What if Hulk Hogan never joined WCW ????

hey peeps and peepettes

What do you think WWE would be like if Hogan had stayed and never joined WCW ??

Personally i don"t think we would of has the Vince/Austin feud when it happened and Hogan would of done a heel turn and probley feuded with HBK or The Rock.

IMO its possable that WCW would still be around today if he had not of joined them as he was burning there money whilst there but is it possble WWE could of gone the same route as WCW did ?

I aint bashing Hogan but what he demanded and took from WCW was wrong.

so what do u think peep and peepettes ? do u think anything would be diffrent and how ????
:worship:
 
You still would've had the Monday Night Wars. The thing is, if Hogan hadn't left then, he would've left later. Hogan is and always has been about the money and WCW was offering more of it. I'm not bashing him but it's the truth. He's doing to TNA now what he did to WCW then and what Vince refused to allow him to do to WWE. Had Hogan stayed, you would've gotten a couple of feuds out of him like Bret, HBK and possibly Austin. But he would've left again because Vince wouldn't have offered him much more money than he was already making because Austin would've been ready to take over. Hogan would've left in the late 90's right at the start of the Attitude Era. Austin might've been bigger if it had been Hogan to put him over and not Hart but we all know how Hogan feels about putting people over. He would've left right before Austin got big and Hart still would've been the one to put him over before jumping ship himself, following the money just like Hogan. HBK would've been more over because of a feud with Hulk and so would Hart. But because of personal demons and a casket match with Taker, Shawn would still have retired early because of his back. Hart would still have left. And by the time you get to the 2000's, you still have Austin, Rock, and Triple H carrying the company with the introduction of Lesnar in 2002 as well as the departure of the Rock and Austin. Then Lesnar would've still left in 2004. Then you have Triple H until Cena gets big, and things would remain the same.
 
I started a thread last year on the old school wrestling thread about this very subject. The condensed version is that I said Hogan would have been a full time guy (with the ocassional breaks) for another 3-4 years. In that time I think we would have seen fueds with HBK and Bret Hart to help them get over. I think we would have also seen him work with the other top guys of that time like Razor and Diesel. I also think he would have probably had a heel turn around the same time he did in WCW. With the kickoff of the attitude era, Hogan would have been a full blown part timer and would spend the majority of his time in an authoritative role as a GM. No doubt he would have had some story with both Rock and Austin which would include matches against both.
 
Hogan going to WCW helped change WCW's fortunes, which led to them to get Randy Savage which was followed by the debut of Monday Nitro which led to getting Hall and Nash which led to NWO which led to great success.

Since this is all hypothetical:

From WCW 's standpoint, it's a little unclear. I mean, I think the company might have done well any ways. but I'm not sure how well though. Hogan gave the WCW a huge shot in the arm, revenue increased, ratings, ppv buyrates were helped by him. I'm sure he had some ideas that helped the company, as well as those that didn't. To get him, it meant film roles with Time or Aol Time Warner, a huge salary, and an unhappy lockerroom, many performers unhappy with his politicking and attention. There had been politcs there before, but Hogan's addition there, added to it, supposedly. SO if he hadn't been there, there might have been a happier lockerroom. The one thing is NWO, would that have happened, without Hogan. I think so. I had heard the original idea for a leader was to be ..... Lex Luger, from Bischoff himself in an interview, it might be untrue, who knows.

I have no idea why Hogan left. I mean I've heard the rumours, Hogan wanted money and/or he wanted to do films and get the time to do so. If he had stayed, he would have brought down WWF unless Vince reigned him in, which I'm not sure he would do. Hogan really guarded his spot well, by his own admission, emerging talent would suffer, Bret, Luger, Hall, Nash, HBK might have to wait longer for their shot as the top guy. He might hold on, the problem is the steroid trial was going on at the time (or close to it) which would force Vince to make a change. Would he ? Would he stick to it ? Would it succeed, or fail and then he fall back on Hogan ? I'm wondering if the frustration of that might send performers running to WCW ? I think a number might have gone. Which lead to a very interesting situation. WCW will offer big bucks for performers from WWF with better schedules and Vince would have to compete with that.


