Ric Flair on the general disdain for Hulk Hogan

[balser]

Hogan changed the business twice in two different companies in two different decades. Two booms wouldn't have happened without him. Outside of Vince Mcmahon there is no person more important and had a bigger impact than Hulk Hogan."Hulk Hogan should be remembered as the greatest attraction this business has ever seen." --Bobby Heenan
Thank you, Terry Bollea

[jamesblair]

I was never a Hogan fan but Ric is right. The Hulkamania deal with Vince for better or worse took wrestling national and made tons of cash. Personally I preferred the territory days but I grew up in Dallas in the 70’s and 80’s on the Von Erich’s Flair, Race The Freebirds etc But there is no denying the drawing power of Hulkamania.

[eddiedibari]

Hulk Hogan as I've said many times did what he was supposed to do. Brawl! In WWF he wasn't suppose to wrestle. He was there to brawl. In Japan he could wrestle and he showed it. When Hogan wrestled I can honestly say I got emotional lol. He made you feel that. Loved Hulk Hogan!

[dustingreene]

Glad to hear Ric saying good things about Hulk. I get really tired of younger fans going on and on about muh workrate when the bonafide gymnasts they put up on a pedestal where never and will never be as over as the Hulkster!

[justingause]

Met Ric Flair in 2010 at a TNA show and met Hulk Hogan in 2014 at a Comin Con 2 weeks b4 WM30. Both Legends are Class Acts.... HULKAMANIA

[williammccollom]

Hogan was a great wrestler, not so much the actual technical skills, but where Hogan was great is at telling a story in the ring, made the giants he faced look like absolute monsters and always looked like a million dollars. He knew what he was good at and was smart enough to stay with what worked.

[snakebrown]

What sometimes gets left out is what a great seller Hogan could be. I mean, the guy was enormous, maybe one rung below being considered a giant in his day, but he could get you to believe he was always just on the cusp of losing his title. Check out his matches against Dr. D or Magnificent Muroco and see what I mean. He really could draw you in and get invested in the match like no one else. Especially kids and casuals, who were the target audience in those early Hulkamania days.

[phillipcotton]

Watching these videos of Flair's experiences, & opinions are refreshing. The ONE THING I take from them above all others is that Ric was entrenched in Wrestling. Not saying that this wasn't the case for other Pro Wrestlers, but there's a fondness to his storytelling that speaks to his love for his achievement in the business.

[Bigjizay]

Ric Flair will tell you: It's about putting ***es in seats, and Hulk Hogan did just that

[BillyBob-ecox]

Hogan’s final greatness, ultimately, is that he changed the business in 2 completely different ways, at 2 completely different points in time. One as a face, one as a heel. One change helped put guys like Savage, Warrior, Sting, and Jake Roberts on the map. And the other change helped ultimately helped put guys like Austin, Rock, Foley, and HHH on the map. If Hogan doesn’t go NWO, 3:16 never happens. It’s that simple. Hogan essentially cast a long shadow over the entire business from 1982 to 2002. His actions directly maneuvered the industry and allowed the space to get several of the other guys we got. His importance can never be underestimated. Like him or not

[bradgaines]

Hogan is the GOAT because he had 2 MEGA runs. Nobody was more over than Hogan in the mid/late 80s. An argument could be made that Austin and Rock were just as over, but what separates Hogan from them is his 2nd MEGA run in the NWO.

[bwtv]

Hulk Hogan, Rocky 3, Cindy Lauper with Rock and Wrestling and cable TV made pro wrestling what it became in the 80s.

[Swededude]

Class Act of Ric Flair! If it wouldn't be for Hulk Hogan, I wouldn't probably even watched wrestling from the beginning (the year of 1986 when we got cable-TV in Sweden). Hulk Hogan was my childhood HERO, and still is. Often you hear; "Don't do the mistake and go meet your childhood hero. You will only be disappointed." Well, on October 1st, 2016, I travelled from Helsingborg, Sweden to Clearwater, Florida, USA and met up with my childhood hero, Hulk Hogan. That was absolutely one af the BEST days of my life! Hulk Hogan really took his time and was so nice and present, and I left so overwhelmed over that my dream since childhood of finally meeting him came true! I will FOREVER be a Hulkamaniac! <3

[waynesworld]

Vince and Hulk changed pro wrestling forever.

[danlc]

Flair and Hogan were the biggest icons of the 80's.

Great to hear Ric discuss this.

[kardave]

Flair loves Hulk! He helped him when he needed it the most!

[NemeanLion-]

I was watching wrestling in the 70’s and early 80’s back when the only time it aired, was at midnight. Wrestling was a sweaty, underground sideshow that was held in smoke filled halls. Hulk Hogan single-handedly brought pro wrestling mainstream. He had that “it” factor. All you need to do is watch his match with the Iron Sheik and the rest is history.

[ianwebb]

Hulk is the reason anyone makes the money they make in wrestling, pretend that doesn't mean anything all you want

[thelowesttreeshavetops]

Lex Luger wrote in his autobiography that when he asked his trainer - Hiro Matsuda - to teach him more wrestling and high flying moves, Matsuda refused, because if a powerhouse like Lex did all those things, then what would his smaller opponents be able to do to stand out?

[hockeyman]

Best Flair promo ever is from 1/7/1999. You can find it right here on YouTube. Classic Flair. Priceless. With Mean Gene workin' the mic. It was right after the "Finger Poke of Doom" that got everyone in an uproar for a bit. Gene, a lot of people up at Big Sandy Lake sure miss you every summer.... RIP