15 Biggest Political Power Plays By WWE Talents
3. Hulk Hogan Refuses To Work With Bret Hart
After departing WWE at WrestleMania VIII, Hogan made his in-ring return at WrestleMania IX in April of '93.
At the event, Hogan first challenged for the Tag Team Championships (along with Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake) before taking part in an impromptu match to close the show. Only seconds after cheating to defeat Bret Hart for the WWF Championship, Yokozuna lost the title to the Hulkster in an unadvertised second (but extremely short) WWF title match.
With Hogan retaining in rematches against Yokozuna throughout the summer and Bret Hart winning the King Of The Ring tournament in June, the plan was for Bret vs. Hulk to headline SummerSlam '93. Bret even remembers taking pictures for WWF Magazine in which he and Hulk were photographed having a tug-of-war with the WWF title belt.
Behind closed doors though, Hogan had been telling Vince that he did not think Bret was on his level and eventually refused to drop the title as originally planned. In Hogan's mind, Bret lacked the physical stature to be taken seriously as a main event draw and, instead, found that foe in Yokozuna. Obviously, Bret took great offense to this and voiced his displeasure to McMahon, whom later claimed the match was to be non-title.
Instead, Hogan dropped the belt to Yoko at King Of The Ring and departed WWE shortly after. Bret was shuffled down the card and the Lex Express became the focal point of SummerSlam '93. Thanks, Hulk.