Vader to be posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022
Leon Allen White, more commonly known in the pro wrestling world as “Vader” or “Big Van Vader” will be posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022.
Vader debuted with the WWE at the 1996 Royal Rumble after years of competing for for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) among others. He is a 12 time professional wrestling World Heavyweight champion and one of the greatest big men to compete in the sports entertainment industry. He is well-known for his signature moves ‘the Vader Sault’ which was a moonsault (backflip) off the top rope, and ‘Vader Bomb’, where he would bounce of the middle rope onto an opponent laying underneath him.
White died on June 18, 2018 at the age of 63 after battling pneumonia. He had heart surgery earlier in the year, along with a long list of other health issues that would eventually slow the big man down.
The WWE Hall of Fame ceremony will take place Friday, April 1, at American Airlines Center in Dallas as part of WrestleMania Week. The event will stream live exclusively on Peacock in the U.S. and WWE Network.
For the first time in the promotion’s history, WWE will present both Friday Night SmackDown and the 2022 WWE Hall of Fame Ceremony live on the same night.
