Original subtitles

We lost one of the biggest

icons in the world.

He captivated millions of people and inspired them around the

globe, "The Immortal" Hulk Hogan.

Watcha gonna do when the largest

arms in the world and the power of Hulkamania destroy you?

The pop culture phenomenon.

Who do you think you are?

That's Hulk Hogan.

The 24-inch pythons.

"The Immortal" Hulk Hogan.

The greatest professional athlete

in the world today.

Watcha gonna do when we take a look back at the

iconic career of WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan?

Pray, say your prayers, eat your vitamins,

and believe in yourself, brother.

This is WWE's Greatest Moments.

If you smell--

Oh, my God.

What the hell are you doing?

Absolutely unbelievable.

Hulkamania is here.

Welcome, everyone,

to WWE's Greatest Moments.

I'm Michael Cole.

And on this edition, we are paying homage to the man that

took professional wrestling to a new stratosphere,

"The Immortal" Hulk Hogan.

Watcha gonna do?

With a career that would span an incredible

5 decades and earn him 12 world championships,

Hogan became the blueprint for what it meant

to be a global superstar.

Look at all the Hulkamaniacs.

Can you hear them, "Mean" Gene?

With legions of loyal Hulkamaniacs standing

behind him, Hulk Hogan was undoubtedly the most

recognizable star in all of Sports Entertainment,

leading him to headline The Showcase of The Immortals,

WrestleMania, an astounding eight times.

And it all started with the very first WrestleMania.

The Immortal One would come together with another television

legend, Mr. T-

You're dead meat.

You're dead meat, and I pity you, fool.

to battle "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and

Paul Orndorff in a star-studded main event for the ages.

I'm pumped up.

25,000 plus on their feet.

The electricity is unbelievable.

That crowd that night, that was the highest,

highest point of electricity.

I came up in the ring.

I-I pointed right at them.

I said, "We're gonna have a war tonight, boys."

Here comes the Hulk.

And all four of them are going at it in the

corner, and it's getting out of control already.

Pat Patterson.

A slam by Mr. T.

Then I tag it off to Hulk Hogan.

He-he's the closer, because it's still his show.

And tags the champ.

In comes the Hulk with a right hand, driving Piper back.

People knew the wrestling business was-

was changing that night.

Oh.

Oh, he hit Orndorff.

Cover, and Pat Patterson.

He got him.

They got him.

Unbelievable.

Pandemonium here in The Garden.

All in all, it was a perfect springboard for what

we needed to launch the WWE into the stratosphere.

The night could not have been better.

While Hogan was a juggernaut in the ring,

he also had the gift of gab with a microphone in his hands.

Often preaching the three demandments of Hulkamania.

When you train, say your prays, eat your

vitamins, believe in yourself, and believe in Hulk Hogan,

you believe in Hulkamania.

His passion speeches made it

clear where the power lies.

This is where the power lies.

When it came to defending the good ol' USA

against the American turncoat Sgt. Slaughter-

I used to be proud of my country,

but not anymore.

no one rallied the troops better

than the Hulkster.

You know the only thing that's more dangerous

than nerve gas going up through your sinuses, brother?

Is when Hulkamania starts creeping up on you, brother.

And it's getting ready to eat you alive, Sgt. Slaughter.

WrestleMania 7, I did have America really behind me

when I had the feud with Slaughter.

You know something, Sgt. Slaughter?

You talk about all-out war, brother, at WrestleMania 7.

You talk about playing by your rules, which are none at all.

Well, let me tell you about rules, brother.

Here's this former GI Joe who turned

against his country.

They wanted Hulk Hogan to knock my head off.

At that particular time,

a lot of people were great in the ring,

but they weren't great on the mic.

He had it all.

Hulkamania's running wilder

than it's ever been.

As a kid who lived that era,

who was six years old when Hogan was preaching to me,

it was like he jumped right through his TV screen

and talking directly to you.

The pythons are pumped.

The Mania's ready for the WWE title.

He was fighting for the USA hero to so many people.

Uh, me being one at a young age.

