Top 10 Hulk Hogan matches

[Hulkamaniac]

Look, the guy isn't going to ever be confused with Shawn Michaels in the ring, and he shouldn't have to. He got over (more over then anyone) by doing his thing that he perfected in the WWF, and the man could tell a story in the ring with his limited stuff that could rival anyone. HOgan brought a drama and intensity to his matches that few could ever match. That said, here are my Top 10 Hulk Hogan matches.

10. Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon (Wrestlemania XIX) - Shocking that this match ended up being so awesome, and credit belongs to McMahon just as much as Hogan, but I really enjoyed this. It told a great story, and both men really gave it all they had, and Hogan went outside of his normal routine to show that this match "meant something more."

9. Hulk Hogan vs. Triple H (Backlash 2002) - Purely for the nostalgia of Hogan winning the strap one more time, and showing that he could "hang with the young bucks." Very cool match.

8. Hulk Hogan vs. Vader (Uncensored 1995) - Intriguing, as Vader was pretty much the dominant monster of the time period in either company, and the match was brutal, and just well done by both guys. It was a great story told by both men.

7. Hulk Hogan vs. Shawn Michaels (Summerslam 2002) - Shawn Michaels is an asshole. Bottom line, he tried to embarrass Hogan. So, really, my enjoyment from this match was purely from watching Shawn lose. Really, one of the most unprofessional things I've ever seen on that side of the curtain, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised from the guy who gave us the MSG Curtain Call.

6. Hulk Hogan vs. 29 other guys (Royal Rumble 1990) - The better of Hogan's two RR wins. I love the Royal Rumble, and it was a hot gimmick at the time, but it was just that...a gimmick. Hogan's win really put the match over as a HUGE deal, and gave it the credibility to become a lasting fixture, which I love.

5. Hulk Hogan vs. Ric Flair (Halloween Havoc 1994) - This match was a Steel Cage Retirement Match. I absolutely loved this match, and it's one of the few Hogan-Flair matches that really reached the level of intensity/spectacle it deserved. It was just great work from both guys, and the stakes felt very important and very real. I also appreciated it because it showed HOgan could do his think right there with Flair and not pale in comparison in the ring.

4. Hulk Hogan vs. the Ultimate Warrior (Wrestlemania VI) - At the time, this felt like maybe the biggest match ever, and it lived up to and surpassed that hype, at least to me as a kid. Looking back now, it's even more impressive when you understand the limits of Hogan and the even bigger limits of Warrior. It's startling that Hogan carried him to the best match of his career (IMO, I know others like the Savage match next year). I would rank it higher, but Hogan lost, so....

3. Hulk Hogan vs. the Rock (Wrestlemania X-8) - This match felt like an event. I had gotten out of watching the product a few years back, but I heard about this, and I came back for this match. The crowd was maybe the hottest crowd of all time, and the staredown between Hogan and Rock was just such a MOMENT. The staredown is something that nobody has been able to do like Hogan. I was also startled at how well Hogan was able to work, given his age and physical injuries, but I just enjoyed this match IMMENSELY.

2. Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant (Wrestlemania III) - Look, it wasn't a masterpiece, but the two Moments from this match are unforgettable and pivotal in Hogan's career. Their staredown to start the match is maybe THE most epic staredown EVER (in any sporting event). And then the Body Slam Heard Round the World. When it happened, nobody could believe it. Nobody thought it could be done. It's one of the defining moments of my childhood and wrestling history.

1. Hulk Hogan vs. Macho Man Randy Savage (Wrestlemania V) - People forget about this match, but personally, I love it. This is the culmination of maybe my favorite angle of all time, the Mega Powers Explode angle. The emotion was very real and very palpable, and the whole match had an epic feel (for me). Both guys worked their asses off and told an incredible story. It felt like there was no wasted motion, no wasted facial expression. I just loved it.

Thoughts?

 

[WWEWrestleFest]

from his nwo days, hogan/luger and hogan/goldberg should be on there. sure, they were both on free tv, but they were huge moments in wcw. so was hogan/sting at starrcade 97, at that point, it really looked like wcw was going to kill wwf. and hogan/ rodman vs ddp/malone was huge as far as mainstream exposure goes.

i'd put his first wcw match with flair from bash at the beach in there over the one you put. it wasn't as good of a match, but wwf had hogan and flair on their roster and they never gave them a proper match. they really dropped the ball on that one. wcw booked that as hogan's first match there.. it was truly a dream match at the time.

and i'm an old school guy, so to me, his matches/feuds with people like earthquake, the twin towers (when he was in the mega powers), sid justice, king kong bundy, sgt. slaughter, mr. perfect, etc. are all more memorable than the stuff he did with triple h, shawn michaels, vince mcmahon, or anything post wcw, really (except for wm18 with the rock) i'd rather say his early career, the stuff he did in awa, or when he first came to the wwf and fought the iron sheik would be better choices.