Hogan was definitely box office but I don't think he would have continued with the same success, his ability to make money would fade and with the steroid trial, he'd have to be phased out of the scene for a time. His admission of steroid use would kill WWF at the time.

With time away from WWE, we'd be cursed with more of his stupid bullshit movies, in his attempt to conquer Hollywood.

SO to recap:

-NWO might have happened, might not, happier lockerroom, more money in WCW's hands.

-WWE Performers other than Hogan possibly going to WCW.WCW would reach out to WWF performers open their wallets and Vince would have to fight to keep his talent or find new talent. Possible bidding wars.

-WWF being harmed by Hogan being champ during the time of the steroid trial, leading to either Hogan holding on at all costs and bringing the company down, or him being forced to stay off till the heat cools down. I think it would be necessary to take belt off for a term then put it back on him down the line.
 
Hogan never goes to WCW, the Monday Night Wars might be delayed or never happened. He wouldn't be face of the WWF due to the government snooping in WWF, so Bret & HBK would've still risen to the top but eventually fans even without Hollywood Hogan would get sick of the cartoonish characters and guys like Stone Cold would've still became stars.
 
I think a lot of things would be different if Hogan wouldn't have left...

The Hogan/Bret Hart feud that we all wanted would've happened. Bret Hart has stated in interviews that Hogan didn't feud with him b/c Hogan was scared of losing his status as top face. That when the people see big Hulk Hogan beating up on little Bret Hart that would have swayed their opinion. So instead of the historic NWO/Hulk Hogan heel turn, we get awesome Hogan/Hart matches for Hogan's heel turn.

If Hogan doesn't go full blown heel against Hart, then he would've against Diesel or Shawn Michaels. Part of the reason for the NWO heel turn was b/c Hogan stated in interviews that the cheers were dimming and he felt it was time for a change. And the Hart feud would've been the start of the turn then by Wrestlemania XI he turns full heel in a feud against the Dudes with Attitude Michaels and Diesel.

Another big change would be the NWO's impact. I was a big Lex Luger fan but he just didn't have the same pull as Hulk Hogan. Part of the NWO's success was due to them being an implied WWF Invasion, and no one was more WWF than Hulk Hogan. Maybe if Macho Man were the leader of the NWO b/c those black and white promos would've been more awesome with Macho's voice and intensity.

Also, the rise of Goldberg would be different. The Goldberg mythos is built around the winning streak and his match in Atlanta against Hulk Hogan. How this affects Goldberg I can't say. The streak probably still gets him over but not to the same level as with Hogan. And maybe this prevents his ego from getting the best of him and leaves him needing to continue trying to prove himself in the ring. This way he stays dedicated to the wrestling and doesn't go Hollywood making Santa movies.
 
WWE would have probably been even further down the crapper. The problem is people were getting tired of goody two-shoes overgrown boy scout babyfaces. It wasn't until they saw what was happening in WCW with the nWo and in ECW that they finally woke up and realized they needed to stop trying to create the next "Real American" and get with the times.

Another problem is fans get tired of seeing the same wrestlers on top all the time and you know Hulk Hogan wouldn't relinquish the main event for anybody. Sure he might have let Undertaker or King Kong Bundy keep the belt warm for him. But you can bet your sweet aspercreme he wasn't gonna let anybody else be the star of the show, especially not some Ringmaster or a hitman from Canada.
 
WCW would have been forced to push the young up and coming wrestlers that they had on their roster because without Hogan I'd doubt if Randy Savage and allot of the big name guys that came in because of Hogan wouldn't have either jumped ship or received the big pushes they received so more likely Marcus Bagwell would have been in the World championship hunt along with Dustin Rhodes who would have probably never went to the WWF and adopted that career killing gimmick known as Goldust. And without the NWO overkill the late 90s circa would have been different all the talent that had to take a back seat to them would be getting pushed and or used better in other words you might not of had the radicals or Chris Jericho in the WWF and Raven might have been used better.
 
