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Hulk Hogan had a larger-than-life persona and left an indelible mark on the professional wrestling industry over the course of his career spanning several decades.
On Thursday, Hogan died after first responders reported to a cardiac arrest call at his Clearwater, Florida, home.
He was 71.
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Hollywood Hulk Hogan puts a chokehold on the neck of Utah Jazz basketball star Karl Malone at a pay-per-view wrestling match July 12, 1998, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi, File)
Pro wrestling star Aron Stevens, who performs in the National Wrestling Alliance, remembered Hogan in a statement to Fox News Digital. Stevens also performed in WWE as Damien Sandow.
“Hulk Hogan is somebody that he’s woven into the fabric of Americana. He embodied every principle and ideal that was good about America,” Stevens said. “And when he first rose to prominence in the ’80s, that was a time when, as a country, we were not as divided as we are now.
“Everyone was proud to be an American, and Hulk was the personification of that. From his battles with the Iron Sheik to Sgt. Slaughter during the Iraqi War, Hulk was somebody that everyone could cheer because he represented, as far as his in-ring persona goes, the best of what this country is.”
Stevens, whose real name is Aron Haddad, recalled Hogan’s appearance at the Republican National Convention and a rally at Madison Square Garden and how he earned one of the biggest pops of those events.
Aaron Stevens manages Blunt Force Trauma (NWA/Hiban Huerta)
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He also noted the impact Hogan had on young fans.
“When you look back on his life, every sick child that he put a smile on their face and made them forget that they were sick, every child he inspired to live a better life, to do the right thing, every adult that he inspired, everyone, that’s something that most people, I don’t think they think about enough,” he said.
Hogan’s death rattled the sports and entertainment world. He was about to launch Real American Freestyle to help put freestyle wrestling on the map.
Donald Trump and champion wrestler Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania Vl at Convention Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., March 29 1987. (Jeffrey Asher/ Getty Images)
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“Obviously, he’ll never be forgotten, but he was a pioneer,” Stevens said. “He was truly the first of his kind, and I don’t think we will ever see another person quite like Hulk Hogan in the wrestling business ever again. So, Hulk, rest in peace.”
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