall of Fame class. The report did not specify if Muta will appear on WWE programming before his induction is made official.  

The reports of Muta entering WWE's Hall of Fame shouldn't come as a huge surprise. Last month, WrestleVotes reported that Muta's inter-promotional match against WWE superstar Shinsuke Nakamura earlier this year was "a trade off" as part of a working agreement between WWE and Pro Wrestling NOAH. 

Following his loss to Nakamura at NOAH's New Year show on January 1, Muta embarked on his retirement tour with a series of matches. First, he teamed up with Sting and Darby Allin in a match against Hakushi, Akira and Naomichi Marufuji at "The Great Muta Final Bye-Bye" event in Yokohama, Japan. Thereafter, on February 21, Muta wrestled the final full match of his career, losing to Tetsuya Naito at the "Keiji Muto Grand Final Pro-Wrestling Last-Love" event. After the match, Muta challenged Masahiro Chono to an impromptu bout only to end up on the losing side, the opposite result from their first-ever clash in 1984.

While Muta never wrestled for WWE, he did participate in the "NJPW IWGP & WWF Champion Series" in 1985 and eventually became a household name among North American wrestling fans following his stints with NWA/WCW. During his time in the United States, Muta had a legendary rivalry with Sting for the NWA World Television Championship. 

As noted earlier, Rey Mysterio was revealed as the first inductee in this year's WWE Hall of Fame class on Friday's episode of "WWE SmackDown."

The 2023 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place at the Crypto.com Arena on Friday, March 31, immediately after the WrestleMania 39 go-home edition of "WWE SmackDown" airs from the same arena in Los Angeles.