Assuming Hogan didn't join WCW, and was with the WWE full-time instead of doing movies? Well...

WCW would probably have stayed second in ratings, revenue, following much longer than they did in IRL. IIRC, they started closing the gap and trading ratings victories from 1994 - 1996, when they started pulling ahead thanks to Hogan, Savage and all the ex-WWE big names coming down to Atlanta. At this point, WCW was still pretty much a southern promotion, using ex-NWA names like Flair, Sting, Vader, Steiners, Road Warriors, etc..

And yet, they'd probably have a lot less internal difficulties and unhappiness. WCW was never the best place to work even at the best of times because it was owned by Time Warner and often got used a dumping ground for guys that didn't know shit about wrestling (Jim Herd), but with no Hogan/nWo madness backstage, it’d probably be a healthier environment.

Talent-wise, it’d be really interesting. You had guys like Steven Regal, Steve Austin, Cactus Jack, Brian Pillman, Johnny B. Badd, Harlem Heat, Dustin Rhodes on the way up, with Sting, Vader, Flair, Ron Simmons, Arn Anderson, Rick Rude, Ricky Steamboat main eventing. 94 – 98 would have seen a lot of the former start to step up and get featured in the main event as those of the latter retired. Assuming they don’t get stolen by Vince McMahon, that’s a lot of talent to be main eventing your company, and even moreso the potential for a national breakthrough considering the super-stardom of some in IRL.

Now as for the WWE? They’d probably have chugged along just fine, far better than in IRL with their “New Generation”. If Hogan had stayed, and so did Hennig & Savage and a couple of other of the big names, then that could have anchored the main event just fine while guys like Diesel, Razor Ramon, Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, got themselves ready. Hogan was still a major draw in 94 – 96, even if crowd reactions were turning against him in WCW. A nostalgia feud with Savage, or an actual full-fledged feud with Hennig over the World Title could have been great to see, but I think ultimately the thing on everyone’s minds here and back then would have been Hogan versus Bret Hart.

The way I see it, Hogan would have probably tried to play the feud as one of respect, of conflicting yet similar ideals. Handshakes, friendliness, maybe some tagging together, etc… But when it came down to it, Hart would probably get the lion’s share of the pop due to his being less stale as an act, and I can see Hogan ultimately giving into it and doing a heel turn, if only to maintain his spot in the company and his place with the fans. Either that or try and turn Bret heel to an angry crowd. Maybe they’d play with it on a couple of house-shows to test a reaction, and ultimately decide it had to be Hogan? Anyway, Hogan turns heel against Bret, and ultimately puts him over at a Wrestlemania (to some degree). But right here, we’ve got the makings of an excellent nWo-expy if you play it as old guard versus new blood like WCW tried to do in 2000. Hogan, Savage & Hennig as the principle three versus Michaels, Hart & Diesel, with Ramon, Kid, Undertaker, Luger, Yokozuna, and a couple of others waiting in the wings? That’d sell, and it’d probably sell big. And it’d keep them ahead of WCW for at least a few more years.

No clue about ECW.

With the above as the baseline, I think I’d call it at 1998 as to when WCW would overtake the WWF, and it would be much more competitive than IRL. It would have been a sight to see…
 
If Hogan never joined WCW I think both parties would have been better off.

WCW never would have become as popular and rich as it did. It also wouldn't have tried to recreate the success it got by signing Hogan by signing every other former WWF star. Thus never turning into a retirement village with no younger talent to fall back on who had any credibility built up after all the stars like Hogan were gone. It may still be operational today.

Hulk Hogan also probably wouldn't have needed to have as many surgeries as he has had either because he wouldn't have wrestled as much. He might actually still be really tall instead of just averagely tall.
Hell he may have even landed a descent movie role somewhere along the line instead of just a bunch of crap movies.

