Hulk Hogan dead at 71: Wrestler's biggest controversies during his storied career

Yahoo

25-07-2025

Famed wrestler Hulk Hogan, real name Terry Bollea, died Thursday, July 24, per Florida police and the WWE.
Bollea had been struggling with health issues for years at this point, including a lingering back injury he suffered during his wrestling career.
Throughout his career, Hogan was the face of professional wrestling for decades. In fact, he was the headliner for the main event in seven of the first eight WrestleMania's. He was on the covers of magazines, and had a myriad of toys and brands backing him up. He starred in movies, captivated fans and had one strange failed pasta restaurant.
That said, despite his massive success, Hogan was not immune to controversy and criticism. With immense fame came scrutiny and Hogan was not a perfect man. Throughout his career, Hogan was the subject of many negative incidents that played a large role in his fall from grace.
Here are the biggest controversies of Hogan's career:
Hulk Hogan's biggest controversies
Hogan's racist tirade/sex tape
A sex tape is bad enough, but when Hogan was heard also saying horrendous things about Black people, liberally using a racial slur, his reputation took an ever harsher hit. Hogan also said heinous words about the possibility of his daughter dating a Black man. If it wasn't already clear enough, he also made sure everyone know he was racist by uttering, "I am a racist, to a point, (expletive) (racial slur)."
Large role in the destruction of WCW
When Hogan refused to lose a fight with WCW, Vince Russo went out of his way to trash Hogan via a promo. However, given Hogan was handed creative control of WCW, the promo broke that contract, allowing Hogan to sue WCW, costing them tons of money and playing a large role in WCW eventually selling to WWE.
Very messy divorce with Linda Hogan
Linda Hogan was the Hulkster's wife for most of his wrestling career. However, the marriage did not end well. The pair bickered constantly as each wanted to drag the other down. Linda even accused Hogan of cheating on her.
Laundry list of lies
Hogan would do anything to make himself look cool, even if that meant stretching the truth from time to time. Hogan would lie about everything, small to large.
No one cared that George Foreman was the face of the George Foreman grill instead of Hogan, until Hogan falsely claimed that he was supposed to be the face and only wasn't because he missed the company's call. Hogan swore that he received a voicemail claiming that both he and Foreman had received offers. However, the inventor of the grill claimed that he'd never even considered Hogan.
Hogan also lied about being hurt by Undertaker via a piledriver. Undertaker feared for his job and was only saved because video evidence showed that the Undertaker had performed the move perfectly, not allowing Hogan to get hurt at all.
Hogan also erroneously claimed that he was offered a role in the band Metallica as a bassist. It wasn't long before band members Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield shot down those rumors, calling Hogan a liar.
Hogan's abuse of power within pro wrestling
When WCW signed Hogan, they gave him creative control over the company, but that did not go as well as they'd hoped. At Starrcade 1997, many fans were hoping to see Sting dethrone Hogan as champion, but Hogan's contract clause gave him the authority to change the outcome, giving himself the win, much to the chagrin of fans everywhere.
Hogan continued abusing this power elsewhere, too. Fellow wrestler Bret Hart recalls Hogan being unwilling to drop the championship in 1993. Shawn Michaels also tells a story of Hogan backing out of an agreement in which Michaels would win a rematch between the two.
Hogan's weird moments in politics
Throughout his career, Hogan made a few strange decisions in the world of politics. Not only did he fake a presidential campaign in 2000, but he also threatened to body slam former Vice President Kamala Harris at a Trump rally. That's taking things a bit too far.
Steroid usage
The 1990s WWE steroids trial saw Vince McMahon under fire for illegal drug usage in pro wrestling. Hogan was the biggest witness of the case, and after years of claiming he'd never used steroids, he finally came clean in an effort to avoid a perjury charge.
At the very least, Hogan did not throw McMahon under the bus, claiming that McMahon had never offered or supplied him with steroids. Hogan's testimony played a large role in McMahon avoiding jail time.
Preventing Jesse Ventura from starting a union
Although Ventura and Hogan were good friends in professional wrestling, that didn't stop Hogan from snitching on Ventura as he and several other wrestlers attempted to start a union to protect themselves and their futures.
Hogan told Vince McMahon of Ventura's plans, allowing McMahon to stop it before it began. To this day, Ventura holds a large grudge against Hogan. There is no evidence that Hogan ever apologized.
Hogan booed at final WWE appearance
Hogan's final WWE appearance was rather recent, occurring in January 2025, when RAW was broadcast on Netflix for the first time. Hogan was booed during his appearance, fans still upset about the numerous controversies he'd been involved with in the past, including his support for President Donald Trump.
Hogan bit back at the boos though, reminiscing about his time as a wrestler, even claiming that his days as a professional were the best of his life. The moment became even more ridiculous when it was revealed that Hogan was there to promote his new beer brand, 'Real American Beer.' It all felt facetious and did not do much to dissuade fans upset with his previous antics.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biggest Hulk Hogan controversies during wrestling career
Solve the daily Crossword