Hey yo Stud Muffins and Foxy Ladies,
What is very interesting is that we still very much live in a post-1988 world as a pro wrestling fan. Most fans use 1984 as the dividing line between the pre-modern and modern year. On January 23, 1984 at Madison Square Garden, Hulk Hogan defeated The Iron Shiek to win his first WWF World Heavyweight Championship and embark on a historic 4 year reign that would lead the WWF out of the Northeast of the US and transform it into a global juggernaut. Thus 1984 seems like a reasonable start date for the modern era and I am not disputing that. What I am disputing is that an average smart wrestling fan's knowledge does not actually reach that far back. My evaluation of Ric Flair up until two years ago was almost entirely based on his post -1988 work. When you look up Hulk Hogan's most famous or best matches, the vast majority come from post-1988. There is a simple reason for that: PPVs. Supercards like Starrcade and Wrestlemania have existed long before either of those, but it was in 1988 that they really proliferated. The twofold power of promotion and national availability (at the time and afterwards via VHS & DVDs) made this the platform to judge pro wrestlers. One of my favorite sites growing up was Prowrestlinghistory.com, which yes does have some non-PPV supercards for America, but mainly focuses on PPVs. Immediately, I was fascinated by pro wrestling history and this led me to Scott Keith. His reviews were free (very important for an 8 year old) and comprehensive (he reviewed what I thought was everything). So now all wrestler's best and most matches list come from post-1988, but this is unfair to wrestlers like Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair. Flair's peak was roughly 1981-1990, living in a post-1988 world this limits him to three years to prove his case as the greatest of all time. How about the Hulkster, who gets the bum rap that he can't work and is just a lumbering giant. Well in a post-1988 world, you are cutting off his initial heel run, AWA run and entire chunk of his prime WWF World title reign that set the wrestling world on fire. Do I think that by watching Hogan in WWF from '84-'88, I am going to discover a lost super worker. Hell, no! I do think I will come out with a better appreciation of how effective Hogan was in between those ropes. With the advent of Youtube (the greatest technological creation of the 21st century), this is now all possible and wrestlers deserve to be evaluated on their whole careers rather than 4 specific nights a year (eventually 12). Not just that great workers like Flair deserve this treatment, but those who may have been maligned too.
So I set out to watch Hulk Hogan's prime run from 1984-1988 because I have seen only a handful matches (mostly the Savage matches) and I was drawing conclusions about Hogan from secondary sources and watching 90s matches. That is another reason when I think of great Hogan matches, I always think of his 90s work like the Slaughter Desert Storm, Vader SuperBrawl V and Flair Bash at the Beach '94. I contend the best match of his career was with Backlund in Philly in 1980, but how can I make that claim with such a gaping blind spot as his initial WWF World Title from '84 to '88.
Having looked at only 1984 so far, The Hulkster looks like a young pup compared to his 90s work. He is downright rambunctious in the ring. He is constantly fighting back and working underneath during the heat segments. He is overflowing with energy at the beginning of the match. A lot of "smart" wrestling fans will be shocked by this comment, but his work was dripping with effort. I grew up on Hollywood Hogan and have always loved that character. There was always disconnect with me and the Original Hulkster. I got the idea of an American Superman coming to life is pretty cool and appeals to a lot of demographics. It clicked watching this. The stuff I have watched in 89-91 is Hulk Hogan having done the same shtick since 1982 in the AWA. I would be bored too doing the same thing for 7+ years! Don't get me wrong Hogan half-assing it still has way more charisma than 99% of wrestlers in history. I just chocked up his mass appeal to his promos, but from an in-ring perspective I thought I was just too "smart" to get it. Once I got over myself and stopped being an elitist prick, you could feel the power of Hulkamania transcending space and time energizing me 30 years after the fact. It was this energy that I was missing. Remembering how wrestling works, people just did not plop down in 1989 and start watching (well some did), for most people Hulk Hogan was the champion for the past five years. He has built that cached up with the fans. Once he laid down that foundation, he did not have to work as hard, he just had to work smart. In 1984, he was still building that relationship and he was on fire in the ring. He came out guns blazing and always playing to that crowd. When it was time for his opponent to get heat, he was ready to sell, but still fight back and make him earn it. In the later years, Hogan was content to just get his ass beaten, but in these early years he was just so damn fiesty. I love a fiesty babyface. The comeback was not so formulaic yet and each one was unique (well to the opponent at least). The one thing that has not changed is that Hogan just is not a good bumper. He is a big man so I don't expect that many bumps, but bumps are usually what take a psychologically sound match and take it to the next level (the opposite is true too a spotfest can be taken to the next level with psychology). A lot of Hogan matches are very lo-fi and fundamental from that level. That does not mean they are boring. You can not judge Hogan until you see his 1984 follow-up back elbow. He fuckin flies across that ring to deliver that sucker. Or his awesome left-handed backfists (they don't always look great), but it is cool he does them. He is like the Summer Action Blockbuster to Ric Flair's Oscar Winning performances. You need both in cinema and in wrestling. No, Hulk Hogan is not going to deliver any Match of the Year candidates, but hell if he is not one of the most fun workers of the mid-80s.
