When someone is a big name in wrestling, it’s natural they want to help out their buddies. And few names are as big as Hulk Hogan. Even those who may not have liked Hogan recognized he was a power in the 1980s and ‘90s, and being on his good side could benefit a career. Several workers were majorly helped because they were Hogan's pal, such as The Giant (Big Show) and Randy Savage and he helped them become stars of their own.
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But other times, Hogan’s friendships led to pushes that, frankly, were not deserved. Some were people who never should have been in a prime spot, but they got pushed thanks to their connection to Hogan. Others were folks long past their primes, but they were getting a shot because The Hulkster liked them. These 10 stars are the most ridiculous examples of someone being pushed just because they were close to The Immortal One. Oh, brother!
10 Mr. T
Mr. T was a huge star in the 1980s, so he and Hogan working together at WrestleMania made total sense. But by 1994, Mr. T’s fame had slumped (although he had a nice comeback poking fun at himself a decade later).
Yet Hogan pulled Mr. T back into WCW, first as a special aide and enforcer, then the referee for his Halloween Havoc match with Ric Flair. Mr. T then got into a feud with Kevin Sullivan, culminating in a terrible Starrcade match. While Mr. T wasn’t as awful as others, pushing him so much was another reason many WCW fans didn’t take to Hogan’s run.
9 Brooke Hogan
Okay, this is more nepotism than friendship, but it has to count. Of all the crazy things TNA did in the Hogan era, giving major screen time to his daughter Brooke was one of the nuttiest. TNA tried to promote her as a “multimedia star” which was bad enough but then she was made head of the Knockouts.
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Yes, a woman who clearly couldn’t perform an Irish Whip was telling the female wrestlers what to do. Then there was her at the center of the storyline with Bully Ray. It’s one of the worst cases ever of a family member being pushed just because their dad was a key leader in the company.
8 Virgil
Recently, Virgil made news by claiming he “made” Hulk Hogan’s career. That’s laughable, given that it’s clearly the opposite. In fact, in the past, Virgil has openly acknowledged the only reason he was hired by WCW was Hogan.
Granted, the entire Vincent bit was a shot at Vince McMahon (just as “Virgil” had been a shot at Dusty Rhodes), yet Hogan was the one helping Virgil remain a member of the nWo all the way until the group’s end. No one was exactly beating down Virgil’s door to hire him before Hogan.
7 Horace Hogan
Another family member, Horace Hogan was Hogan’s nephew who had bounced around the indies for a while, coasting on the family name. In WCW, he was pushed a bit as part of Raven’s Flock. He then had an angle of Hogan proving his heel status by beating Horace down.
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Despite that, Horace aided Hulk in beating the Warrior at Halloween Havoc 1998. He was given further pushes like getting close to winning the tag titles and aiding his uncle against Billy Kidman. If not for that name, it’s unlikely Horace would have gotten as many shots in WCW.
6 Zeus
Tiny Lister sure looked like a monster as Zeus in No Holds Barred. He was imposing, terrifying, and had amazing charisma. Too bad he couldn’t work a single move right, or he would have been over nicely. He seemed to fade by late 1989, but Lister and Hogan remained on good terms.
This was why Hogan decided to bring Lister into WCW as Z-Gangsta, part of the Alliance to End Hulkamania. That included the infamous Doomsday Cage match at Uncensored 1996, where Hogan and Randy Savage easily beat the entire Alliance. Lister was a better wrestler in the movie and only got a second shot because of Hogan.
5 Earthquake/Avalanche
As Earthquake in WWE, John Tenta had been a good monster heel, resulting in a run as tag team champion. In WCW, he was first set as Avalanche. The hulking beast was still benefiting from his friendship with Hogan.
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But then he joined the Dungeon of Doom as the Shark, which included changing one of his tattoos to a shark-themed one. The Dungeon’s feud with Hogan was crazy and did not serve Tenta well. He went back to his regular name for a bit before being dropped, as his run in WCW was a disaster.
4 The Nasty Boys
In their prime, The Nasty Boys were a good team who reigned as WWE and WCW tag team champions. But by 2010, Brian Knobbs and Jerry Saggs were long past being effective in the ring.
Yet that didn’t stop Hogan from getting his old buddies signed to TNA and even attempting a push in the ring. That ended when it became obvious the pair couldn’t go two minutes without looking winded. Even Hogan couldn’t keep them on the roster long, let alone a sustained push, but them even being hired was a warning sign to Hogan’s run in TNA.
3 Honky Tonk Man
Today, the Honky Tonk Man slams Hogan a lot, but that ignores how Hogan’s influence got HTM hired for WWE and the quirk of fate leading to his record Intercontinental Title run. It’s also why Honky Tonk was among the ex-WWE guys hired when Hogan joined WCW in 1994.
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He was doing the exact same act, right down to a nearly identical theme song, and he was pushed into a feud with TV Champion Johnny B. Badd. As it happened, Honky had a falling-out with demands for more money and was gone in months, yet for all his bad-mouthing of Hogan today, HTM owed a late WCW run to the guy.
2 Jim Duggan
If there’s a low point to Steve Austin’s career, Fall Brawl 1994 is it. Austin was to face Ricky Steamboat for the U.S. Title, but Steamboat had to forfeit the belt because of his career-ending back injury. Austin was then ordered to defend the belt against Hacksaw Jim Duggan.
One backdrop and a weak cover later and Duggan was the U.S. Champion. Jobbing the hot Austin to the long past-his-prime Duggan was ludicrous, with Duggan soon dropping the belt to Vader. Combine this with his firing and no wonder Austin hated WCW.
1 Brutus Beefcake
Ed Leslie wasn’t a bad wrestler, but he was strictly an upper midcard guy. He was also never the same after a brutal parasailing accident mangled his face in 1990. Yet there was Hogan, in 1994, having “The Butcher” turn on him and then headline Starrcade.
Having Leslie, of all people, in the main event of WCW’s biggest PPV was crazy and a terrible match. But Hogan made sure Leslie had plenty to do with gimmicks like The Zodiac, The Booty Man, and The Disciple while Hogan was the only reason WCW kept Leslie on the payroll.
