Jessi Virtusio of The Southtown Star has an interview up with Hulk Hogan. Here are some of the highlights.
On if he ever plans to get back in the ring:
“I’m trying to figure that out. I’ve had two back surgeries in the last five months. Just the middle of my waistline up and halfway down my back, it’s so stiff that I just can’t seem to get flexible. I’m trying to work through it. I’m 55 years old. With the knee replacements and hip replacements, I’m trying to not joke or fool myself. I’m trying to get a logical assessment. I’m dying to do it. I’m dying to get in there. To me, it’s fun to get in there. There has to be a talented wrestler willing to slow dance with me. I could go out there and pretty much do almost everything I could do before. I couldn’t do the leg drop anymore because of my lower back. I could go out and have fun. It’s going to take more time to see if I can get steady enough to even attempt something like that.”
On who he would pick for a dream match:
“The match that everybody would love to see would be Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair,” said Hogan, who picked that as his top dream match. “Everyone would love to see me kick Vince McMahon again. Hulk Hogan-“Stone Cold” Steve Austin (is another match). Stone Cold’s bragger’s claim to fame is: ‘I never wrestled Hulk Hogan.’ I think he thinks he’s God’s gift to wrestling. It would be a tremendous match for the fans. If he can get on the same page with me and put ego out of the way, who cares who wins? It would be a match people would love to see.”
On watching TNA and WWE:
“”I watch both products. (TNA’s) like the little engine that could. Everybody thought they wouldn’t be around for long, and they’ve been chugging along for seven years. They gain momentum every week. They seem to be real fresh. When a lot of guys go over to that side of the fence, they seem to get a spring in their step. I also watch Vince’s product (WWE). Vince is the constant. He’s the standard of excellence. I just love watching his show because you never know what he is going to do. Plus, the production — you can’t even touch his production. It’s so dialed-in. It’s amazing just to see how they put the pieces together.”
On what TNA is lacking to take it to the next level:
“TNA is lacking that one momentum-shifting move, that one big name that would even the playing field, the brand (that is) just as powerful as the WWE brand. (TNA’s) lacking the big piece of the puzzle. It wouldn’t matter who did what in the past. It will be a totally even playing field. You never know. If you look at history, everyone says, ‘History repeats itself.’ With all of the choices in the universe of entertainment, I look at the big package and look at the big picture from 40,000 feet. I see history repeating itself. I see TNA getting strong. I see Vince McMahon being impeccable except for a few little holes in the boat.”
His thoughts on the “Celebrity Championship Wrestling” show:
“We got too full of ourselves. We fell into that celebrity elimination formula. We should have followed our gut before. We should have went (with) the ‘American Idol’ type of people that would leave their homes and families and sleep in cars to become wrestlers. We’ve been in constant talks (with CMT). We’re trying to get the budget way down. The budget was huge. I think there was a real shot at maybe revamping that thing and making it bigger and better. Just how the crowd reacted, I had no idea that teaching a bunch of celebrities three moves in the first week (would go over so well).”
To check out the rest of the interview, click here.
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