horrorfan_1986

Hulk Hogan vs The Ultimate Warrior from Wrestlemania 6. It was one of the biggest matches of all time and one that even the biggest Hogan and/or Warrior critics can praise. The one thing that keeps being said is how Hogan passed the torch to Warrior that night. However, did he really? Let's look at the facts, both for and against the claim:

Hogan Passed the Torch

1. Hogan was cleanly pinned which was something that hadn't been seen by the masses since he returned in 1984.

2. Hogan endorsed the new champion by giving the belt and raising his hand.

3. Warrior spent the rest of the year in the main events even over Hogan.

4. Finally, how many wrestlers did Hogan cleanly put over before leaving in 1993? Losing at a Wrestlemania and cleanly is a huge deal.

Hogan Didn't Pass the Torch

1. Hogan stole the spotlight after the match by grabbing the belt and having the camera follow him to the back. It was Warrior's moment to celebrate, yet I remember the scene of Hogan down on his knees asking God "Why?!" and the ride back to the lockerrom on the ring car.

2. Hogan kept being in the main events on PPV. Summerslam was technically a double main event. Possibly the only real reason why Warrior's match was last was because of the time it took to put up a cage back in those days. Survivor Series saw Hogan and Warrior winning the final match together.

3. Hogan was thrust into a full time feud with the biggest heel the company had at the time - Earthquake. Meanwhile, Warrior was thrown back into a feud with Rick Rude. While Earthquake was seen as a guy who Hogan may not be able to beat, everyone had already seen Warrior beat Rude.

4. Warrior didn't do much after the Rude feud. While waiting for the Savage feud to start up, Warrior spent time in six man tags with the Road Warriors against Demolition. Hogan was kept in a hot feud with Earthquake.

5. The kick out. Right before the three count in the match, Hogan tried to kick out. While it does look as if Hogan's shoulders are still on the mat, I can easily see fans not seeing it as a 100% undebatable victory for Warrior. (See pic below)


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So, Warrior vs Hogan, was it a true passing of the torch or rather Hogan keeping himself in the top spot while letting Warrior walk around as champion?

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jmt225

In my opinion, Hogan did pass the torch that night, but he passed it to the wrong person. If it were up to me, Hogan would have kept that torch for another two years, and then pass it on to Bret Hart. But instead, he gave it to someone who eventually dropped it, which led Hogan to never pass the thing again until 2002 (well, you could make a point for Goldberg, but it's moot since Goldberg and WCW wasted it anyway). Bret Hart should have defeated Hogan cleanly at the King of the Ring 1993 in what should have been one of the greatest matches in wrestling history. And Hogan should have put over Sting cleanly at Starrcade 1997. But he did neither. However, you can't take away what he did for The Ultimate Warrior. It's just Warrior dropped the ball once he got it.

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King Steventon

I remember seeing the match and seeing Hogan kick out at 3.1. That was enough for me to think he hadn't passed the torch properly. I think for that one night he may have made Warrior the man, but as far as long term goes he still stayed the top guy in the promotion.

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Sam

I agree with you on the Warrior part. But you would put the belt on Hart before Ted Dibiase?

Y 2 Jake

Depends on your perspective. Hogan put over people just by being in the ring with them. But he didn't need to steal The Warrior's thunder after the match.

But Warrior was a comparative flop as champion, so maybe Hogan getting his heat back after the match and staying in the spotlight was the best thing for the company.

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God

The only thing that he did wrong imo was steal the spotlight after the match. It doesnt matter that Hogan kicked out at 3.1, he only had to be kept down for three which Warrior did. I do think Hogan passed the torch, but like others have said, Warrior would then drop the torch.

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horrorfan_1986

Can you really drop the torch when you never fully had it?

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jmt225

But Warrior did have it. And his reigned sucked. There were only so many Rick Rudes who could carry the bastard to a half-way decent match.

Hogan should've never put Warrior over to begin with; that's the bottom line.

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horrorfan_1986

How did Warrior have it when Hogan was still booked as the top guy? And really, what could Warrior have done with the title reign? He was booked to do jack shit while the few surviving talented heels (Hennig, DiBiase and Savage) were booked in other feuds.

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jmt225

How was Hogan booked as the top guy? If I remember correctly, Warrior was the last match on Summerslam, not Hogan.

Besides, there's nothing wrong with having two main babyfaces on the show. It's done even today with HHH and Cena. It hurts no one.

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