Hulk Hogan, the iconic entertainer who electrified wrestling arenas in the 1980s and ’90s, stepped into a new arena Thursday night: the political stage at the Republican National Convention.
Hogan spoke at the RNC shortly before Donald Trump was set to accept the party’s nomination and delivered one of the most energetic speeches of the convention, calling Trump his “hero” and a “gladiator” before tearing off his shirt. Much like his wrestling matches of the past, his speech drew an enthusiastic response from the convention crowd.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]Hogan’s speech came less than a week after a shooter tried to assassinate Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. “What happened last week when they took a shot at my hero and they tried to kill the next President of the United States?” Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, said. “Enough was enough. Run wild brother. Let Trump-a-mania rule again.”
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Hogan then ripped off his shirt, echoing his famous wrestling entrance, revealing a Trump-Vance shirt underneath. He said that the assassination attempt on Trump was the moment he decided he wanted to make his voice heard: “I tried to stay out of politics, but after everything that’s happened to our country over the past four years and everything that happened last weekend, I can no longer stay silent,” he said.
“Over my career, I’ve been in the ring with some of the biggest, some of the baddest dudes on the planet,” Hogan continued. “Donald Trump is the toughest of them all. They’ve thrown everything at Donald Trump, all the investigations, the impeachments, the court cases, and he’s still standing and kicking their butts.”
Hogan’s presence at the RNC added a dose of spectacle and nostalgia to an event already steeped in theatrics. Hogan joined a speaker lineup that also included Linda McMahon, the matriarch of the wrestling empire, and UFC President Dana White.
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Trump has long been a fan of professional wrestling. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013, and said in his acceptance speech: “I consider this to be my greatest honor of all.” He’s participated in several combat sporting events over the years, including “Battle of the Billionaires” at WWE’s WrestleMania in 2007 when Trump took down Vince McMahon, co-founder of WWE. Trump showed up to a UFC fight just two days after he became a convicted felon in May—and received a large ovation from the packed crowd.
