Paul Heyman Comments On Passing Of WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan

Many of Hulk Hogan's peers and those in the industry who looked up to him were eager to share their tributes for the legend in the wake of his passing. Now ECW icon Paul Heyman has finally added his voice to the conversation, recalling his time with Hogan in the industry during an interview on "The Ariel Helwani Show."

"My interaction on camera with Hulk Hogan is limited to the fact that he worked with Brock Lesnar right before Brock Lesnar beat The Rock for the title," Heyman recalled. "And when we did MetLife Stadium in 2019, and the show opened with Hulk Hogan posing with Alexa Bliss? I interrupted it and walked out to the ring to 'Real American' to kick off the show for – of all things – Brock Lesnar versus Seth Rollins."

Heyman again emphasized that he had limited exposure to Hogan on air, but also didn't get to work with the late legend backstage either, even in 2002 when he was a writer for "SmackDown" during Hogan's run at the time. "I knew Hulk in 1980 when he was in WWE, and I was a 15-year-old photographer. And he was always super cool to me and even cooler to me once he knew that I was riding with Afa and Sika – The Wild Samoans – 'cause he loved The Wild Samoans and they loved him."

In the 1980s, Hulk Hogan was at the peak of his popularity, a pop culture icon who bridged the gap between the wrestling industry and Hollywood. Because of this, when a young Paul Heyman bumped into Hogan in the late 80s, he couldn't believe the warm response he got from the Hulkster. "Here's all I can tell you about Hulk Hogan: in 1988, I had just started in WCW and it was my Midnight Express against Jim Cornette's Midnight Express," he recalled, adding that this was during the first year of Ted Turner's WCW. 

Heyman then added that both WCW and WWE wrestlers used to stay in the same hotel at times when they had shows in the same city, which was why he coincidentally ran into Hogan at a hotel in Chicago. "I get out of the car; Hulk Hogan gets out of the limousine. 'Brother! How you doing, brother? Hey, man! Oh, since you've been a photographer, you broke in, you're doing it right, you're doing it great! Talk to me for a minute, brother?" he added.

Paul Heyman further noted that he and Hulk Hogan had a conversation in Hogan's limo, where he inquired about his contract with WCW and claimed he was a big fan of Heyman. "This is 1988 Hulk Hogan. This is Hulkamania when it's Hulkamania, okay?" he recalled. "This is the absolute biggest star in the entire business and a mainstream celebrity, and he's a fan of mine?" Heyman added that he didn't even get a chance to thank Hogan for everything he did to the business because he was too busy praising all of his opponents for elevating him to where he was.

He then claimed that Hogan directly invited him to sign with WWE at that point, claiming he could only interact with Bobby Heenan and Jimmy Hart so many times, and that Heyman would make the angle fresh. "I'm like 'Thank you?' You know, it's humbling because I don't even get a chance, you know, and as soon as he's done saying this? 'Alright, brother! See you on the check-in line!' and gets out of the limo!" he claimed. "He didn't even wait for me to say anything to him! Never fished for a compliment, never waited for me to go 'thank you, sir, and by the way,' he finished his spiel and got out."

Heyman then added that Hogan was as gracious with him as he was with other people, and claimed that all his experiences with the Hulkster were always positive, but admitted that he was never in backstage politics against him.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "The Ariel Helwani Show" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.