Hulk Hogan's name is synonymous with WrestleMania. The success of Hulkamania during the mid 1980s led to the creation of the Show of Shows, The Hulkster main evented 8 of the first 9 editions of the event. During that time, Hogan participated in some of the biggest matches against names such as Randy Savage, Ultimate Warrior and Andre the Giant.

10 Biggest Losses Of Hulk Hogan's Career, Ranked By Impact
Hulk Hogan rarely lost throughout his iconic career in WWE and WCW, but he did lose some legendary matches. Here are Hogan's most impactful losses.Hogan added 2 more WrestleMania matches to his resume when he returned to WWE in the early 2000s, facing The Rock and Vince McMahon in high-profile 'Mania matches. Taking all the glorious matches, moments and memories Hogan created at 'Mania, which one stands as Hogan's definitive best WrestleMania match?
To learn more about how we rank wrestling matches on TheSportster, please check out our match ranking criteria guide here.
Hulk Hogan Vs. Yokozuna - WWE Championship (WrestleMania 9)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 1.75/10
Storytelling | 0/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 0/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 0/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 1.75/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: DUD
- Cagematch.net Rating: N/R
We didn't really have (or want) to include this one, but officially it does count as a WrestleMania match, so here it is. The original main event of WrestleMania 9 saw Bret Hart defend the WWE Championship against 1993 Royal Rumble winner, Yokozuna.
Yoko won the title for the first time in his career, only for Hulk Hogan to come out and save the day. For whatever reason, Mr. Fuji gave Hogan a title shot on the spot. Less than a minute later, Hogan was the new WWE Champion. It would turn out to be Hogan's final WrestleMania appearance in 9 years.
Hulk Hogan Vs. Sid Justice (WrestleMania 8)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 3/10
CloseStorytelling | 0.5/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 0.25/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 0.25/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: -2 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 1.71
Before Hogan actually left in 1993, his WrestleMania match against Sid Justice the year before was advertised as Hogan's "farewell" match. Thankfully it wasn't the last we saw of Hogan, as the bout was a complete failure in almost every way.
Not only did fans want to see something else in that year's main event, the in-ring action was dull and the DQ finish was incredibly lame. As if it couldn't get any worse, Papa Shango missed his cue and Harvey Wippleman had to jump in to cause the DQ.
Hulk Hogan & Brutus Beefcake vs. Money Inc - WWE Tag Team Championship (WrestleMania 9)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 3.75/10

Storytelling | 1.25/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 0.5/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 0/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 2 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 2.63
One of the (many) reasons why Hulk Hogan walking out of 'Mania 9 with the WWE Championship made no sense was because he'd already wrestled that night. In fact, he'd wrestled in another title bout, teaming with Brutus Beefcake to challenge Money Inc. for the WWE Tag Team Championship.
While the story was decent heading into the event, everyone knew Money Inc. stood no chance against the returning Hulk Hogan. After a boring 20-minute match, Jimmy Hart got involved and Money Inc. retained via... you guessed it... disqualification!
Hulk Hogan Vs. Andre The Giant (WrestleMania 4)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 4.25/10
CloseStorytelling | 2/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 0/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 0/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2.25/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 0.25 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 2.58
Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant had one of the most memorable matches in WrestleMania history. Everyone remembers the epic staredown and the slam heard around the world right before Hogan scored the biggest win of his career. As for their rematch... well, let's just say it's not as memorable!
After Andre won Hogan's WWE Championship in February 1988, the title was immediately vacated since Andre tried to sell the belt to Ted DiBiase. Thus, a tournament was created with Hogan and Andre meeting in the quarter-finals. While fans were hot for it, the match simply wasn't as special and ended in a no-contest that eliminated both men from the competition.
Hulk Hogan Vs. King Kong Bundy - Steel Cage Match, WWE Championship (WrestleMania 2)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 5.75/10

Storytelling | 1.75/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 0.5/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 1.5/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 1.25 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 4.47
Hulk Hogan's first WWE Championship defense at The Show Of Shows. While he went on to have much better (and more important) matches at WrestleMania, his steel cage match with King Kong Bundy was a decent affair that delivered exactly what fans wanted to see.

Why King Kong Bundy Faced Hulk Hogan At WrestleMania 2
Hulk Hogan conquered WWE's biggest stars at WrestleMania, but the second event found the Hulkster facing a lesser name in King Kong Bundy.Hulkamania was as hot as ever in early 1986, and the audience loved seeing a bloody Hulkster overcoming a tough challenger at 'Mania 2. As of this writing, Hogan vs. Bundy is still the only time a Steel Cage Match closed out a WrestleMania event.
Hulk Hogan Vs. Sgt. Slaughter - WWE Championship (WrestleMania 7)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 6.25/10

