Is Austin On Hogan's Level

[klunderbunker]

Based on another thread that Sly and I are debating in.

Steve Austin is clearly the second biggest superstar in wrestling history behind Hulk Hogan and I don't think anyone will argue that. However, what I want to know is how much higher is Hogan than Austin? In the late 90s, Austin was the WWF. Look at the crowds and you'll see Austin shirts and signs everywhere. The people were there for one reason above all others: Steve Austin. He carried the company on his back through the darkest times they had and was very successful in doing so, making millions and millions of dollars for the WWF. Now that being said, the exact same thing could be said for Hogan in the 80s. he carried the company as well when it was going national and survival was far less than certain.

All that being said, this is what I want to know: can Austin be seen as on the same level as Hogan or at least very close to it, or was Hogan leaps and bounds ahead of Austin?

Note: this is not about who is bigger as Hogan simply was bigger or who would win in the ring etc. This is about can Austin be considered just a step behind Hogan or is he miles behind him?

 

[King Patrick Star]

In my opinion, Stone Cold Steve Austin is only one small step behind Hulk Hogan. It may be chronological, it may be the “without Hogan there would be no Austin”, it might be timing, but whatever it is, Hogan will always be ahead of Austin, just not as far as a lot of people think. Think in terms of comic books. How far behind is Batman to Superman?? I also think the Rock is right behind Austin and Cena is right behind them both, but that’s for another discussion.

 

[The Conscience]

I dont think that the gap is large at all I mean Austin will always be slightly behind hogan in the scramble for biggest wwe star. I think Austin carried the wwf through a hard time and lead it through my personnal fav period the attitude era. I think he cut amazing promos and had ace catchphrases but hogan somehow carries over with fans more. I think the big pro Austin comment though is that he was more belivable heel than hogan

 

[bigjd691]

imo i think that austin is bigger than hogan stone cold was going head to head with hogan (wwf vs wcw) and he was winning so imo i think austin is ahead of hogan in the wrestling business but a far as the bigger name period i say hogan he is known my 90 year old people to 9 year olds

 

[LynchCats]

Based on another thread that Sly and I are debating in.

Steve Austin is clearly the second biggest superstar in wrestling history behind Hulk Hogan and I don't think anyone will argue that.

I will. Ric Flair.

However, what I want to know is how much higher is Hogan than Austin? In the late 90s, Austin was the WWF. Look at the crowds and you'll see Austin shirts and signs everywhere. The people were there for one reason above all others: Steve Austin. He carried the company on his back through the darkest times they had and was very successful in doing so, making millions and millions of dollars for the WWF. Now that being said, the exact same thing could be said for Hogan in the 80s. he carried the company as well when it was going national and survival was far less than certain.

All that being said, this is what I want to know: can Austin be seen as on the same level as Hogan or at least very close to it, or was Hogan leaps and bounds ahead of Austin?

Note: this is not about who is bigger as Hogan simply was bigger or who would win in the ring etc. This is about can Austin be considered just a step behind Hogan or is he miles behind him?

Austin, as much as I love his character, is MILES behind Hogan, and in my opinion behind Flair as well. Hogan had a lot more mainstream "success" with the number of movies he did, his TV appearances on the A-Team, his cartoon, and Thunder in Paradise. While Flair didn't have the mainstream opportunities in his career that Austin did, just look at the sendoff that the E gave Ric Flair for his retirement to show how important Ric was to the wrestling industry.

It's Hogan #1 (and no one is even close), Flair and Austin a distant 2nd and 3rd.

 

[jimufctna24]

Whilest Hogan maintained his popularity for longer, Austin in the late ninties was bigger than Hogan was in his prime

Merchandise, PPV Numbers and TV ratings all come into this and Vince himself even has said Austin surpassed Hogan, there is not much in it but id wager Austin is bigger espicially today with the current fans as most of the Hogan fans have been passed by

There could be a argument from both ends but along with Rock in there the 3 of them are the biggest names to ever wrestle globally

 

[Genius_Deadman]

i personally think Hogan isn't on Austin's level, not the other way around.