It was fun seeing Hogan go to WCW and the nWo and everything but one can't help but wonder if things could've been better otherwise.

No I don't think WWE would have gone the same route as WCW did because Vince McMahon didn't have morons with endless funds and no passion for the business running his business, he had him and his own passion for his own company. Hogan wouldn't have been back for quite a while after he left either I don't think.
 
It would be a totally different ballgame, pushes that did happen would not have happened... You cannot say he would have feuded with Austin, because if Hogan hadn't gone to WCW then Steve Austin may never have left there and other WWE pushes didn't happen as a result.

Bret beats Hogan at Summerslam after winning the KOTR and Hogan starts to get boos, at the same time he comes across the path of Shawn Michaels and Diesel who are starting to get face pops and he uses them to soften up Bret for a win and the title back at Survivor Series, turning him full blown heel by taking out Bret and Shawn... this pisses off Diesel who goes face and feuds with Hogan through to the Rumble, which Diesel has to win to get his match. Shawn and Bret get in each other's way, costing them their shot and they begin to feud with each other, with Owen Hart in Bret's corner.

At Wrestlemania X Diesel defeats Hogan for the World title and Bret and Shawn face off in the first Ladder Match for the IC title - Owen costs Bret the title and Randy Savage makes the save for Bret.

Meanwhile in WCW - Rick Rude misses the trip to Japan that ended his career as he is being offered a top run by Vince and clandestinely makes the switch while Vince releases several talents such as Charles Wright, Crush and Jacques Rougeau who go straight into WCW. Wright and Adams form a new tag team and immediately win the straps while Jacques Rougeau enters the upper mid-card title, skating dangerously close to being sued over the Mountie gimmick, he wears the same outfit and keeps the same character, just using his real name and becomes part of the Dangerous Alliance. He feuds with several younger talents over the TV title and later the US. In the Main Event - Vader feuds with a newly returned Scott Steiner over the WCW Title - Rick is in the US title picture with Steve Austin.

Rude makes his debut at Wrestlemania X feuding Mr. Perfect, costing him he and Tatanka's match to Money Inc. DiBiase tries to pay Rude but only succeeds in getting a Rude Awakening for his troubles, setting Rude as a lone wolf. At RAW he states he is out to decimate the roster, one by one until he gets what was rightfully his, the WWF title - he also singles out Hulk Hogan for a barb about how he refused to face him in the past for the title and how even Warriors were scared of this real man. Bobby Heenan offers his services to Rude once more and he too is given a "Rude Awakening" that "ends his career". Rude beats Perfect to win the King Of The Ring title, after Perfect had dedicated his win to Heenan when The Brain tries to help and appears hurt.

Meanwhile, at KOTR 1994 - The Undertaker battles Yokozuna in a Casket Match and Owen & Shawn face Randy Savage and Bret in tag team competition with the caveat that whoever gains the pinfall becomes #1 contender to Diesel - Randy Savage takes advantage of a quick opportunity to pin Owen and gets that role - Bret is frustrated but happy for his friend.

In their title rematch, held inside a cage and with Jesse Ventura as special referee - Diesel beats Hogan, when he gets in Ventura's face and their old feud backfires, Jesse slams the door onto Hogan's head to stop him escaping.

Savage runs down and is torn, he is a good guy but concerned about his friend Hogan, who is bleeding profusely. He is quickly blindsided by Rick Rude who attacks him with the sceptre and "puts him on the shelf". On RAW he reveals that he has been named the #1 contender to Diesel's title for Summerslam, by virtue of his KOTR win and Savage's inability to compete due to "severe concussion".



