6. The Rock vs. Hollywood Hulk Hogan - WrestleMania X-8
In 2002, Hulk Hogan made his return to the WWE for the first time since leaving during the year of the steroid scandal. He came back to a raucous ovation from the live audiences, who refused to treat him as a full heel despite his alliance with The New World Order, brought in by Vince McMahon to destroy his own company amidst split ownership with Ric Flair. The Rock challenged Hogan to a match on Raw after Hogan claimed to be the biggest star in WWE history. Hulk Hoganyou talk about headliningmain-eventingWrestleMania after WrestleMania after WrestleMania. Well, The Rock says, How bout headlining one more WrestleMania WITH THE ROCK!? And that was all that was needed to set that stage. When Hogans NWO music hit that night in Toronto, the building erupted into a roar that was quite possibly the loudest ever heard for a wrestling match. Rock had to play the heel because of how over Hogan was. The fans turned on The Rock, who had been positioned as the WWEs top babyface for a couple of years. It was quite a sight. The match that they performed was very basic, but the crowd ate up everything that they did. If Hulk did a signature pose, the crowd went bananas. When he did a heel tactic, the crowd went wild. It was such an amazing atmosphere. The thing that people tend to forget about this match was that it had been so long since we had seen Hogan play his WWE role. When he kicked out of the Rock Bottom and Hulked Up, an entire generation of fans jumped out of their seats. The drama in that match was unmatched, so when Rock kicked out of the big boot and leg drop combination, it was just unreal. RememberHogans big boot-leg drop combo had put down Andre and Macho Man, among others. Rock putting him away shortly thereafter made sense, but you found yourself wanting Hogan to win. This is another polarizing match. You rarely see someone say it was very good. It is either average or its awesome. Bottom line: the wrestling was just what it needed to be and nothing less. The Rock carried the load in one of the truly defining performances of his career. Of course, the crowd energy was unmatched. What a moment!
"The Doc" Chad Matthews has written wrestling columns for over a decade. A physician by trade, Matthews began writing about wrestling as a hobby, but it became a passion. After 30 years as a wrestling fan, "The Doc" gives an unmatched analytical perspective on pro wrestling in the modern era. He is a long-time columnist for Lordsofpain.net and hosts a weekly podcast on the LOP Radio Network called "The Doc Says." His first book - The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment - ranks the Top 90 wrestlers from 1983 to present day, was originally published in December 2013, and is now in its third edition.
Matthews lives in North Carolina with his wife, two kids, and two dogs.
