10 Times Wrestling Changed Due To Fan Backlash

3. Hulk Still Rules

Brock Lesnar Jinder Mahal
WWE

Credit to WWE for taking the gamble when fans seemed keen on one more run for Hulk Hogan, but they too simply fell victim to one of the greatest workers in industry history playing another mesmerising trick on the world at large.

Confident of a strong response after fans popped huge for his presence at Axxess the day before, WWE had no choice but to allow 'Hollywood' to hot dog in his WrestleMania X8 clash with The Rock, and even less chance of keeping him as a scumbag heel alongside New World Order partners Scott Hall and Kevin Nash in the aftermath.

Audiences really did seem to be clamouring for 'The Hulkster' to climb the mountain one more time - so much so that he was booked to beat Triple H at April's Backlash just a month removed from 'The Game's return to the summit after a lengthy injury layoff. Vince McMahon was perhaps only to happy to push one of his favourite ever success stories all over again, but had to rapidly reverse course when it became apparent how little interest there was in him financially.

The voluminous pops were ultimately falsifying the fan feedback - most simply weren't buying the what the elder statesman was selling.

 
Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett