10 Stages Of The WWE Championship’s Devolution: From Prize To Prop
9. Hulkamania Runs Wild
Hulk Hogan retained the essence of Bruno, but amplified it - here was a true mainstream superstar with the vibrant colour scheme, Hollywood physique, and preternatural crowd manipulation nous to emerge as the first major star of the super-popular national era, with a staunch (onscreen) moral code allowing previously hesitant families to accept pro wrestling as something more than a vicious bloodsport.
Hogan's first reign with the WWF Heavyweight championship was a gigantic, near-unprecedented success, insofar as scale. He remained champion for so long because he was an enduring draw. It's all monetary, ultimately - but his tanned box office muscle positively affected the aura of his crown, even if that was a secondary concern. That he held it for so long, in spite of the loaded talent roster in reality and the storyline monsters he swatted away, virtually elevated it into the realm of the holy grail. In the wake of WrestleMania III, at which he vanquished Andre The Giant, who had been expertly positioned as the immovable object, his legend grew. Hogan did move him, in the famous body slam heard 'round the world.
Like the man who held it, the WWF Heavyweight championship became immortal - though not entirely symbiotic, given that Randy Savage maintained the massive business Hogan generated, thus becoming perhaps the least appreciated pro wrestling draw ever.