Match Listing:
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs Iron Shiek - Philly 6/84
The rematch in Philly doesn't get more Hogan than Hogan as the American Hero versus Foreign Menace
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs "Dr. D" David Schultz - Minny 6/84
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| Hulk Hogan is ICHIBAN~! |
What is very interesting is that we still very much live in a post-1988 world as a pro wrestling fan. Most fans use 1984 as the dividing line between the pre-modern and modern year. On January 23, 1984 at Madison Square Garden, Hulk Hogan defeated The Iron Shiek to win his first WWF World Heavyweight Championship and embark on a historic 4 year reign that would lead the WWF out of the Northeast of the US and transform it into a global juggernaut. Thus 1984 seems like a reasonable start date for the modern era and I am not disputing that. What I am disputing is that an average smart wrestling fan's knowledge does not actually reach that far back. My evaluation of Ric Flair up until two years ago was almost entirely based on his post -1988 work. When you look up Hulk Hogan's most famous or best matches, the vast majority come from post-1988. There is a simple reason for that: PPVs. Supercards like Starrcade and Wrestlemania have existed long before either of those, but it was in 1988 that they really proliferated. The twofold power of promotion and national availability (at the time and afterwards via VHS & DVDs) made this the platform to judge pro wrestlers. One of my favorite sites growing up was Prowrestlinghistory.com, which yes does have some non-PPV supercards for America, but mainly focuses on PPVs. Immediately, I was fascinated by pro wrestling history and this led me to Scott Keith. His reviews were free (very important for an 8 year old) and comprehensive (he reviewed what I thought was everything). So now all wrestler's best and most matches list come from post-1988, but this is unfair to wrestlers like Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair. Flair's peak was roughly 1981-1990, living in a post-1988 world this limits him to three years to prove his case as the greatest of all time. How about the Hulkster, who gets the bum rap that he can't work and is just a lumbering giant. Well in a post-1988 world, you are cutting off his initial heel run, AWA run and entire chunk of his prime WWF World title reign that set the wrestling world on fire. Do I think that by watching Hogan in WWF from '84-'88, I am going to discover a lost super worker. Hell, no! I do think I will come out with a better appreciation of how effective Hogan was in between those ropes. With the advent of Youtube (the greatest technological creation of the 21st century), this is now all possible and wrestlers deserve to be evaluated on their whole careers rather than 4 specific nights a year (eventually 12). Not just that great workers like Flair deserve this treatment, but those who may have been maligned too.
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| Here kitty kitty! Here kitty kitty! Come lap up my milk! |
So I set out to watch Hulk Hogan's prime run from 1984-1988 because I have seen only a handful matches (mostly the Savage matches) and I was drawing conclusions about Hogan from secondary sources and watching 90s matches. That is another reason when I think of great Hogan matches, I always think of his 90s work like the Slaughter Desert Storm, Vader SuperBrawl V and Flair Bash at the Beach '94. I contend the best match of his career was with Backlund in Philly in 1980, but how can I make that claim with such a gaping blind spot as his initial WWF World Title from '84 to '88.