This is just how 1993 and 1994 could have differed, lots of different knock on effects. You can see here that Rude would be heading the route Austin did, within 2 years he could easily have been in that "face/anti-hero" role that Austin was, had simple decisions been different - How someone like Shawn and Bret would have worked higher up the card, but still not have been the "main guys" while big men like Hogan and Diesel were around and marketable, how some lower guys could have stepped over to WCW like Scott Steiner and gotten bigger pushes. That kind of story would have prevented the "sucky" era of 95 in WWE and the boom in WCW that got them to the stage they could poach talent. Eventually Hogan would have moved, probably Savage too - but certainly had things been done this way, Bret, Shawn, Diesel and Rick Rude would have all been major players by the time Hogan and Savage did depart - Where it left the Undertaker? that is the question - I could see him being the "odd man out" in that WWF and being the "shock switch" in the way Luger was.
 
If Hogan stayed in WWF we might have gotten a neutered version of the attitude era. Everyone talks about how WWE is hot garbage right now because there's no competition...and 1995 was pretty much hot garbage.

We would have gotten to see Austin/Hogan at a wrestlemania I'm sure. The NWO would have never been as big as it was without Hogan. The montreal screwjob would have never happened because Vince would have had plenty of money to pay Bret Hart and Hogan would probably have been hogging the title and spotlight still at that point anyway.

Hogan would have eventually turned heel I'm sure...the moment probably wouldn't be as epic as bash at the beach with the nwo and the garbage flying in the ring. It still would have been a highly entertaining run though.

Randy Savage and The Giant would have been the stars of WCW. Just imagine the Dungeon of Doom going after Macho Man instead of Hogan, so much unintended comedy would ensue. Flair would have held the belt like 5 more times than he did lol. I think Curt Hennig would have gotten a main event push possibly, which would have been awesome. Even better than the West Texas Rednecks gimmick.

David Arquette still ends up winning the WCW title and it still goes down hill all the same though I think.
 
The Monday Night Wars would not have happened period. WCW would have all but gone bust if Hogan didnt come over in mid 1994.
Hogan would have reluctantly returned to WWE after the steroid scandal had blown over, and Vince would have made him put Bret Hart over.
WCW was only competition once the nWo angle started, and it was great as they took it to WWE and eventually took over as the number one promotion for a couple of years.
Hogan also lost a lot of weight following finishing up June 1993 through June 1994, and as there is no way he could match Hart, Michaels etc in the ring, he would have probably focused more on his tv career, which he was doing when WCW came calling
 
Hogan is and always has been about the money and WCW was offering more of it.

True, but my recollection is that Hogan left WWE well before he decided to sell his services to WCW. If I remember, we all thought he would eventually return to wrestling.....with WWE. It was a total surprise when he didn't.

Honestly, I'm of the belief that with the game-changing history Hogan and WWE made, he should have been with them for life. Sure, he would have toned down the in-ring action as he got older, but the two parties should have been joined at the hip and, imo, he never should have even considered going anywhere else. It should have been a "Mickey Mantle and the NY Yankees" type deal; you stay and the company will always have something for you......your retirement from active duty causes you to ascend to God-like status and the fans go nuts every time you appear.

We talk about Hogan having a big ego, but we might all be underestimating it. He seemed to think that anything he touched would turn to gold. Subsequent ventures proved him wrong, of course. The WCW experience was interesting for a while, but it could have been accomplished without Hogan, although it definitely was more exciting with him.

Still, we would have had the Monday Night Wars. Hogan or not, WCW had money coming out of their butts and were spending it so freely and stupidly that the WWE-WCW face-off was going to happen. Their intention was to put WWE out of business, no matter the cost.

But I still say it: Hulk Hogan should have been a WWE lifer. He belonged to them and they belonged to him. It would have been fascinating to see how wrestling history would have transpired had he never left.
 
If Hogan had never left WWE back then and never went to WCW then Hogan would have eventually turned heel in the old WWE back in the 1990s but his heel turn in WWE wouldn't have had as big an impact but it would have been close enough to have an impact but then again superstars like Diesel, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, etc. would have never have gotten into the main event especially if Hogan had stayed
 
Hogan leaving WWF and eventually resurfacing in wrestling with WCW was the best move for everyone involved. At least that's how I view it. Granted, this is just opinion and not fact no my part, but here's the way I see things. It wasn't just Hogan leaving the WWF that caused these ripples in the company's approach to business. Let's also remember that performers like Ultimate Warrior, Jake Roberts, Randy Savage, Jim Duggan, The Big Bossman and a host of others were leaving the promotion too.