So watcha gonna do, Sgt. Slaughter,

when the largest guns and the red,

white and blue run wild on you?

After years of success in WWE,

Hulk Hogan would join competing wrestling promotion, WCW.

Welcome, Hulk Hogan.

For decades, loyal wrestling fans yearned

for the day they'd see the legendary Ric Flair face off

against "The Immortal" Hulk Hogan inside

the squared circle.

They're gonna rule out any doubt

as to who was the best.

You can't beat Ric Flair.

Hogan would make his highly anticipated WCW

in-ring debut at the 1994 Bash at the Beach for the WCW World

Heavyweight Championship.

It's the match we all talked

about as wrestling fans.

The match we always waited for.

Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, 1994,

Bash at the Beach, that was a match.

It really represented WWE versus WCW.

I had a bunch of celebrities kinda come in

when I wrestled Ric that first night.

High-five Shaquille O'Neal.

Ric was a monster, and I was a monster,

and him and I together made each other bigger monsters.

Every eyeball in the world is glued to this.

Down goes Flair.

All we needed to do was just let me bring him down

to one knee, and we'll own this joint.

Never have I seen a match where fans

were responding to every move.

The big foot.

Oh, no.

The Leg Drop.

Oh, no.

Please, I'll do anything.

One-

No.

two-

No.

three.

And the Hulkster becomes

the WCW Heavyweight Champion of the World.

I loved working with Hulk.

Didn't matter who won or lost, I was wrestling Hulk Hogan.

Ric put me over, which gave us that huge shot

in the arm we needed.

When Scott Hall and Kevin Nash left WWE

for rival promotion WCW in 1996, it sent shockwaves

throughout the wrestling world.

The two would wreak havoc every week, interrupting matches and

accosting management all the while hinting that a secret

third man was the ringleader behind

all of their unrighteous acts.

The big man and the medium-sized man and our

surprise buddy are gonna carve them up.

The identity of Hall and Nash's accomplice would

be revealed at Bash at the Beach 1996 and changed

the landscape of professional wrestling forever.

I don't see three men here tonight.

Where is your partner?

All you need to know, little man,

is he's here and he's ready.

Now, we're doing this, "Who's the third man thing?"

This big angle at the Bash of the Beach.

We're gonna l aunch the nWo.

They have said the third man is here,

but he is not in the ring.

Hulk is in the air, flying to Daytona Beach

where the pay-per-view is originating, and we still don't

know if Hulk agrees or not.

Hulk Hogan is here.

Hulk Hogan's here.

When I went out, it looked like I was coming out

to save Macho Man.

Yes, sir.

Who's bad now, boys?

Hulk Hogan arrived.

Hulk, Hulk, Hulk.

What is he doing?

Oh, my God.

Is he the third man?

He's the third man.

I wanted that natural reaction from the fans.

How could our hero stab us in the heart?

You can call this the New World Order of Wrestling, brother.

I know there was not a more shocking moment

than Hulk Hang being the third man.

That move changed everything.

We have seen the end of Hulkamania.

After years of reigning in the red and yellow,

Hulk Hogan turned his back on his fans and dawned a grim black

and white color scheme joining the infamous New World Order.

Here's the nWo.

His new look came with a new name,

"Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, and he'd go on to turn

the wrestling world upside down.

This is nWo country.

But if Hollywood really wanted to take over,

he needed the WCW title.

The only thing standing in his way was a giant.

Welcome to the 56th Annual Harley Rally.

250,000 bikers are here for WCW Hog Wild.

Hulk Hogan, you know, and The Giant.

That was a major, major match.

Two of the most dominant

figures in our sport.

The Giant in WCW was such a physically

impressive athlete.

Big backbreaker.

Oh, my goodness.

Hogan can puff up and do everything he wants to.

There's guys that work out that are strong,

and then there's natural giant strong.

That spectacle was part of the-the drama and the emotion.

It was amazing.

He chokeslammed that gigantic Nash.

But there, he laid him out.

He laid him out with the world title belt.

I can't believe this.

