Hulk Hogan recently made an appearance in WWE in partnership with Netflix for Monday Night Raw to promote his brand and business. However, the former WWE wrestling star didn’t seem welcome since the audience– some of which were likely his old fans, booed him live as soon as he appeared on the stage to the tune of his signature song, “Real American.”
The incident happened during January 6’s Monday Night Raw in Los Angeles, where WWE made a surprise announcement. The crowd went audibly silent as soon as they saw Hulk Hogan, and by the time he was fully out, you could hear some widespread “boos.”
Here’s a video of the interaction:
Hogan was also promoting his own beer brand, called Real American Beer during the event, and he did have something to say about the event in case you couldn’t hear it from all the boos.
Hogan entered the arena at around two hours in the show and prior to his appearance, he was only a rumored guest. The former wrestling star then thanked and congratulated WWE for its Netflix collaboration.
“In the past, I’ve had a whole bunch of partners down the line. I had incredible partners, like the Macho Man Randy Savage. I’ve had giant-sized partners like Andre the Giant. But the greatest partner the WWE has ever had, is the fact that tonight, we’re making history, and the WWE has tag teamed up with Netflix, the greatest tag team partner of all time,” recalled Hulk Hogan.
Additionally, Hogan was there to announce his sponsorship deal with WWE, which invovled the said beer. WWE will be a minority owner of Hogan’s Real American Beer and will even feature its logo on the other “Real American” merchandise, such as a wrestling mat.
The LA crowd, however, was having none of it and even booed Hogan throughout the announcement and even as he exited the venue. The jeers were so rampant that even WWE announcer, Michael Cole had to defend Hogan by saying WWE wouldn’t be on Netflix ‘without that man’.
Hogan’s Still Hated
Hulk Hogan was once revered as a WWE legend during his heyday back in the 1980s and 1990s, becoming a five-time WWF Champion. He even held the record for the longest Wrestlemania Champion at 1,474 days, losing it to the late Andre The Giant.
As for why Hogan was met with a legion of boos in the recent Monday Night Raw, his notoriety began back in 2007 when a recording of the wrestler surfaced. In it, Hogan was unironically using a racial slur. In 2012, another scandal followed after Gawker (an American blog) leaked Hulk Hogan’s sex tape, further revealing other bouts of the wrestler’s racism.
Hence, in 2015, WWE cut out Hulk Hogan from their Hall of Fame. However, Hogan was reinstated in the WWE Hall of Fame three years later in 2018. Trouble for Hulk Hogan didn’t stop, though, after the former wrestler openly admitted support for Doland Trump, eventually leading to getting booed at Monday Night Raw.