Having looked at only 1984 so far, The Hulkster looks like a young pup compared to his 90s work. He is downright rambunctious in the ring. He is constantly fighting back and working underneath during the heat segments. He is overflowing with energy at the beginning of the match. A lot of "smart" wrestling fans will be shocked by this comment, but his work was dripping with effort. I grew up on Hollywood Hogan and have always loved that character. There was always disconnect with me and the Original Hulkster. I got the idea of an American Superman coming to life is pretty cool and appeals to a lot of demographics. It clicked watching this. The stuff I have watched in 89-91 is Hulk Hogan having done the same shtick since 1982 in the AWA. I would be bored too doing the same thing for 7+ years! Don't get me wrong Hogan half-assing it still has way more charisma than 99% of wrestlers in history. I just chocked up his mass appeal to his promos, but from an in-ring perspective I thought I was just too "smart" to get it. Once I got over myself and stopped being an elitist prick, you could feel the power of Hulkamania transcending space and time energizing me 30 years after the fact. It was this energy that I was missing. Remembering how wrestling works, people just did not plop down in 1989 and start watching (well some did), for most people Hulk Hogan was the champion for the past five years. He has built that cached up with the fans. Once he laid down that foundation, he did not have to work as hard, he just had to work smart. In 1984, he was still building that relationship and he was on fire in the ring. He came out guns blazing and always playing to that crowd. When it was time for his opponent to get heat, he was ready to sell, but still fight back and make him earn it. In the later years, Hogan was content to just get his ass beaten, but in these early years he was just so damn fiesty. I love a fiesty babyface. The comeback was not so formulaic yet and each one was unique (well to the opponent at least). The one thing that has not changed is that Hogan just is not a good bumper. He is a big man so I don't expect that many bumps, but bumps are usually what take a psychologically sound match and take it to the next level (the opposite is true too a spotfest can be taken to the next level with psychology). A lot of Hogan matches are very lo-fi and fundamental from that level. That does not mean they are boring. You can not judge Hogan until you see his 1984 follow-up back elbow. He fuckin flies across that ring to deliver that sucker. Or his awesome left-handed backfists (they don't always look great), but it is cool he does them. He is like the Summer Action Blockbuster to Ric Flair's Oscar Winning performances. You need both in cinema and in wrestling. No, Hulk Hogan is not going to deliver any Match of the Year candidates, but hell if he is not one of the most fun workers of the mid-80s.
Match Listing:
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs Iron Shiek - Philly 6/84
The rematch in Philly doesn't get more Hogan than Hogan as the American Hero versus Foreign Menace
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs "Dr. D" David Schultz - Minny 6/84
McMahon invades AWA with former AWA top babyface Hulk Hogan leading the charge.
WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs
Greg "The Hammer" Valentine w/ Capt. Albano - MSG 7/23/84
Best Hogan match of 1984. Valentine takes wrestlers of their comfort zone and makes them get physical.
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs George "The Animal" Steele w/Mr. Fuji St. Louis 8/10/84
Fun camp. Hogan just has so much energy at this point
WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Bob Orton - Nassau Coliseum 9/7/84
Second best Hogan match of 1984. Hogan worked hard from underneath and Orton is a dynamo.
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs Big John Studd w/ Bobby The Brain Heenan MSG 9/22/84
Some strong psychology, but brutally slow.
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs Big John Studd w/ Bobby the Brain -
Meadowlands 12/10/84
Focused on the strong bodyslam hook of the match and produced best Studd match I have seen.
WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs Iron Shiek - Philly 6/84
Hogan excels in these type of extreme cartoony matches even if they are not my favorite type of match. You can't get more of a great cartoon villain in pro wrestling than mustachioed Iron Shiek with the loaded boot. Sheiky Baby informs us that of course Iran is Number 1! I like the Flock of Seagulls too, Shiek! Hogan comes out guns blazing and does not even let Shiek take off his attire instead Hogan chokes him with it. Hogan just kicks his ass sending him into the post, raking his body with his finger nails even gnawing at him. Hogan was always good for throwing it back in the heel's face. Hogan sets too early for a back body drop and in a counter I have never seen Shiek rakes his eyes. That's commitment to his heel character. Shiek wrestles a great heel heat section throwing Hogan into railings and tables, choking with the cables and his hands. He hits his great gutwrench suplex. Then with no Hulk Up. Hogan hits a clothesline and leg drop for the win. I have been liking the non-formulaic nature of the finish stretch, but that was too anticlimatic. Hulk Hogan is apparently still FABULOUS~! and has not transitioned to Immortal yet per the ring announcer. Shiek attacks him with the boot making me think I did not see the finale, but Hogan chases him off. No one will confuse this with the excellently violent Shiek/Slaughter series, but still a fun, popcorn match.
