WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan is still itching to get back in the ring, telling Sean Fewster of Australia’s Adeliade Now publication that it’s been “very, very hard” for him to follow the business from the sidelines.
“I’m ready to jump out of my seat and say ‘you can do it better’ or ‘your timing is off’ or ‘that was really good … It just feels like my spirit wants to jump out of my body.
But you have to look in the mirror and say, ‘You’re 61, you’ve had surgeries, it’s not your time.’ It’s been hard for me to accept that. It’s coloured my principles. But I’ve found peace, I’ve found a lot of happiness, in the fact that I’ve been offered a job as the ambassador.”
Hogan said he met with Vince McMahon shortly after WrestleMania 31 and pitched the idea of getting back in the ring at next year’s WrestleMania 32 next year from Arlington, Texas.
“I had a run-in with Vince McMahon after the last WrestleMania. I saw him in the lobby and said: ‘I know what’s going on. Next year, WrestleMania is in Dallas and you’re going to try to break my attendance record. Let me tell you something, brother, there’s no way you’re running that show next year without me on the card! Whether it’s for my last hurrah, my retirement match, my next run, or to beat whoever the champion is and be champion again!’ Vince shook my hand and said, ‘I look forward to it.'”
He also gave credit to Triple H for his current role with WWE, who reached out to him after Hogan finished up with TNA.
“This ambassador position means I can still be a part of the big show, and I thank Triple H for that. If not for him, this thing between Vince McMahon and I – this heat – would still be bad,” Hogan said. “Vince made me feel so welcome when he explained to me I’m the glue that bonds the father, the son and the grandson that watch wrestling.”
Hogan will be joining WWE for next month’s live events tour of Australia. He’ll serve as the guest General Manager for all three shows in Brisbane (8/6), Melbourne (8/7), and Sydney (8/8).