One, two-- No.

We got a new champion.

We got a new champion.

Hulk loved to cheat to win.

Dirty cheating heel, he took to it.

He liked it.

He had fun doing it.

Oh, that spray paint.

Oh, my God.

They're gonna spray paint-- they're gonna--

I cannot believe that.

This is unbelievable.

I got a knot in my gut about this situation.

To get them to really buy into the storyline,

and really hate me, I felt like I accomplished something.

The nWo is the only way to go, and whatcha gonna do?

There's no doubt that in the 1980s few could

match the captivating charisma of Hulk Hogan.

One superstar who came close was "Macho Man" Randy Savage.

Macho Man is-is on a roll

and it can't be stopped.

These two powerhouses would come together

to form the Mega Powers, a widely popular tag team force,

accompanied by Savage's manager, Miss Elizabeth.

I love Elizabeth, just as much as the Macho Man

does, but in a different way.

However, Savage's jealousy would lead to

the Mega Powers exploding.

Those eyes lust Elizabeth.

You understand that?

Randy, no.

You got--

Get out of my face.

Hulk Hogan, you've got lust in your heart

for Elizabeth, yeah.

And you got jealousy for the World Wrestling--

Champion, yeah.

You make me sick, Macho Man.

At WrestleMania 5, the two former friends would

face off in a volatile main event for the WWE Championship.

This is truly what the word

main event was meant for.

Once the bell rang with Randy,

the chemistry was just like a constant flow.

Concerned look on the face

of Miss Elizabeth.

It was not only just about the championship,

it was about Elizabeth.

How much lower can you go than go

after your best friend's woman?

Macho Man plays that jealous card.

It's simple storytelling.

Everyone gets relationships.

Elizabeth is gone.

Now we'll get down to wrestling.

The elbow.

He got it.

He nailed him.

No.

Oh.

This place is going crazy.

And the Leg Drop.

The art form of storytelling,

and Liz's participation,

I didn't realize how special it really was.

The Hulkster, once again, holds up the gold.

The monstrous Yokozuna wreaked havoc from

the moment he entered WWE.

Always on his side was the devious manager, Mr. Fuji,

who had a few dastardly tricks of his own.

At WrestleMania 9, Mr. Fuji did the unthinkable to help the

mighty Yokozuna in defeating Bret Hart

for the WWE Championship.

Fuji, what's he doing?

Look at this.

Yokozuna hooks the leg.

We got a new champion.

This isn't what the title

is supposed to represent.

Would anyone come to the aid of the Hitman and stand up

against this atrocity?

What?

Hulk Hogan here.

I felt an immediate roar when

they saw me come out.

It was like, "All right.

Something crazy's going to happen.

Yoko's gonna learn his lesson."

I looked around at the arena,

the fans getting behind Bret.

I rolled in there.

Hulk Hogan's in the ring.

Ding, ding.

How can anyone defeat this man?

He is that big.

Oh, in the eyes of Yokozuna.

Hogan with the clothesline and down goes Yokozuna.

Hogan drops the leg.

Hogan in the cover.

No.

Hooks the leg.

No.

Hulk Hogan has it.

Hulk Hogan has won the title.

I can't believe this.

And to hold the belt up, all right,

we've got them again.

It felt right.

The fans were so locked into Hulkamania.

In the history of professional wrestling, there

have been a handful of superstars that transcended the

business and became mega stars.

The 1980s had Hulk Hogan.

The Attitude Era had "The Great One" The Rock.

If you smell what The Rock is cooking.

In 2002, over 68,000 fans packed the Toronto

SkyDome for WrestleMania 18 to witness

an icon versus icon dream match.

History in the making now.

Hulk Hogan was the guy in the 80s and 90s.

The Rock was the guy now.

This is a WrestleMania moment.

It felt like the roof was gonna blow off

the SkyDome, you know?

And it was, like, really intense.

You know, the stare down at the beginning.

None of that stuff was planned.

Most of it was listening to the crowd.

That was one of the most incredible nights I have

ever had in my career, because the audience was 100% invested

in our match.