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WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs "Dr. D" David Schultz - Minny 6/84
McMahon invades the AWA Capital cites, The Twin Cities, with former AWA Ace, Hulk Hogan in the vanguard. Akin to Price Eugene of Savoy leading the armies of the Grand Alliance against The Sun King and his native France (Eugene was born and raised in the court of Louis XIV), Hogan is the main draw for the WWF to gain a foothold in AWA territory. He is running against an overlooked figure in pro wrestling, David Schultz. Schultz is more famous for his incident with 20/20 reporter, John Stossel, as he tried to protect the integrity of the business, but to many crossed the line in getting physical. I don't know all the details so I am not weighing in, but this did cause him to get blackballed. I had always known of Schultz for this, but thought he was a lower-tier wrestler. In actuality, he was one of the most frequent Hogan opponents of 1984 and a member of Roddy Piper's gang with Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff. Schultz from his most famous TV vignette is portrayed as a mean, nasty redneck. He comes off as one of more real Hogan opponents and I would say the one with widest mean streak. Orndorff is cocky and Piper is crazy, but Schultz was a mean-spirited individual. Can I say "mean" anymore?
The match is the inverse of the Shiek match. Instead of the vast majority of the match, Hogan doing the ass kicking in this match Schultz jumps Hogan and chokes him with his bandana. Schultz grabs a chair on the outside and bust him out. The blood definitely helps this match a lot. Schultz hits his big second rope elbow, but parades around for too long. HULK UP! Hogan picks him up at 2 after an elbow to dish out more punishment. Hogan drops the leg. 1-2-Hogan picks him up. HAVE MERCY! Schultz actually turns the tide, but misses a top rope elbow and Hogan hits a big clothesline for the 3. I think if Schultz combined his mean streak with the physicality of a Valentine they may have had something special, but this was not much at all. Schultz attacks him after and tries get away with the belt, but Hogan rakes his eyes and gets his belt back. I liked elements of this match, but there was not enough struggle for me in this match.
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WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs
Greg "The Hammer" Valentine w/ Capt. Albano - MSG 7/23/84
You don't think "physical" when you see Hogan's name on the marquee, but then Valentine could make a man out of anyone in that ring. Valentine and Hogan went to war in MSG and Hogan gave as good as he got. His punches looked like some of the best he ever thrown and once he took over from Valentine's initial sneak attack, he was all over him. His follow-up back elbow in the corner looked great and his bodyslam over the ropes into the ring was impressive. Valentine takes over with a back suplex out of a side headlock. One of my main complaints of later Hogan is that he sells too much too soon. Here Hogan, powers out of Valentine reverse chinlock as a hope spot only for Valentine to beat him back down with great forearm and elbow shots. Valentine is so brutal. Again, at the right opportunity, Hogan fights from underneath with the suplex and then takes it out to the floor with some great, great punches. Hogan throws his carcass back into the ring first. Rookie mistake as Valentine cuts off Hogan with a wicked knee. This has been a fight from the beginning. There is a great exchange after the failed Valentine sleeper with Valentine clubbering and Hogan throwing rights and back fists. He throws this massive right and Valentine falls on his ass, but in desperation grabs Hogan's leg trips and yanks it against the apron. Then he goes to hit it with a chair and a fan grabs the chair out of his hand. Now worries as there is another. So now we get some nice leg work, but it is for naught as Hogan knows of the power of the figure-4 and pushes him off twice. Work like that puts over a finish just as much as winning with it. The Hammer drops the Hammer elbow, but just for two. Hulk Hogan does one of the most subdued Hulk-Ups ever catching The Hammer coming off the top and hitting the legdrop for the win. Tack on a classic Hulk-Up and this match would be one of my all-time favorite Hogan matches. As it stands, I would submit this as one of his best matches from the peak Hulkamania period 84-88 as it does not feel like standard Hogan. There are two reasons for that as Hogan still has not refined his formula yet and how Valentine always brings people out of their comfort zone. Hogan has a lot of Clash of the Titans, summer blockbuster like matches, but rarely does get gnarly and rough. Valentine will bring that out of you. Hogan went toe to toe with the Hammer and it was one entertaining fight. ***3/4
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WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs. "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff - Philly 7/7/84
Hulk Hogan in 1984 is the living embodiment of energy. He is running wild and unbridled. Orndorff is someone I always liked, but never thought he was a real upper tier worker. He is a good at heat seeking taunts and character work, but his work leaves a lot to be desired. He is no Valentine or Orton, but he gets more heat because of the "Paula" chants. The opening is a well-worked clowning segment with Hogan attacking Orndorff while he was in the robe jawing with the crowd. Orndorff sells the atomic drop like Rude and is generally amusing. What makes him better than a Studd or Steele is that he can bump and stooge better. An eye rake gives him the advantage and throws the "Hulker" (Dick Graham) into railing and hits him with a chair drawing blood. Hogan in 1984 was not afraid to wear the Crimson Mask. I like how there were two attempts at the comebacks before the final one. It is more fun than just one Hulk-Up that we would get later. Orndorff is content to stomp, elbow and eye rake. Hogan's follow up back elbow in the corner is so awesome. I loved that he bit Orndorff and did a front rake throwing it right back in his face. Oh yeah, the back fist and punch combo. Clothesline and Atomic Legdrop finish him. 1984 Hulk Hogan is just so much fun and he did not disappoint in this match. I would say Orndorff was a middling opponent for the Hulkster.