 

[Slim Pickns]

I do love me some Hulk Hogan. Its hard to rank his matches because I sort of like em all. I celebrate the man's entire catalog.

10. Hulk Hogan vs Earthquake at Summerslam 90
I remember what a great job they did with making people (or just me) believe Hogan was finished. He was going to get squashed by Earthquake and Hulkamania would die. The boston crab by Earthquake looked painful. After Hogan recovered and won I thought Hogan was stronger than before he was defeated by Warrior.

9. Hogan vs Vince McMahon Wrestlemania XIX
Again, no one can hype a match like Hogan. The guy could cut a promo on your bathroom and get it over with the crowd. The only person that comes close is Mr. McMahon. The hatred felt between these two was unbelievable. Watching them hammer each other at Wrestlemania was a huge moment for Hogan era fans.

8. Hogan vs HBK SummerSlam 02
Watching the crowd pop huge for Hogan and his win made this match special for Hogan. The fact that HBK got some cheers showed the respect fans had for both of these completely different stars. People try to say HBK should have won, but I can't see how. When two over the hill stars collide for historic purposes, the bigger name should win. Hogan is universally more popular than HBK so the right man went over. Shawn's overselling was unprofessional, but watching this match I can't help but laugh when he take the big boot. So funny.

7. Hogan vs Flair Bash at the Beach
For all most knew this was the first time these two met. It was the biggest main event in the history of WCW. The only thing it was missing is that it was at Bash at the Beach and not Starcade.

6. Mega Powers vs the Mega Bucks Summerslam 88
Since you included the Rumble in your list I'm assuming we are not talking about just singles matches. Therefor I'm including this. Remember when WWF could get away with having a tag team match main event a ppv? Its because these four were 99 different kinds of awesome.

5. Hulk Hogan vs Sgt. Slaughter Wrestlemania V
At this point in wrestling history Sarge made fans want to puke. Ultimate Warrior was the second most popular wrestler to Hogan. He came out covered in red, white, and blue. Then thanks to Savage he was pinned by the hated Slaughter. No one could wait to see The Real American Hulk Hogan tear him apart. Hogan delivered big time.

4. Hulk Hogan vs The Rock Wrestlemania X8
I was torn between putting this or the Mania VI match against Warrior here. I let the old school in me take over and ranked this a notch above. The crowd alone made this memorable. The were able to because this was truly icon vs icon. Two different eras colliding. The only thing missing was the Hogan victory. At the time however, it clearly made sense for Rock to go over and changing on the fly due to the crowd would have been difficult.

3. Hogan vs Warrior Wrestlemania VI
If you were a kid at this time, you shit your pants when they announced this match. Seriously admit it, you shit your pants at the Rumble when they faced off to a draw, and you shit your pants when Jack Tunney announced the match officially from his fake office. The showdown was incredible, the crowd was split. You couldn't win, you couldn't lose. The following year showed, despite the loss, that Hogan was still the man.

2. Hogan vs Andre Wrestlemania III
If you look up showdown in the dictionary, you see the definition of showdown. You should see a picture of Hogan and Andrew starring down center ring. When showdown is the word for a spelling bee and the kid asks to use it in a sentence, the guy should read "Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant was a hell of a showdown." This match was epic. According to WWE's official stat book, 9 kajillion people watched this match live from the Silverdome. I don't care how many people watch this match today and say it sucks. Wrestling is about the build up and the anticipation of how the match plays out. Every match degrades overtime and its easy to talk down about any match.

1. Hulk Hogan vs Randy "Macho Man" Savage Wrestlemania V
Savage was turned face a little over a year earlier. The fans were itching to cheer him and the trigger was pulled. The Mega Powers became the focus of every main event. It was awesome to watch as a fan because Savage was the WWF Champion and Hogan was still in the main event. However the real story was Savage jealous of Hogan stealing his thunder. I remember being so pissed at Savage's heel turn. The match itself was awesome as Hogan hadn't dealt with a high flyer like Savage in a long time. His previous battles were against monsters like Andre and Bundy. It gave everyone another perspective of what made Hogan great.