Several WWE legends appeared on the first “WWE Raw” on Netflix, but one star who made headlines coming out of the historic debut episode is Hulk Hogan, who was booed by the Los Angeles audience in attendance during his promo. Many believed that Hogan’s poor reception was due to his right-wing political views, however, when The Undertaker appeared earlier that night, he was met by an overwhelming positive response from the fans, despite also being a Republican.
Speaking on “Off The Top,” WWE Hall Of Famer Rikishi provided his thoughts on the complete opposite reaction Hogan received compared to The Undertaker.
“Hogan come, booed right out. ‘Taker come, did you even hear boo? Why did you guys boo Hogan? And when Taker came out, Taker got the reception that he got. Here’s my thought, I think they booed Hogan because of the Republican side that he pushed. That just goes to show you like the thoughts and the minds of your wrestling fans, the WWE Universe,” he said. “If they like you, man ,they gonna show up. If they hate you, they going to show up. But there’s two guys with the same party, one comes out, they booed the s**t outta him, both icons. Here comes ‘The Deadman’ and they just show ‘Deadman’ love.”
Rikishi also mentioned how The Undertaker supporting the Republicans during Donald Trump’s campaign was not a secret, but he was still able to receive the same reaction from the WWE audience as the last time he was on television.
Rikishi On The Importance Of Treating Fans With Respect
Rikishi believes that wrestlers can learn from how The Undertaker has conducted business and interacted with fans over the years. He explained that insulting the intelligence of the audience will only make matters worse for the performer.
“He’s just a normal, a good human being … this can be lessons for a lot of the wrestlers that are out there because the fans are no more [like] the older fans back in the day, where you’re kayfabe, where you protect the business. The fans nowadays are smart and if you feel for one moment or you try to treat them like they’re not, insult their intelligence, you got something else coming,” he added.
The WWE Hall of Famer stated that fans have always loved The Undertaker, but there used to be a time when they showed the same love to Hogan. However, the reception he receives these days has changed in the most recent era of professional wrestling.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Off The Top” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