Storytelling | 1.25/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 1.25/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 1.75/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 2.5 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 3.36
Fans often underestimate the main event of WrestleMania 7 because of how low (and quite frankly how disgusting) the buildup was. That's understandable, given how the storyline heading up to the event left such a bad taste in everyone's mouths. However, if you only look at the action from bell to bell, it was actually a solid match.
Sure it was nothing out of this world, but Hogan did a good job of selling his back leading into the Camel Clutch. Then, Hogan broke the hold in a nice callback to his match with Iron Sheik, hulked up and defeated Slaughter to win his third WWE Championship. Major props to Sarge for playing such a tough role in this feud.
Hulk Hogan & Mr. T Vs. Roddy Piper & Paul Orndorff (WrestleMania 1)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 6.5/10
CloseStorytelling | 2/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 1/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 1.25/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2.25/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: N/R
- Cagematch.net Rating: 5.45
The main event of the very first WrestleMania might very well be the reason why WrestleMania is as successful as it is today. Hulk Hogan's massive popularity, Mr. T's mainstream appeal and Roddy Piper & Paul Orndorff's heat created a great spectacle that is still talked about to this day.
The four men had an entertaining match that will always be relevant for historical reasons. Recently we've heard The Rock, Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes & Seth Rollins talking about how they'll have the biggest tag team match of all time at WrestleMania 40. It won't be easy to surpass this match in terms of importance.
Hulk Hogan Vs. Vince McMahon - Street Fight (WrestleMania 19)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 7.5/10
CloseStorytelling | 2.25/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 0.75/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 2.25/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2.25/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 3 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 7.39
Let's be honest, Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon was not a good idea. On paper, it sounds like an absolutely terrible match that shouldn't even have been considered. But the fact is it happened at WrestleMania 19, and guess what... it was actually quite good!
Sure, the fact it was a Street Fight helped as they were able to use all the smoke & mirrors in the world to support them, but that doesn't change the fact Hogan and McMahon delivered an entertaining match. McMahon delivered an insane leg drop off a ladder onto the announce table, but Hogan won after delivering several Leg Drops.
Hulk Hogan Vs. Andre The Giant - WWE Championship (WrestleMania 3)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 8/10
Storytelling | 2.5/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 0.5/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 2.5/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2.5/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 1 Star
- Cagematch.net Rating: 5.54
As we mentioned earlier, Hogan faced Andre the Giant in arguably the biggest main event of all time at WrestleMania 3. Both men were the biggest babyface stars of the Golden Era, with Andre even showing his support for Hogan on many occasions over the years.
Things went south when Andre got jealous of Hogan's success in early 1987, eventually joining forces with the top heel manager in WWE at the time, Bobby Heenan. They put on a spectacle for the ages at WrestleMania 3, culminating with Hogan slamming Andre and beating him to retain the WWE Championship.
Hulk Hogan Vs. The Ultimate Warrior - WWE & Intercontinental Championships (WrestleMania 6)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 8.25/10
CloseStorytelling | 2.25/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 1.25/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 2.25/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2.5/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 3.75 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 7.52
Shortly after Andre's heel turn, The Ultimate Warrior made his WWE debut. It didn't take long for Warrior to replace Andre as the second biggest face in the company alongside Hogan, eventually becoming one of the biggest larger-than-life stars in WWE history.
At WrestleMania 6, Hogan and Warrior clashed with both the Intercontinental and WWE Championships on the line. The atmosphere that night was electric, with younger fans not knowing who to cheer when they saw their two biggest heroes facing each other. Their match was really good and Warrior pinned Hogan clean after splashing him.
Hulk Hogan Vs. Randy Savage - WWE Championship (WrestleMania 5)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 8.5/10
CloseStorytelling | 2.5/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 1.5/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 2/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2.5/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 2.75 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 7.08
At WrestleMania 4, Randy Savage capitalized after Hogan and Andre the Giant eliminated each other. The Macho Man won the WWE Championship by beating Ted DiBiase in the finals, forming a partnership with Hulk Hogan who came out to prevent Andre from attacking Savage. Hogan and Savage formed The Mega Powers and were unstoppable over the next year.

Mega Powers: The Hulk Hogan/ Randy Savage Rivalry, Explained
Macho Man and Hulk Hogan are two of wrestling's biggest icons. Their rivalry spanned decades and is laid out here.That is until their egos got the better of them. Over time, Savage started thinking Hogan wanted to steal Miss Elizabeth from him until The Macho Man finally snapped and turned heel. At WrestleMania 5, they battled over Savage's WWE Championship. Their match was fantastic and even saw Miss Elizabeth getting involved a few times. Hogan walked away the winner shortly after Liz got kicked out by the referee.
Hollywood Hulk Hogan Vs. The Rock (WrestleMania 18)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 8.75/10
Storytelling | 2.5/2.5 |
---|---|
Technical Ability | 1.25/2.5 |
Character Work/Psychology | 2.5/2.5 |
Crowd Reaction | 2.5/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer's Rating: 3 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 8.49
As you've noticed throughout this article, Hogan participated in some of the biggest wrestling matches of all time over the years at WrestleMania. The best (and arguably most special) of them all took place when Hogan finally came back to WWE after 9 long years. During Hogan's time away, The Rock became one of the most popular stars in WWE history and they faced each other at WrestleMania 18.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's Definitive 10 Best WWE Matches, Ranked
The Rock is one of the biggest stars in WWE history, and he had several classic matches during his career. Which match is 'the great one'?While Hogan was supposed to be the heel given his epic WCW run as a villain with the nWo, the fans in Toronto that night decided to cheer for The Hulkster like there was no tomorrow. It's hard to find a match with an atmosphere quite like Rock vs. Hogan. Rock shocked the world when he kicked out of Hogan's Leg Drop. A few minutes later, Rock picked up one of the biggest wins of his career after delivering both the Rock Bottom and People's Elbow.
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