Shad Gaspard, who competed in WWE from 2006 to 2010 as a member of Cryme Tyme with JTG, will posthumously receive the WWE Warrior Award at this year’s WWE Hall of Fame ceremony.
WWE confirmed the news early on Friday.
Gaspard tragically passed away in May 2020 at the age of 39. While swimming with his son at Venice Beach, California, they were caught in a rip current. Lifeguards raced out to Gaspard and his son. Gaspard directed the lifeguards to save his son first. As they returned for Gaspard, a large wave hit him, and he never resurfaced. His body was discovered days later after the Coast Guard suspended their search.
The Warrior Award was created in 2015, a year after the sudden death of The Ultimate Warrior, days after his Hall of Fame induction in 2014. Warrior called for an award to honor the unsung heroes of WWE’s production team. Still, the definition was expanded “to an individual who has exhibited unwavering strength and perseverance and who lives life with the courage and compassion that embodies the indomitable spirit of The Ultimate Warrior.”
Other recipients of the Warrior Award through the years have been Connor “The Crusher” Michalek, Joan Lunden, Eric LeGrand, Jarrius “JJ” Robertson, and longtime WWE employees Sue Aitchison, Rich Hering, and Titus O’Neil.
Also being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame: Class of 2022 are The Undertaker, Vader, and Sharmell.
This year’s Hall of Fame ceremony will take place on Friday, April 1, from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. It will be part of a doubleheader event with Friday Night SmackDown. WrestleMania 38 will take place over two nights on Saturday, April 2, and Sunday, April 3.