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          Jeff Jarrett to be inducted into WWE Hall of Fame

          Jeff Jarrett will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2018. Courtesy WWE
          • Matt Willis, ESPN Staff WriterFeb 20, 2018, 03:08 AM
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              Matt Willis has been a studio researcher at ESPN since 2006, working on "NASCAR Now" and "SportsCenter," among other shows. He graduated from Ithaca College in 2006 with a degree in journalism. While there, he worked on ICTV, on shows such as "Ya Think You Know Sports?" and "Sports Final." He also was a member of the IC Comedy Club and figures about half of the jokes he makes in his column are actually funny.

          Six-time Intercontinental and four-time WCW world heavyweight champion Jeff Jarrett is bringing some more guitars to the WWE Hall of Fame.

          The news was first reported by NBC Sports on Monday afternoon. Jarrett joins a class that already included Goldberg, the Dudley Boyz and Ivory.

          Jarrett last competed for WWE in 1999. He had two WWE runs, the first starting in 1992, when he debuted with a country music wannabe character, Double J, more interested in Nashville stardom than his success in a ring. That stint led to three Intercontinental title runs, the first coming when Jarrett defeated Razor Ramon at the 1995 Royal Rumble.

          After a brief run in WCW in which he won the United States championship and briefly joined the Four Horsemen, Jarrett returned to WWE in 1997, with a character more befitting the "Attitude Era." This time, Jarrett had three additional Intercontinental title reigns, a run with the European title and a tag-team championship reign with partner Owen Hart. Jarrett was paired on screen with Debra and used his guitar as a weapon on many occasions.

          Jarrett's most memorable win came eight days after Hart was killed in an accident at Over the Edge. The emotions flowed after he won the Intercontinental championship match that Hart was scheduled to wrestle in on the night of his death.

          In total, Jarrett held the Intercontinental title six times, tied for third-most in WWE history, behind Chris Jericho and The Miz. In 1999, Jarrett returned to WCW and had strong programs with Booker T, Sting and Ric Flair. He won the WCW world heavyweight title on four occasions.

          The first of his world title reigns was the first after WCW stripped all of its champions in a "reboot," and he defeated Diamond Dallas page. Jarrett also ended actor David Arquette's run as world champion.

          He was involved in one of wrestling's most controversial moments near the end of WCW's run, when he lay down for Hulk Hogan in a title match at Bash at the Beach in 2000 -- the end of his final world title reign.

          Hogan walked out with the title, but Vince Russo cut a scathing promo on Hogan, fired him and set up a match between Jarrett and Booker T later in the night. Booker T won that match.

          Less than a year later, WCW was purchased by WWE, but Jarrett was not brought on to the WWE roster. On the night of the final WCW Monday Nitro, Vince McMahon watched Jarrett on a monitor and proclaimed he would be "gone."

          Jarrett didn't sit on the sideline long. He and his father, legendary booker Jerry Jarrett, created TNA in 2002, and he was one of the organization's top talent until he resigned in December 2013. Jarrett more recently created Global Force Wrestling in 2014 and returned to TNA/Impact in 2015. He was inducted into TNA's Hall of Fame in 2015.

          Before competing in WWE, Jarrett competed in AWA, WCCW and the USWA.