WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan makes regular appearances for the company these days, but at one time, his relationship with the company was fractured. As quoted by 411Mania , Bruce Prichard took to his Something to Wrestle podcast and recalled how upset Vince McMahon felt when Hogan joined World Championship Wrestling in 1994. According to Prichard, the boss took the news very personally.
“He was hurt, and he was hurt not just from a business standpoint, he was hurt from a personal standpoint, because through those building years, there were no two closer people in the business than Vince and Hulk, that helped develop all those aspects of Hulkamania along the way. So there was a personal bond and a personal friendship that had been built that now, Hulk going, he can say it was business, it was personal. I think Vince really took it personally and I think he was hurt. It was like a really bad divorce.”
Hogan joining WCW was a shock at the time as he was the face of WWE for years. The Hall of Famer dominated throughout the 1980s, and he was still a main-event player when he walked out of the door.
As Wrestling Inc . noted, Hogan left WWE in 1992 because he didn’t want to pass the torch to Bret Hart. Until that moment, Hogan had been the company’s top star for almost a decade, but it is believed that he remained on top for so long because he refused to lose to up and coming stars.
Team Hogan 4 Life Brother HH pic.twitter.com/o5njneDil4
— Hulk Hogan (@HulkHogan) October 31, 2019
Despite parting ways with WWE and joining the competition, Hogan didn’t completely burn his bridges with the company. Prichard revealed that the door was always open to the legendary performer if he ever wanted to return, and McMahon hoped that he would after his WCW deal expired.
However, since McMahon wasn’t hopeful of Hogan rejoining WWE, he proceeded to focus on turning Hart into the company’s top star. Hogan remained with WCW until the company closed, and didn’t return to WWE until 2002.
While Hogan appears to be on good terms with WWE at the moment, his relationship with McMahon continues to experience its share of ups and downs. As The Inquisitr reported earlier this week, the Hall of Famer wants a piece of the chairman at WrestleMania 36 .
McMahon can rest easy knowing that Hogan isn’t going anywhere, but he’s not the only superstar who he regrets losing throughout the years. The boss reportedly regrets parting ways with Chris Jericho , who joined All Elite Wrestling earlier this year.
