10 Surprising Wrestlers Who've Done Deathmatches

2. Hulk Hogan

Hulk Hogan Harley Race Deathmatch
WWE

At least Flair was known for bleeding. Hulk Hogan, meanwhile, wasn't.

Vince McMahon's poster boy for an entire generation is best-remembered for cutting killer promos, dropping a leg, tearing his own shirts off and posing for fans. He was a cartoon character come to life for the WWF's golden era, and he rarely broke out of his winning, established formula.

That's why it's almost awkward to envision Hulk (amidst full 'Hulkamania' pomp) working a 'Texas Deathmatch' with an aging Harley Race in May 1987. Seeing a man best-known for being the gruff NWA World Heavyweight Champion work a 'King' gimmick and tangle so fiercely with Hulk f'n Hogan was like a late-'80s fever dream.

The Boston Garden crowd could count themselves lucky. This was not an era that birthed deathmatches, especially not in McMahon's glitzy world of larger-than-life characters, kid-friendly bluster and Saturday morning TV.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.