Today marks 37 years since the historic first reign of Hulk Hogan as WWE Champion ended under bizarre circumstances.
The WWE era lasted 1474 days – even longer than Roman Reigns’ reign as “Undisputed Universal Champion”.
For more than four years, from January 23, 1983 to February 5, 1988, Hulk Hogan reigned as champion in the then WWF. It remains the longest reign of the modern era, surpassed only by the all-time great Bruno Sammartino (and, depending on the reading, Bob Backlund), before the national and international expansion that megastar Hogan spearheaded.
Today, 37 years ago, the groundbreaking era ended under chaotic circumstances.
André the Giant dethroned Hulk Hogan
Hogan put his title on the line on February 5, 1988 against his great rival André the Giant, who had also been his opponent in the legendary giant duel at WrestleMania III a year earlier.
The rematch with André the Giant in Indianapolis was marketed as the TV special “The Main Event” and, with an audience of 33 million viewers, an unimaginable figure today, it remains the most-watched wrestling event on US television to date.
The duel ended with a controversial defeat for Hogan, brought about by a bizarrely staged fraud.
The referee’s twin cheated the champion
Dave Hebner, who died in 2022, was announced as the referee for the match – but in reality, the fight was officiated by his twin brother Earl, who later became infamous for his role in Bret Hart’s scandalous departure in Montréal in 1997.
In the end, Earl Hebner cheated Hogan out of the win by counting to three on André’s pinfall, even though Hogan’s shoulder was clearly no longer on the mat.
The explanation given later was that “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase, who was allied with André, had Dave kidnapped and hired a lookalike who had been operated on by a plastic surgeon to resemble Dave.
Yesterday I had to say my last goodbye to my other half, my partner in crime, my road buddy for years, my brother for 73 years. I love you David, I’ll never count you out. pic.twitter.com/VBj1DrJlI1
— Earl Hebner (@earlhebner17) June 18, 2022
It was to DiBiase that André “sold” his belt after the match. As a result, Jack Tunney, then president of the league, declared the title vacant and scheduled a tournament for WrestleMania IV in Atlantic City, with a certain Donald Trump as the main sponsor and star guest at the event.
The up-and-coming “Macho Man” Randy Savage emerged as the winner – setting the stage for the “dream match” between Hogan and Savage at WrestleMania V.
Wehmütige Erinnerungen
The memory of the famous moment of the first golden WWE era is – like so many wrestling events of the past – now tinged with melancholy.
André and Savage (and his then-wife and companion Miss Elzabeth) have been dead for quite some time, and in recent years, Dave Hebner and DiBiase’s companion Virgil have also passed away.
Hogan was last seen on WWE TV earlier this year and was loudly booed by many fans – his reputation has suffered in recent years due to a racism scandal and his support for US President Trump, which was also not well received everywhere.