Listen to this, this is amazing.

I don't know if The Rock knows what to think.

Look at this.

He switched roles with me and did something

a bad guy would do to somebody.

We were not anticipating what the crowd

reaction was, and Rock and Hogan ran with it.

The most electrifying move

in Sports Entertainment today.

People's Elbow on Hulk Hogan.

Rock with the People's Elbow on Hogan.

Oh.

And The Rock wins it.

To be able to have this incredible

match with him was very special.

He had done so much for our business.

It was an honor to pass the torch to him.

What an emotional ride.

Throughout the 1980s, no one was more popular,

more enthralling, or more successful than Hulk Hogan.

No man could topple the Hulkster's empire.

The greatest professional athlete

in the world.

But a giant might.

At over seven feet tall and weighing over 500 pounds,

the indomitable Andre the Giant, challenged Hogan's status.

I'm here for one reason,

to challenge you for a world championship match

in the WrestleMania.

With over 93,000 screaming fans in attendance

at WrestleMania 3, the irresistible force was set to

face off against the immovable object when

"The Immortal" Hulk Hogan put his WWE title on the

line against the undefeated Andre the Giant.

Look at the size of The Giant.

I mean, Hogan is 6'8".

Andre is 7'5".

I was worried because I didn't know if I could

get him up, to tell you the truth.

Going for a slam.

Oh, he almost got him up.

You know, you hear these legends of Andre,

and seeing Andre, so larger than life.

Almost seems mythical.

Oh.

That's the first time I think that

The Giant's ever been knocked off his feet like that.

You can feel what is happening.

You can feel it was gonna be huge.

Look at this.

He slammed The Giant.

He slammed him.

When he got Andre up with all of his might,

and got him turned over, and gave him that slam,

I think that was kinda of the slam heard around the world.

I don't believe it.

Hulk dropping the big leg.

Over for the cover.

It's over.

He got him.

And I think that was such a big moment for the

company, for the Hulkster, and for the movement of Hulkamania.

What can I say?

I never thought it could be done.

I'm very proud of that WestleMania.

It was the defining moment of Hulkamania.

And that guy right there has made history

all over the world.

It's now time for our number one moment,

and it's one that changed the trajectory

of professional wrestling forever.

In 1984, when Iranian nationalist, The Iron Sheik,

held the most coveted prize in all of Sports Entertainment,

WWE needed a hero.

USA?

Ha.

Enter Hulk Hogan.

Be a real American.

And when the two would face off at a sold-out

Madison Square Garden, the power of Hulkamania would be born.

History could be made

in Madison Square Garden.

They have a lot of hate in their hearts for this man.

The minute he stepped out into the isle,

the roof was coming off.

This is the main event.

It is for the World Heavyweight Championship.

I pointed at the Sheik, and I just looked at him.

It was already there and the place erupted.

He is incredible.

He is on top of the Sheik.

You know, this is patriotism.

This is Hulk Hogan with the American flag against

the most hated villain.

Hogan's just clothesline sends him down.

Sheik going for a slam, gets him up.

No, backbreaker.

Camel Clutch coming up.

When he put the Camel Clutch on me,

I knew if I broke the hold, the place would erupt.

Hogan now stands up

with the Sheik and rams him.

Sheik going up.

Hulk Hogan, he drops the big leg on him.

He's going for the cover.

Hooks the leg.

One, two-- He got him.

And new World Wrestling-- Heavyweight

Champion, Hulk Hogan.

That's when Hulkamania was born.

Hulkamania has taken over.

I mean, it was the perfect storm.

It does not get better than that.

Hulkamania is here.

"The Immortal" Hulk Hogan's impact

in professional wrestling is unmatched.

Hulk Hogan launched Sports Entertainment into mainstream

pop culture where it still stands today,

and though the Hulkster may no longer be with us,

there's no doubt that Hulkamania will live forever.

That'll do it for this edition of WWE's Greatest Moments.

I hope you enjoyed this look back at the very best

of Hulk Hogan, brother.