On Thursday, the wrestling world was rocked by the news that the most famous performer in the history of business, Hulk Hogan, had passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest. His influence on the industry is second to none, and he was a key part of many iconic moments over a career that spanned three decades.
However, part of his success was having some great dance partners to go to battle against. With that in mind, let’s look at the 10 great rivals in the illustrious career of Hulk Hogan.
Sgt. Slaughter
Like Hogan, Sgt. Slaughter was a top hero for WWE for a long time. Heck, an animated version of him was even added to the iconic 1980s cartoon G.I. Joe. However, his turn to the dark side in 1990 was one of the biggest stories that year. It led to an epic storyline as the ultimate good guy in Hogan became the only man who could end Slaughter’s traitorous reign of terror.
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Macho Man Randy Savage
One of the first truly great stories ever told by WWE was the friendship of Hulk Hogan and “Macho Man” Randy Savage, and then, when that bond exploded. That storyline would culminate with a massive matchup in the main event of WrestleMania 6. As the top two stars of their era went to war. It was the kind of tale and payoff that showed what professional wrestling can be at its best.
Vince McMahon
Hogan had serious issues with long-time boss and friend Vince McMahon outside the ring before they ever clashed in it. Hogan was a witness during a trial looking into steroid use in WWE during the early 1990s. While he didn’t offer up damning information, it still led to his departure and helped WCW become a serious threat to McMahon’s company.
Hogan would eventually return to the company and feud with “Mr. McMahon.” It included the wrestling icon donning a mask to become Mr. America, and ended with a bloody match at WrestleMania 19.
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Sting
The nWo had a massive influence on the industry. However, what made the storyline so entertaining was WCW legend Sting changing his look to mirror the main character from the film The Crow, and tormenting the faction. Especially, it’s leader Hogan. It was a tale that went on for months and culminated in a huge match at Starrcade ’97. That rivalry would continue for years after and was one of the most important in WCW history.
Andre the Giant
One of the biggest rivalries in Hogan’s career was when things went sideways with former pal, Andre the Giant. Hogan went into their WrestleMania 3 match not even knowing if the Hall of Famer would put him over and let him win the match. However, when it was time to go home and the Frenchman let the rising star slam him in front of 93,000 in Detroit, pro wrestling was forever changed. It was short, but still a huge feud in Hogan’s career.
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Vince Russo
While this choice might seem odd, sometimes serious rivalries in wrestling aren’t all in front of the camera. When former WWE head writer Vince Russo took over creative for WCW in 1999, he and the wrestling legend immediately bashed heads. Mainly because Hogan had creative control in his contract.
Their issues led to an infamous moment at Bash at the Beach ’00 when Jeff Jarrett laid down to give Hogan an easy pin in a WCW title match. Hogan stormed out, and Russo went on an on-air tirade about how much he hated “The Hulkster.” It was a rare moment when the real world invaded the fictional.
The Rock
The Rock and Hulk Hogan had an absolutely epic clash at WrestleMania 18 that is still one of the best moments in the long history of the event. However, their feud did not end there. The first match was what led to Hogan’s babyface turn. It also played a role in The Rock’s return to being a heel. Hogan ended up being his first major foe in the era of “Hollywood” Rock.
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Ric Flair
Hogan and Ric Flair never faced off during the year they were together in WWE. However, when “The Immortal One” jumped to WCW in 1994, their feud was what helped turn the company into the undisputed No. 2 promotion in the world. They would go on to be rivals for all of their time together in the company, especially after Hogan helped form the nWo.
Rowdy Roddy Piper
Roddy Piper and Hulk Hogan were part of the WrestleMania 1 main event against each other, and remained enemies for much of their careers. The rivalry that started in WWE in the ’80s continued in the ’90s with some great storylines in WCW. Piper was even one of the few men to score a win over Hogan when he dominated as the leader of the nWo.
Diamond Dallas Page
Hogan had many huge crossover moments in his career. Two of them came via his rivalry with Diamond Dallas Page. First, they had a Bash at the Beach tag team match where Hogan tagged with Chicago Bulls star Dennis Rodman, and Page had Utah Jazz great Karl Malone as his.
Then, a month later at Hog Wild, Page teamed up with late-night host Jay Leno against Hogan and WCW boss Eric Bischoff. Both matches brought massive mainstream attention to the company and were two of the biggest matches in Hogan and Page’s careers.
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