Yes, Hogan helped make wrestling as big as it is today and helped carry a company (WCW). WCW beat WWE in the ratings because of Hogan turning heel. and without Hogan, there'd be no Austin. BUT:

Hogan made it big when there was nothing to do but go up in the world of wrestling. the popularity of wrestling could only go up at that time. Austin was stuck with a burden of taking a company that was about to go out of business if they didn't move up in ratings. Austin made more money than Hogan (times change, WWF at that time had more marketing than when Hogan was there, but made more money nonetheless). Austin, ring wise, stayed true to his character unlike Hogan. Hogan was a power guy that at times used eye rakes and other "dirty" moves that would contradict his gimmick. Austin was a brawler, he fought in whatever manner and didn't care if he cheated, staying true to his character. the most important thing of all in my opinion besides money, moving on up in the company, and besides Austin having more entertaining matches than Hogan:

Stone Cold Steve Austin BEAT Hulk Hogan in the Monday Night Wars. Austin's name became bigger than Hogan's which led to WWF beating WCW in the ratings. Hogan has never beaten "Stone Cold" in any way, that's why i put Austin over Hogan.

 

[waylonmercy]

It's hard to guage who really is bigger. They didn't compete with each other in their primes. Austin had Rock and Foley in their career primes and although Austin was bigger than Rock and Foley for popularity its hard to determine how much they helped Austin's era. Hogan on the other hand was a HUGE face based on his build up and the fact fans believed him and considered him a super hero. If you watch videos of Hogan in AWA you can see how HUGE Hogan was based on his charisma. Vince McMahon had a larger vehicle and I definitely don't think Vince made Hogan. If Hogan was given the same opportunity in NWA I think he'd be just as big.

I honestly think Hogan outside of wrestling was bigger than Austin so I guess Hogan would be a bigger star than Austin. But Rock is a much bigger star than Hogan outside of wrestling and was very much over in his day. Does that mean The Rock is on Hogan's lvl? It mostly has to do with a scoring system and how you alocate points. If its 50/50 what they did for the company and what they did outside of wrestling then Rock should be up there.

 

[Why Always Me]

I don't think this question will ever be answered. I am also gonna follow suit of a few others and throw The Rock in there.

All three very popular in the ring and out of it, all three have been the figurehead of the company at some point and all three have headlined the biggest PPV's and made sh*tloads of money.

At the end of the day, questions like these end up as a popularity contest.

I personally never liked Hogan, but I appreciate everything that he did for the business.

Austin was one of my favourites, perhaps the best finisher in wrestling.

The Rock was my alltime favourite, especially his work in the middle part of 1999, he and Austin were on fire at that time.

Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock are on their own level, and perhaps nobody will ever join them.

 

[axle124]

Stone cold had 5 years and that is it. He wasn't even the most popular all of those 5 years ie the rock and shawn michaels were. So hogan is far above austins status.

 

[XgringolocoX]

IMO Austin is a step above Hogan. Hogan is so popular cause he started before Austin. He had the old fans, and then thier kids. Austin made more money, turned WWE around and helped win the monday night war. As said above while going head to head against Hogan. Austin is a much better wrestler and better on the mic as well.
As a side note...Flair was huge in WCW, not WWE. While WCW had the cash, they certainly didn't have the butts in seats. So how can you put Flair up there in this context? Flair did not sell nearly the merch as Hogan or Austin, nor did he put the numbers that those guys did in the stands.

 

[Gotahn]

To be honest, I feel you can't compare Hogan and Austin. Those were 2 totally different eras. Austin was the best there is no doubt about it. Hogan is great and there is no doubt about it as well. But comparing those two to me isn't feasible because you would have the Attitude Wrestling fan who is going to say Austin hands down and for the older crowd they are going to say Hogan. To be honest I am wondering why we are not comparing Rock with Austin and Hogan with Flair. They have their own eras in their own right even though they all competed during the attitude era. Flair and Hogan are 8os era. I was born in 1985. So i was'nt all that into eating vitamins and saying prayers. I grew up on drinking beer (stone cold) and whoopin ass(The Rock). So This arguement is goign to be a stalmate.

