Despite all the controversy that's followed him outside of the ring, there's no single wrestler more important to the success of wrestling than Hulk Hogan. Love him or hate him, his provocative promos in the '80s helped raise the awareness of wrestling, and his heel turn in the '90s helped ignite the heyday of wrestling television. No person has had a career as decorated as Hulk Hogan.
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Even with all his success in the world of wrestling, there are a ton of "what if" scenarios that still surround blog posts and conversations among fans. This list will examine 10 of the most commonly discussed "what if" scenarios surrounding the founder of Hulkamania, Hulk Hogan.
10 What If Hogan Wasn't The "Third Man"
WCW took the Monday Night Wars to a whole new level in 1996 when Hollywood Hogan joined Scott Hall and Kevin Nash as the third founding member of the nWo. The heel turn was practically a career in the making and Hogan was so provocative in his role as "Hollywood" that everything just worked.
Many fans forget that the days of Hogan being the face of wrestling were far behind him by 1996, and not only did joining the nWo reignite wrestling, but it also reignited his career. There's always a ton of speculation about who else could have been the third man, but it has been said that if Hogan didn't agree to turn heel it would have been Sting.
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WCW would have looked a lot different without Hollywood Hogan, but it's hard to argue it wouldn't have had some success. The biggest question of this "what if" scenario is where does Hogan's career go? Does he play the nWo antagonist like Sting did? It seems tough to believe that Hogan would have been more entertaining than Sting opposing the nWo.
9 What If Hogan And Nash Wrestled A Match Instead Of "The Finger Poke"
The infamous "Finger Poke of Doom," where Kevin Nash basically handed the WCW World Title to Hogan, is often regarded as the moment that WCW began to fall apart. The truth is, that accusation gives way too much credit to WCW as a company.
Still, if Nash and Hogan had wrestled an actual match, WCW doesn't take such a big drop in quality. We all get that they were heel wrestlers, but certain things are just far too offputting to fans even if a heel does them.
8 What If Hogan Had A Different Finishing Move
The Hogan Leg Drop is one of the most well-known moves in the history of wrestling. He used it for decades to defeat everyone from Andre the Giant to Randy Orton. Hogan has said that the move, although an offensive maneuver to his opponents, did a lot of long-term damage to Hogan's back.
If Hogan would have had a finisher that was instead of a body slam or something that would have had less wear and tear on him, he would have probably had a longer career. It's a "what if" scenario where a change would actually work in Hogan's favor.
7 What If Hogan Never Joined TNA
Hogan's time at TNA (Impact Wrestling) is often remembered as a low point in his career. In all honesty, Impact was attempting to shake things up by bringing Hogan on board. At that point, he wasn't even wrestling on a regular basis. He also had a ton of bad ideas like changing the Impact wrestling ring from six sides to four and also trying to go against Raw for television ratings.
If Hogan had never joined TNA, there's a chance the company would have continued to flourish. It had a stacked roster and after Hogan's changes were made, the quality of the product really took a hit.
6 What If Hogan Had Put Randy Savage Over At WrestleMania V
The two biggest names in wrestling for a large part of the late '80s and early '90s were Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan. Hogan had a very famous reputation for not wanting to put other superstars over (aka letting them beat him). Although Hogan did lose a few matches to Savage (never clean), "Macho Man" was always "the other guy." Savage was a much better wrestler than Hulk Hogan and could have been an even bigger superstar.
His only issue was he didn't get a signature win over the biggest name in wrestling at the time. There's often a "what if" scenario where Savage beats Hogan at WrestleMania 5. Unlike the Ultimate Warrior, chances are, if Savage got a big win, he would have taken advantage of the platform given to him and become a top guy for a long time.
5 What If Hogan Became AWA Champion
Hogan didn't become the most famous wrestler on the planet without being a champion. Somehow, he wrestled in the AWA without becoming the company's world champion in the '80s. If the belt had been put on him, Hogan would have probably delayed his arrival to the WWE, which would have shifted everything. There is also a small chance he'd become a huge star at the AWA, reigniting that fanbase.
4 What If Hogan Stayed In The "WWE" nWo
Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, and Hollywood Hogan joining the WWE as the nWo in 2002 is often remembered as a flop. The trio was supposed to bring a newly reformed nWo to the company, but it never amounted to anything.
One of the most interesting aspects of that run was Hogan's time with the faction was extremely short. He only spent a few months with the nWo before turning face after his match with The Rock at WrestleMania 18. Many have wondered if Hogan could have saved the "WWE nWo" if he stayed with the faction longer. In all likelihood, more time with the group would have made no difference.
3 What If He Quit Wrestling In 1978 Like He Wanted
Hogan had a lot of struggles early in his career. In 1978 specifically, he was making so little money wrestling that he considered quitting altogether. He was already a musician and the opportunities for him to do anything were wide open.
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There is a strange "what if" scenario where Hogan actually quits wrestling in 1978. If that happened, the landscape of sports entertainment would be so different that it's impossible to know if it would ever have reached the heights that it did 20 years after 1978.
2 What If Hogan Had Put Sting Over At Starrcade 1997
Hollywood Hogan's greatest foe in WCW was Sting. Like most of Hogan's foes, Hogan had a hard time putting "The Icon" over. Starrcade 1997 should have been Sting's moment to shine and it would've helped build him and the company.
Instead, there ended up being a ton of controversy around Sting's win and most of it can be traced back to Hogan's creative control. If he had just put Sting over, the nWo would have had another viable storyline instead of another opponent with a tainted win against them.
1 What If Hogan Wrestled Steve Austin Instead of The Rock At WrestleMania 18
The only wrestler who had an impact at the level of Hulk Hogan in wrestling is "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Despite both of them competing in the same era, and at the same company for a few years, the two never met in the ring for a singles match. The Rock and Hogan had their "icon versus icon match" at WrestleMania 18, but many often wonder what would've happened if Steve Austin wrestled Hogan.
In all honesty, it would have been a much bigger moment and a storybook ending to the Monday Night Wars. You had the two biggest names from WCW and WWE meeting in the ring at the biggest stage of them all at a high point of their careers. It ended up being a huge missed opportunity for everyone since the Austin vs Hogan "icon vs icon" match never happened.
