10 WWE Wrestlers That Went From The Top To The Bottom Then Back Again

4. Hulk Hogan

Hulk Hogan 2002
WWE

As the explosive end of the eighties became the unnerving early nineties, biggest-wrestling-star-of-all-time Hulk Hogan was eventually burned by the hot bullsh*t he'd been spouting years prior.

The bloom was off wrestling's rose by 1992, with WWE suddenly paying the penalty for being most prominent representation of something much of America had deemed an eyesore. Steroid and sex scandals engulfed the company - and by default Hogan - and away he went for a year until the heat died down. The damage to morale and booking his 1993 return did left scars on the company that deepened when he signed with WCW in 1994. For the bulk of the following eight years, they threw more dirt on Hulkamania than 'The Hulkster's own early Atlanta run.

He was older than dinosaurs, he always sucked in the ring anyway, his act was stupid, the whole shebang. WWE had extracted every penny from it all from 1984-1991 but none of that sh*t now we've got Austin and Rock and Mankind and - sigh - Hunter, pal.

Not until there was new money to be made from it anyway. The Rock graciously allowed Hollywood Hogan to be Hulk in their WrestleMania classic, and a title match match was inevitable. It was death to business almost immediately after he defeated Triple H a month later, but it very briefly gave life to nostalgia people desperately wanted to enjoy.

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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, Fightful, POST Wrestling, 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