Hulk Hogan recently appeared in a YouTube video talking about his WrestleMania 18 match. The Rock also recently commented on the match during a Q&A session on social media.
According to Hogan, the match provided some unique challenges for him.
“When I went back, they wanted me to go down to Miami and practice the match,” Hogan said. “Andre was the one who raised me and his thing was this is who is going to win or lose and whatever happens in the match, don’t worry.”
Hogan wasn’t used to practicing his matches and he didn’t want to go through a full run through with bumps beforehand.
“Pat Patterson wanted me to go through the match and I said I can’t do that,” he continued. “If we go through this whole match here and I’m falling down and getting up and taking dropkicks and hooking on the top rope and going over, I’m going to get hurt.”
“They were cool enough that I didn’t have to go through the match, didn’t have to take any bumps,” he continued. “But I said ‘alright, let’s walk through this.'”
Hogan also talked about how they did everything they could to make him the heel leading up tpo the match but the WrestleMania crowd cheered him anyway.
“On the way out to the ring, I heard this mixture of turbulence and energy,” Hogan said. “It was like, it reminded me of WrestleMania III when I went out with Andre.”
Hogan’s comments and full-bearded look can be viewed in the player below:
The Rock On His Match Against Hulk Hogan
“About six months before the match happened, Vince McMahon came to me and said, ‘How do you feel about bringing Hulk Hogan back?’” recalled the Rock. “I think Hogan had left WWE on not so great terms. He asked, ‘How do you feel about bringing Hogan back?’
I said, ‘How does the locker room feel?’ He said, ‘I talked to a few locker room leaders and it’s mixed.’ I said, ‘I love it. I think having him back is intriguing and very selfishly, I would like to wrestle him.’ He said, ‘Funny you say that. I have a match in mind. You vs. Hogan at WrestleMania.’”
