Dansby: Hogan Ignoring Real Issue
In a recent interview on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Hulk Hogan expressed confusion over the persistent boos he receives from WWE fans, speculating that it might be due to his past as the heel “Hollywood Hogan” or his public support for Donald Trump. But as Kel Dansby argues in a Yahoo Sports column, the boos have nothing to do with wrestling storylines or politics—and everything to do with Hogan’s long-unaddressed history of racist remarks.
Dansby highlights the 2015 scandal where Hogan, in a leaked sex tape, used the N-word repeatedly and said he would be upset if his daughter dated a Black man. Hogan also said, “I guess we’re all a little racist,” in comments that shocked fans and led WWE to terminate his contract and remove him from the Hall of Fame. Though reinstated in 2018, Hogan’s apology was widely criticized for lacking sincerity and focusing on being caught rather than expressing remorse for what he said. Many wrestlers reportedly felt that his locker room address at the time was more about his own image than accountability.
Dansby also points to an earlier incident during Hogan’s WCW run when he dropped the N-word during a promo with Booker T—an incident that has resurfaced over the years as part of a troubling pattern.
Recent comments from Shelton Benjamin added fuel to the fire. During media appearances for his new “Real American Freestyle Wrestling” venture, Hogan repeatedly misnamed the longtime WWE star as “Benjamin Shelton.” Benjamin fired back on social media, writing, “You lost me forever with your ‘don’t get caught’ … or as you would call it ‘apology’ speech,” and asked Hogan to “keep my name out of your f---ing mouth.”
Fellow wrestler MVP echoed the sentiment, calling Hogan a “pathological lying piece of human excrement.” These comments reflect a broader unwillingness among Black wrestlers to accept Hogan’s presence in the industry without a sincere reckoning.
The ongoing negative reactions Hogan receives at WWE events—such as at the Netflix debut of Raw—are not mysteries. As Dansby writes, they are “consequences” of an unresolved legacy.
Sources: The MMA Hour (Ariel Helwani), Kel Dansby for Yahoo Sports, DMV Wrestling News, Sports Illustrated