With all these aforementioned names leaving the WWF, other wrestlers like Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker, Yokozuna, Razor Ramon, Lex Luger, and Diesel were all being relied upon to carry a heavy load. As know, the Luger experiment failed. Now I'll echo with Sally that not everything Hogan did was successful and that in many ways Hogan as a lifer in the World Wrestling Federation would have been a great thing to see just for sentimentality. But to be honest, Hogan's WWF/E nostalgia run in the 2000s proved that Hogan always had a place with the promotion even in absentia. Should Hogan leave TNA that will once again happen if he and Vince do business again on WWE TV. And even during Hogan's TNA run, he's been featured in media like video games, and featured on retrospectives like The True Story Of WrestleMania. So there is still a relationship there.

Anyway, Hogan going to WCW along with a host of other ex-WWF talent ushered in a spotlight on new faces or familiar faces getting a new role of prominence for the WWF. And I really do argue the point that Hogan was the only one blockading any possibility of new faces, as I mentioned earlier there were a lot of other veteran talent in the fray, and Vince minimized their roles, these performers had the same feelings as Hogan and they felt they could offer more to wrestling still. Randy Savage is a fine example of that seeing as how he jumped ship to WCW the same year Hogan did. Duggan and The Bossman did the same thing, granted their jumps to WCW were nowhere near what Hogan and Savage's were, but they did enjoy some moderate success. And years later, Bossman would return to the WWF in a role of prominence not seen since his feud in the late 80s with Hulk Hogan.

So while there were some rough patches in between Hogan's WWF departure and association with WCW, wrestling eventually rose from the ashes. WCW stepped things up, and the WWF rebounded from their lulls as well. Therefore, I think the shaking up and departure of WWF stalwarts helped make things happen the way they did, as a wrestling fan, there's very little I'd like to see get done differently. And yes while I might have an unpopular opinion on this, I don't believe Hulk Hogan was the biggest offender in WCW's downfall. The company's true dangers started in the late 80s when Jim Crockett Promotions/WCW was sold to Ted Turner, and it went through a bevy of ownership and corporate upheaval.

Without Hogan's jump to WCW, I don't think the nWo angle would have had any of the long standing legacy it did. For that matter, without Hall and Nash, it'd be hard to imagine it as well. Bottom line, those three departing the WWF at the times they did was essential.
 
First, there may not have been a Monday Night Ratings War. Once WCW got Hogan (biggest name in wrestling) & Savage (probably the 3rd biggest) to join a roster that already included Flair (2nd biggest) and Sting, among others, they had more star power with the average wrestling audience than WWE. Granted, the top 3 had been made by other promotions (Flair in Jim Crockett Jr's NWA, plus a stint in WWE, Hogan & Savage in WWE) but regardless WWE did not at this time have that kind of drawing power on the card. When you look back at the early ratings for the Nitro and Raw before the NwO Invasion you see a pattern of WWE often doing slightly better with the undercard and either losing or drawing about even in the main events. Nitro was winning a lot in 1996 even with Hogan not as champ (Flair was champ most of that time, then The Giant) but that was in part due to Nitro delivering a better product, they
"stars" were the draw but the shows as a whole were as good or better than Raw. WCW probably didnt need Hogan to start the Monday Night Wars since Ted Turner owned the company and the product drew enough ratings to satisfy advertisers even in their dark early 90s days (twice what TNA gets today) and the shows were cheap to produce, however...

