WWE Hall of Fame: Why is Muhammad Ali being inducted this year?

Before WrestleMania 40 this weekend, we have one more Friday Night SmackDown to enjoy.

Immediately following the event at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia will be the 2024 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony. This year's inductees include "The Wise Man" Paul Heyman, Bull Nakano, the U.S. Express tag team of Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda, Lia Maivia, Thunderbolt Patterson, and...Muhammad Ali? What?

Renowned boxer Muhammad Ali is being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this Friday, alongside several WWE greats. While this may seem confusing to many who know Ali only for his boxing, Ali actually made several notable impacts on the world of professional wrestling as well.

WWE WrestleMania 40 details: Time, how to watch, match card and more

What did Muhammad Ali do with WWE?

Although Ali wasn't heavily involved in WWE, he did make three notable appearances at events during his lifetime. The first came in 1976 when after a match between Gorilla Monsoon and Baron Mikel Scicluna, Ali entered the ring and started dancing around Monsoon. Monsoon, who was much bigger than Ali, put Ali in an airplane spin and ended the match rather quickly.

Monsoon went on to say that Ali did not belong in the ring because he "didn't know a wrist lock from a wrist watch!"

Ali retired from professional boxing in 1981. His other two notable appearances at WWE events came afterwards.

Ali was actually a part of the first-ever WrestleMania in 1985 as a guest referee for the main event, the tag team match of Hulk Hogan and Mr. T vs. "Rowdy" Roddy Piper & "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff.

Ali famously punched Piper toward the end of the fight, helping Hogan and Mr. T win the match.

His third and final appearance at a WWE event came in 1994. Ali wasn't really involved in any of the fights though. At Halloween Havoc that year, Ali made an appearance at Joe Louis Arena in order to hand a title belt to Hulk Hogan after Hogan defeated Ric Flair in a cage match. Although it was a minor appearance to say the least, it was a huge moment for WWE to reunite Hogan with the man who helped him win at WrestleMania a decade prior.

Has Ali fought with any other WWE Hall of Famers?

Ali had an official match against WWE Hall of Famer Antonio Inoki in 1976. The two fought as part of "The War of the Worlds" match in Tokyo, Japan. The match was not received very well, and ended in a draw. That said, this was allegedly an official match even though it did not affect either fighter's records in the long run.

Inoki was inducted in the WWE Hall of Fame in 2010.

How to watch the 2024 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony

• Date: Friday, April 5

• Where: Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Time: Approximately 10:00 p.m. ET following SmackDown

• Stream: Peacock (United States), WWE Network (everywhere else)

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why Muhammad Ali is being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame