UFC Founder Disputes Hulk Hogan's Claim He Was Offered UFC Fight

Were Hogan's comments some sort of work?

Last week in an interview with Australia's Herald Sun, WWE legend Hulk Hogan mentioned that he had the opportunity to fight in the UFC during the early days of the mixed martial arts promotion. Hogan, who would have been roughly forty years old when the UFC was getting off the ground, claimed however that he turned the promotion down as it was "too violent." Speaking to the Herald Sun, he stated;
"We looked at it and it was very violent and the referees weren€™t stopping the matches and letting guys get beat up when they should have been stopped."
Was this just Hogan telling tall tales? Believe it or not, there would be precedent for someone in his forties joining the UFC. Beyond the fact that fighters like Randy Couture and Dan Henderson have fought well into their forties, back at UFC 4, Ron van Clief competed at fifty-one years of age. That said, it seems odd that word of Hogan's potential involvement never saw the light of day until now. Apparently the story was brought to the attention of UFC founder Campbell McLaren, possibly by several fans and the UFC's Joe Rogan. Campbell, who started up the fighting outfit back in the 90s with Art Davie, originally marketed it as a "no holds barred" and "no rules" fighting competition featuring fighters from various fighting disciplines. The first UFC event saw Brazilian Jiu-jitsu ace Royce Gracie, of the legendary Gracie family, become the breakout star of the promotion. McLaren did not mince words when responding to Hogan's claims on Twitter today, saying;
"I call B******* on Hulk Hogan. I never wanted him in #originalUFC. Who did he talk to? not me." @joerogan Joe I never wanted Hulk Hogan in UFC. No one asked him. B******* if he says different.
Even if Hogan's comments were some sort of work, these days, many wrestlers have considered MMA careers, and the likes of Brock Lesnar, Bobby Lashley, and now Phil "CM Punk" Brooks have made the jump. Others, including Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, have been very vocal in stating that had the money been an option at the time, they would have given MMA a shot.
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Primarily covering the sport of MMA from Ontario, Canada, Jay Anderson has been writing for various publications covering sports, technology, and pop culture since 2001. Jay holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Guelph, and a Certificate in Leadership Skills from Humber College.