10 Huge Bust-Ups Between Wrestlers And Bookers

9. Hulk Hogan Vs. Vince Russo

Do The Job Austin McMahon
WWE.com

Christ, parsing through this farce is migraine-inducing. So not dissimilar to watching a 2000 episode of Thunder, then.

Right.

Vince Russo, Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan concocted a work in which Hogan would "lie down" at Bash At The Beach, thus volunteering the World Championship to Jeff Jarrett. Since WCW leaped headfirst into the abyss with almost this exact finish a year and a half earlier, this was about as dumb an idea as...hiring Vince Russo twice. All went according to plan, until Vince Russo did not know it a work when he worked a work and worked himself into a shoot, mark.

Russo absolutely ethered Hogan in a promo later in the night, in a bid to further work the worked shoot that swerve-turned into a shoot shoot bro, by calling Hogan a "piece of sh*t" who didn't "give a sh*t" about WCW. Russo promised WCW fans that they'd never see him again, lest he condemn himself to the goddamn grave. Russo, simply, was sick of the Hulkster's ego-driven politicking.

"I came back for the Booker Ts," Russo said, which might have set Hogan off, and a long and insane legal battle ensued.

Who was in the right?

They were all utterly deranged carny maniacs.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!