Hulk Hogan and Vince Russo had a strained relationship at times while working together in WCW. In an exclusive video, the latter addressed claims that The Hulkster made about him over the years in interviews.
Hogan, real name Terry Bollea, passed away at the age of 71 on July 24 after suffering a cardiac arrest at his home in Clearwater, Florida. After his WCW career ended in 2000, the two-time WWE Hall of Famer repeatedly claimed that Russo did not want him and other veterans in the main-event scene.
Russo, a WCW writer in 1999 and 2000, told Sportskeeda Wrestling host Mac Davis that Hogan’s assumption was wrong:
“I would hear Hulk say later on, ‘Oh, bro, people smartened me up and people told me that Russo’s plan was to get all the young guys over and get rid of all the veterans.’ No, bro, that was never the plan. That was never my intention. But, you know, bro, I had a reputation for pushing the younger guys. Mac, why am I pushing the younger guys? Bro, that’s business. The guys on top were getting older.” [1:45 – 2:15]
Watch the video above to hear Russo explain how his complicated relationship with Hulk Hogan began.
During Vince Russo’s short creative stint in WCW, Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair were two of the most experienced wrestlers on the roster.
Russo did not want the two legends to compete every week on television. However, he never intended to phase them out of storylines.
“Flair and Hogan were getting older, so what I need to do is I need to build the undercard, I need to build the mid-carders, and I need to get those legends in the right position,” Russo continued. “Hogan and Flair couldn’t be out there wrestling every week, so I had a plan. That was my plan, ‘Let’s get them positioned in the right spot, build the undercard.’ But the problem was Hogan and Flair convinced themselves that I was trying to get rid of them.” [2:15 – 2:51]
Russo added that he wanted the likes of Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, and Shane Douglas to receive more opportunities. Flair and Hogan then allegedly complained about him backstage to Bill Busch and JJ Dillon, resulting in a creative change behind the scenes.
