10 Times Wrestlers Took Their Careers Into Their Own Hands
8. Hulk Hogan
The premise behind Hulk Hogan Vs. Mr. McMahon, at WrestleMania XIX, was simple: who created Hulkamania?
The AWA notwithstanding, Hogan had more input than most over his destiny. The luxury of unprecedented wrestling superstardom allowed Hogan profound creative input over his character. He never jobbed to anybody he deemed unworthy; he barely jobbed at all. And, when he did, he made d*mn sure to make the moment all about him. At WrestleMania VI, with his expert worker boots on, he cast Ultimate Challenge victor Ultimate Warrior as the Ultimate Fluke.
In WCW, Hogan demanded this informal power on a contractual basis. His star power dwarfed that of WCW. He knew this, and thus essentially held it to ransom. Sting, to his greedy eyes, did not arrive at StarrCade '97 in great shape. Hogan, ignoring the directive of the redundant creative regime, instructed referee Nick Patrick to make Sting - reaching the apex of an 18 month push - to look a right tw*t.
He needed no in-writing guarantee to reshape the WWF in his own image upon his '02 return; riding a wave of nostalgia, he simply turned himself face against The Rock at 'Mania X8, and hastened plans to grab the WWF Title.