By the way.... I think the Rock and Shawn Michaels should be considered.

 

[waylonmercy]

I was born in 1979 and remember Hogan in his prime and Austin in his prime. Austin had the hottest run in wrestling history. When he was at his hottest no one could touch him. He was bigger than Hogan's heyday. If you want proof check out Mick Foley's 1st title win. Austin led the way and had so many wrestlers in their absolute primes for age (Rock/HHH) and Foley was in his career prime.

Who's a bigger star of the 2 will always be debated and all depends on the criteria. Ric Flair they say was the greatest in ring competitor ever and The Rock was the greatest talent who had Hollywood success.

 

[CMCoke42381]

Have we seen this same thread about 100 times before? It's so difficult to answer, you can very well go both ways. The way I see it is my pick is Austin because of several reasons actually. Hogans reign on top lasted longer and he sold out countless arenas and a bunch of lunch boxes and shit lol. To axle124 are you fu**ing crazy or just very high? The Rock was NEVER more over then Austin, whenever you heard the crowd when Austin and Rock were going head to head it was always at least 60/40 for Austin, and HBK was a heel then gone for over 4 years so...yeah...The WWE had it's highest ratings ever when Austin was at top and it's been stated as fact that his merchandise sales by far shattered records of anybody so I guess that includes Hogan BROTHER! Not to mention Austin was a 10x more talented Wrestler, and yeah both refused to job at times but we never got Austin vs Hogan because the old fu** was in fear for his legacy if he jobbed to Austin at WM 18. You job for Rock twice but not for Austin, hmmm. Hogan liked how Rock had "Hollywood" in him but felt more threatened by Austin so that never happened. Nobody could ever work a crowd in the ring like Hogan BROTHER! I will give the old man that much though. But this is a lose lose debate as you can go either way.

 

[Rated R SuperFan]

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin is leaps and bounds ABOVE "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan as THE BIGGEST STAR in WWE History simply for the FACT That "Stone Cold" Steve Austin could do one thing that "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan couldn't do . No not Sell out Arenas , Not Sell the most Merch (Austin has the highest selling T-shirt in WWE history) not the stupid "hulkin up" gimmick which was complete Bulls**t , No wrestling fans the one thing that "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan couldn't do that "Stone Cold" Steve Austin could was WRESTLE !!!! "Stone Cold" could actully wrestle with the best of them Let's drop a few names shall we "Triple Hollywood" , "The Has Been Kid" , Kurt Angle , "Nature Boy" Ric Flair , Dustin Rhodes , Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat , "Lord" Steven Regal , "Enforcer" Arn Anderson the list goes on and on and on . "Stone Cold" Steve Austin used suplexes , submissions , wristlocks , headlocks IN EVERY MATCH . Now "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan on the otherhand couldn't wrestle with anyone now I know I'm gonna get alot of heat from the IWC and all the WWE / "Hulkamania" MARKS out there and I really don't give a damn Hulk Hogan CAN'T WRESTLE period he has basically three moves a punch (not a wrestling move) a big boot (not a wrestling move it just lifting ur leg) and the Legdrop of doom basically falling on ur opponent ( not really a wrestling move) throw in the bodyslam which really was his only move sure he's throw in the occasional armbar or wrist lock oh let's not forget the ONE TIME he used the small package (against The Warrior) at Wrestlemania VI . So The Bottom Line is that "Stone Cold" Steve Austin is the BIGGEST SUPERSTAR IN WWE HISTORY based on his wrestling ability , see that is what is WRONG with wrestling today WWE in particular it's not about the ART of the wrestling match it's about who's the biggest star , who sells the most MERCH when it should be about who is going out there night in and night out and busting their ass to make sure the fans get what they want . John Cenanuff , Triple Hollywood The Has Been Kid , Routine Kinda Old (RKO) are getting the Main event push MONTH after MONTH when they have a locker room full of talent that can out wreslte (legit) those "top guys" names like Charlie Haas , Shelton Benjamin , Jamie Noble , Chavo Guererro , Jack Swagger I know that was alittle off topic but this thread really leads into that discussion in my opinion .

