One MIND-BLOWING Secret From Every WWE Royal Rumble

1998 - Hulk Hogan Was Teased To Appear…

Hollywood Hogan Nitro
WWE.com

…sort of.

A carny business like pro wrestling was always going to gravitate to the hotline racket, because it - a pre-mainstream internet means of spreading gossip - was a flagrant work. If you’re a younger fan who knows nothing about it, here’s a rundown:

It would cost a small fortune to make the phone call; if your parents were wise to the scheme, they’d never let you ring the number. If you somehow successfully pestered them into a state of “whatever, just leave me alone for five goddamn minutes” fatigue, you will recall how it worked.

The host service would keep you on the line forever, would first reel off short summaries of the promised scoops, promote some other stuff for an eternity, and then in excruciating detail and at a slow pace run through said scoops in the order of least to most interesting. By the time you got to the information you very clearly specifically utilised the service to learn, it was revealed not to be major breaking news at all.

Ahead of Royal Rumble 1998, the WWF Hotline promised the scoop on those red-hot rumours about Hulk Hogan’s shocking, epic World Wrestling Federation comeback. Was he jumping from WCW (or the New World Order) to the WWF and returning at the Royal Rumble?! Which, conveniently, is just days away?!

Customers were told that, in no uncertain terms, no: Hogan is not returning. They need not have bothered clarifying what wasn’t exactly the talking point on everybody’s lips - but, by teasing that this was something of a possibility, enough to shoot down anyway, they made a few quid.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!