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WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs George "The Animal" Steele w/Mr. Fuji
St. Louis 8/10/84
The swooning was in full effect here from Vinny Mac: "Never has 300 lbs looked so good" and "He not only has to worry about his title, but the possible demise of his physique". Yes, Hogan's life is not worth living if he were to lose his physique. O, Vince! I liked how in 1984 when they invaded St. Louis they tried to run an angle for Hogan much like the three defense rule in MSG. It was a strong strategy to cement this new foothold deep in NWA territory and prove to the St. Louis audience that WWF promotion was treating the city on the level of NYC, Philly or Boston. They ran a strong Studd program early on and then Orndorff and have now moved to George Steele. I have never seen Steele as a heel so this piqued my interest. He is a very campy, horror film-esque character. I like cheeze as much as any wrestling fan, but the beginning was even too corny for me. However, once Steele took over with rakes to the eye the match was pretty decent actually. Steele was the consummate, vicious lunatic. He went after the eyes and choked Hogan. He played hide the foreign object from the ref, which he used to stab Hogan in the eye or throat. It was pretty effective heel work. Hulk-Up. I like the idea of left-hand backfist from Hogan, but the execution is not always there. Hogan goes for the Atomic Leg Drop, but Fuji trips him. Fuji takes his sweet fuckin time to get to the apron and throw salt into his eyes. Hogan reels from this and falls out the ring to lose by countout to set up the rematch. Weirdly, Hogan never seemed to get his win over Steele, but instead over Fuji. After the salt throw, the real heat was on Fuji as St. Louis crowd littered the ring with garbage. Hogan was fuckin over and including with the old timers who I am sure saw Thesz and O' Connor in their prime. It was a fun Hogan by the numbers match and Steele was a solid vicious heel.
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WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Bob Orton - Nassau Coliseum 9/7/84
When I was looking over Hogan's 84 challengers (lots of Big John Studd & Dr. D), this match immediately jumped out at me. Orton is someone that I have been meaning to watch more and he did not disappoint in this outing with Hogan. He is just at stooging and shining up the babyface as he is in control of the match. Hogan just know how to get a crowd rocking in the beginning with his punches and then the big boot sends Orton to the outside. Orton no sells the tap on the shoulder twice so Hogan wallops him and when Orton retreats via the ring to the other side Hogan runs around wallops him there. That was fun. Hogan telegraphs two elbows and Orton goes to work on Hogan's arm. Showing us the fan that Orton can only get the advantage because Hogan hurt himself, but at the same time Orton is savvy enough and proficient enough to pick apart Hogan's weakness. Anytime, Hogan looks to get something going Orton goes for the hair. Hogan is just so much more energetic and really working hard from underneath. Orton impresses me with a Volkoff like backbreaker on Hogan. Hogan is able to crotch Orton on the top turnbuckle and this allows him to mount a comeback. It is an arm for an arm in Hogan's Law of the Jungle as he wrenches Orton's arm over the ropes and sends into the railing. I love that type of revenge. The match veers off track as Hogan looks like he has it won, but stalls and all of sudden Orton retakes command with an inverse atomic drop. Nothing of note really happens until Hogan more traditionally Hulks-Up with the punches, but instead of the big boot Orton whiffs on a kick sending him onto his back prone for the Atomic Legdrop. Again another really good Hogan match with a heel that could work a strong control with Hogan working hard with hope spots and struggling underneath. What hurt this match was it seemed regress back to Orton's second control to kill time before going home. This is where Orton either teasing or hitting his finisher would have helped build drama for the Hogan comeback. Still this was another great showcase for how good and vibrant Hogan was in 1984 and how Orton was a great hand in the ring. ***1/2
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WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs Big John Studd w/ Bobby The Brain Heenan
MSG 9/22/84
