10 WWE Wrestlers Vince McMahon Loved At First Sight

10. Hulk Hogan

Without hyperbole or sales patter, Vince McMahon’s 1980s affection for Hulk Hogan is the reason North American pro wrestling as viewed today came to be. The blueprint, the benchmark and beta-tested model of a Sports Entertainment success story, the infatuation McMahon had with an AWA star his father had cast aside drove a countrywide takeover and worldwide revolution.

Hogan had been part of New York’s plans as a heel before his decision to accept the part as Thunderlips in Rocky III drew the ire of traditionalist Vince McMahon Sr. Unwelcome in the WWF following the cinematic sidestep, ‘The Hulkster’ ventures to Verne Gagne’s American Wrestling Association and honed many of the details that later became global shorthand for the industry.

In Hogan’s look, magnetic charisma and increasingly shrewd crowd control, McMahon saw his star upon seizing the reins of the organisation from his father. Believing heavily in his grand vision, he booked Hogan as an entirely different babyface figurehead to former WWE Champion Bob Backlund, transforming casual perceptions of the wrestling business in the process.

It was so successful, he tried it again for the rest of his professional career. McMahon can fake or even force enthusiasm for other body types, personality quirks or promo styles, but this package took him from the pro wrestling outhouse to the hoi polloi penthouse. He never forgot his first.