*Game Show Music Playing* That's all I have for now IWC , Tune in next time for all the jaw droppin' , trash talkin' , Hell Rasin' excitment on the Rater R Superfan's Post Show ......*Fade 2 Black*

 

[CMCoke42381]

I was born in 1979 and remember Hogan in his prime and Austin in his prime. Austin had the hottest run in wrestling history. When he was at his hottest no one could touch him. He was bigger than Hogan's heyday. If you want proof check out Mick Foley's 1st title win.

That was the biggest pop ive ever heard in my life, including Hogan entrances at ANY Wrestlemania. Although you gotta love the hulk up at WM 18.

 

[Dre Guevara]

without Hulkamania, there'd be no Austin 3:16, having watched wrestling 4 25 years, since I was 10, I feel that, like some of U have said, those were 2 different eras, however, both of those cats had the task of carrying the WWF on their shoulders, although Austin had some help from The Rock, HHH, Foley & HBK, but when it came down 2 it, they put butts in the seats as well as having TVs tuned in whether it was "Superstars of Wrestling" on saturday mornings, (which Hogan rarely appeared) "SNME" the Monday Night Wars or pay per views, but it's like one of U said, Hogan only had 3-5 moves, so I would say that is what made Stone Cold in2 a much bigger star than Hogan.

I have a suggestion for a discussion ofb this magnitude since U wanna talk about comparing Hogan & Austin during their respected eras....




how about doing one on Bret Hart & Sting? seeing that they both used the same finisher.

 

[Hulkamaniac]

Comparing merchandise sales is ridiculous. In Hulkamania's heyday, the only way to buy gear was from a magazine or at live shows. You could buy Austin gear at a freaking Wal-Mart. WAYYYY different. The PPV and ratings deal is also way different. Ratings and such were never a big deal until the Monday Night Wars, and Hogan spearheaded the only push that ever put Vinny Mac on the ropes.

And whoever said that Foley's first title win was the biggest pop ever, no way. Hogan's pop on entrance and win at WM3, as well as his pop for the Hulk Up against Savage at WM 5 are the two biggest pops of all time, IMO.

Anyway, the eras are so different, it's difficult to compare. I'd have Hogan, Sammartino, Flair, Austin, and Rocky on the top tier, with Hogan leading the way, followed by Austin, Flair, Sammartino, and Rocky. I personally love the ROck more than anyone other then Hogan, but his time was just too short. Same could be said for Austin, but he got more over than Rocky did. If he'd been able to maintain it? Who knows, without the injuries, etc. But he didn't. Hogan did. And that's why Hogan is bigger than Austin.

 

[waylonmercy]

People say Austin got better ratings but didnt Hogan vs. Andre do a 15 rating on NBC for Saturday Night's Main Event? They also didn't have national TV exposure just syndicated programming to my best recollection and the A show then was WWF Superstars. I never saw that Prime Time show or whatever it was with Gorilla and Heenan or the McMahon interviews so no clue what that concept was about. My point is Hogan in his prime didn't have weekly first run programmed shows like Raw or Smackdown so the answer of who outdrew who in ratings is IMPOSSIBLE.

It's like guessing whos the greatest baseball player ever.

 

[school-of-hard-knocks]

Austin is bigger than Hogan in my opinion. He has drawn more people into wrestling, sold more merchandise and made more money for WWE than Hogan ever did. Hogan has been around longer and was the "top guy" longer than Austin but if you look at both of them in their prime/peak Austin definitely has the edge.

 

[Genius_Deadman]

People say Austin got better ratings but didnt Hogan vs. Andre do a 15 rating on NBC for Saturday Night's Main Event? They also didn't have national TV exposure just syndicated programming to my best recollection and the A show then was WWF Superstars. I never saw that Prime Time show or whatever it was with Gorilla and Heenan or the McMahon interviews so no clue what that concept was about. My point is Hogan in his prime didn't have weekly first run programmed shows like Raw or Smackdown so the answer of who outdrew who in ratings is IMPOSSIBLE.