The debut of Bobby the Brain and thus the beginning of the feud that would carry the WWF through Wrestlemania IV: Hogan versus Heenan's charges. This match reeks of AWA as Okerlund is on commentary and you have old foes Hogan and Heenan squaring off. Studd is a deceptively big guy. Everytime, I look at him, he does not look that big, but he is considerably larger than Hogan. I think it is because he is so well-proportioned. He just looks normal, but then when he is locking up Hogan you realize how big he is. This is the worst Hogan match so far from '84 and it has nothing to do with Hogan. Studd is a terribly boring worker. The Bodyslam Challenge gimmick is a really good hook and is the only thing that makes his matches interesting. Hogan was trying his damndest with a terrific back elbow at the beginning, juicing and a hot lariat towards the end. Studd was content to just lock on the bearhug. I liked the transition of Hogan going for the bodyslam costing him and Studd bodyslamming Hogan. That really put over the gimmick and how much of a threat Studd was. The King of the Mountain stuff was boring and Hogan blading seemed forced just because Studd was kicking him. Meh. Hogan goes for the bodyslam after the Hulk-Up and the crowd is pumped. Studd is able to get tangled in the ropes. Hogan attempts on the outside. Studd rams him into the apron and Heenan pushes Studd in to get the countout victory. Studd and Heenan have the audacity to walk out with the title to set up the rematch. It was supposed to be Ventura in this spot, which probably would not have increased the match quality, but that would have been a helluva visual at MSG. The Studd/Heenan pairing makes sense and I can see why they would draw as a top heel act against Hogan and then against Andre even if I find Studd to be one of the most boring workers ever. You can blame this match on Hogan. Everything he is doing is just dripping with effort. Hulkamania is running wild!
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WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs Big John Studd w/ Bobby the Brain -
Meadowlands 12/10/84
Best Big John Stud Match Ever! EVAH~! Ok, so that is not exactly high praise, but I am still pretty sure it is a true statement. My favorite part of the MSG match was the bodyslam psychology and it is like my comments traveled through electromagnetic cosmic worm hole to the ears of Big John Studd, who said to Hogan lets have an entire match worked around bodyslamming each other to please this 25 year old kid 30 years in the future. Hogan said Brutha, that's all well and good, but how are going to pay it off if the 24 inch pythons can not run wild on you because the Vin Man says Andre is going to slam you. I'll take care of it, Hulkster. I truly believe that's how the magic of this three star match was born.
Capetta is still in WWF at this point and Fink is on commentary??!?!?!?!? I loved the psychology of this match. It was one giant macho pissing contest. Who could slam the other first? All these early spots were really energetic with great cutoffs and building tension to what I thought would be an anti-climax since the Big Slam moment was being saved for Andre. Hogan was so obsessed with this that eventually Studd was able to draw him outside and crack his head against the table. Studd stayed away from the bearhug and worked a solid King of the Mountain. Then he picked up Hogan like a sack of potatoes and slammed him. *GASP* It was pretty lame that Studd did not follow up this big moment and I thought they were going to lose men. When all of sudden, they end up on the outside and HULK UP-> BODYSLAM ON THE OUTSIDE!!! WHAT THE FUCK!!?!?! BATSHIT INSANITY!!!! Crowd goes bezerk and I lose it in 2014. However, since it did not happen inside the ring, he does not win the money and the slam challenge continues. BRILLIANT! I was planning to be disappointed because all that great bodyslam psychology was not going to get the proper climax and then BOOM Hogan slams him! Somebody needs to crib this Studd Slam Challenge gimmick as it is such a great hook for the matches. Then to top it all off Hogan picks up the most hated ref in history, Dick Whirrly, into a military press. That's almost worth an extra 1/2*, but alas he didn't slam him to pay that off. The match is about as basic as you can get but Hogan has so much energy and the build to the payoff and the payoff are excellent. ***
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