It's like guessing whos the greatest baseball player ever.

Stone cold had 5 years and that is it. He wasn't even the most popular all of those 5 years ie the rock and shawn michaels were. So hogan is far above austins status.

i gotta really disagree with these statements here. Austin won ratings = Monday Night Wars. not mentioning what Hogan did when Austin wasn't even big. onto the other statement: Austin wasn't even the more popular guy? when you think Attitude Era, you think "Stone Cold". Shawn Michaels was never "THE" guy. yeah he got a title reign but his "New Generation" push was an epic failure. when did the ratings really begin to sky rocket? when good ol' HBK got hurt and DX became relevant as a "group" instead of 2 guys. and i think you answered the case in your own argument: Austin had from 1996-2001 (as some view the Attitude Era ended in 2001), in those 5 years he made more money than Hogan, he beat Hogan in the ratings, and while Hogan was putting that company in the toilet ratings wise, Austin climbed up and helped kill the momentum of what Hogan helped make big. true, Austin had the Rock, but Hogan had Warrior and Savage too.

 

[drew1]

i'm sorry, but austin is not on hogan's level. at all. C'mon guys. You guys are still fresh off the austin hysteria which was within the last ten years. You guys just said Hogan was the biggest star of the 80's yet you say austin beat him in the ratings in the 90's.....exactly!!! Hogan was the biggest name in the 80's and was dominiate for much of the 90's also until the late 90's. And hogan was waaaaaay past his prime when austin beat him in the ratings. And also The main argument for Hogan was that not only was he a big name in both decades, but he was the main man in both organizations. He was the top dog in wwf and wcw. Austin had about 5 years in the wwe.

And lets not compare the merchandise sales. The late 80's you could only purchase merchandise at house shows, while in th elate 90's you had the internet and as was said before, wal marts and k marts.

And just for arguments sake, hbk was the man before austin, for four years, when raw beat wcw, as many wwe sars have stated, it was a culmination of austin and dx, mainly austin though, but dx merchandise was flying of the shelves.

 

[ThePeoplesChampion]

Im doing exactly like others are doing and putting the rock in there as well.....i believe Hogan was a mega star...but i mean you hear the same loud pop from the crowd for Austin and Rock....i personally think all these guys are on a level or planet of there own....no one will sell or get the pops as big as these men....being 20 i really never saw hogan in his hayday except for replays and videos....Hogan everyone cheered for him own his clothes knew his lines...exact thing can be said for Rock and Austin...and all kinda became bigger than the industry itself....people who werent fans know who Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, and Hulk Hogan are....so i put all three on the same level....and if anyone is to catch up and possible join them it would be John Cena...but he is still leagues behind these legends.

 

[drew1]

Also i think another fair point would be when wcw first gained the upper hand in the monday night wars, it was heavily due to the sudden turn of hogans character to heel. As nooooooo one saw it coming and it just made things crazier and made him the top heel in the buissness, so even as a heel they turned in to see hogan. When austin turned heel and joined vinnie mac and turned on the rock, the ratings declined. As mick foley said, when austin turned heel people just turned away. Hogan was a polarizing star as heel and as face. Hogan is the biggest star of wrestling, then austin, then flair or rock.

 

[SSJPhenom]

It all depends on what you look at. If you want to go by in ring ability, mic skills, and all of that, then it is Austin. If you look at the ability to draw, merchandise, and what have you, then it is Hogan.

I found Austin ten times more entertaining than Hogan ever was. Austin also was a huge draw, he sold merchandise, and he is the main reason that WWE won the Monday night wars. The problem with Austin, though, is that Austin was a huge draw and he sold alot of merchandise for only about 6 years, while Hogan was being the number draw for about 15 years. Hogan is definately the biggest selling wrestler of all times and if that is what we go by, then Hogan is the greatest professional wrestler ever.

I would rather watch Austin, but opinion does not matter when you are having an objective discussion.