If Hogan stays in WWE he would have continued to dominate the main event picture. One thing that is consistent about McMahon is that once something works he'll ride as long as possible, he's not big on change. WWE saw major ratings and attendance declines in the mid 90s circa 93-96, part of that was due to WCW's rise but even before Hogan joined WCW, when they had Flair & Sting and only a handful of people anyone other than die hard fans would know WWE numbers were on the decline. The company had lost too many major attractions without comparable ones to replace them. Vince was likley pre occupied with his Federal Steroid Investigation (a major reason household names like Hogan & Piper disappeared in 1992) and many feel the booking and program quality suffered as a result, hurting fan interest. There were some major stars developed during this time, particularly HBK, Nash, & Hall, and Brett Hart was a good choice to continue the "Hogan Tradition" of solid, no nonesense, straight laced good guy role model champions, the John Cena of his day, only with much better matches (Hogan was a bigger star but no one could argue Brett wasnt a better in ring performer). Fact is, Vince wouldnt have needed Hart to "Fill Hogan's Role" if he had Hogan. Due to the trial (where Hogan testified against Vince) obviously he wouldnt have been around and the company likley would have looked about the same as it did circa 93-early 94. Vince definatley has shown he will make amends and welcome people back even after major blow ups if it means money so it's easy to think if Hogan was willing they could have brought him back in the summer of 94 just as WCW did. We've seen Vince continually mend fences with Austin, HBK, Nash, and even Hart himself who had the biggest blow up/exit anyone ever had. Only Flair & Jim Herd in 1991 is even comparable. If Vince brings Hogan back then we get Hogan main eventing. Hart probably puts him over then moves onto fueds. Hogan likley gets a Hall & a heel Nash and maybe HBK during this time, as well as some of the non entities those guys faced like Mabel and maybe evil dentist Isaac Yankem. The company sees an uptick in interest but at what cost, plus it likely wouldnt have generated the kind of business Hogan did in the 80s, even if it topped the New Generation era numbers a bit. Fact is older fans who watched in the 80s were bored by Hogan and his act, much the same way older fans today are cold to Cena. Still, like Cena today, Hogan would have generated business, so like Cena today Vince would rode him from mid 94 through the next few years.

After that it's hard to see what happens. Savage probably doesnt leave WWE if Hogan comes back. They had an on again/off again relationship although it was his treatment in WCW that many feel lead to the final blow up between them which was never resolved. At this time they were cool, Savage was friends with Flair who played a major role in recruiting him to WCW but when Savage jumped it was the allure of joining both Hogan & Flair and being able to work full time. I think as time went on Savage would have been used more in WWE had he stayed if no other reason than the company needed the numbers he could provide. Unless WCW made a mega money offer I dont see Savage leaving the friendly familair confines of WWE with Hogan on top.

If the Monday Night Wars do happen Nitro could still have done well if they produced high quality shows and untilized Flair, Sting, Vader to full effect. At the very least it might have pushed Vince to be a little more creative with his undercard even if he was riding Hogan on top. Two of the biggest changes in the industry during this time were linked to Hogan being in WCW, Steve Austin's firing and the NwO angle. Austin was promoted fairly hard in the 92-94 period and seemed poised for a major run in WCW. Injuries derailed that but Bischoff saw him as expendable once he added Hogan & Savage to the roster. There have always been rumors Hogan didnt like Austin, in part because he wasnt afraid to speak up about things he didnt like. Without those two Bischoff may have been more tolerant, Rick Rude suffered a career ending back injury right before Hogan arrived so a major attraction had just been lost. Austin reportedly got along well with Flair & Sting, if he stays in WCW there is no Stone Cold and the biggest new star of the decade may never happen.

The NwO Invasion angle could still have been done without Hogan, it still would have been a breath of fresh air to otherwise stale wresting booking of the time, and it would have created a major buzz. What pushed the angle over the top however was the idea of all of WCW joining forces, putting aside their various feuds and hostilities, to fend off the Invasion. What made the Invasion truuly fearful and credible was Hogan's completely unseen and unpredictable heel turn. Hall & Nash coming in off their WWE runs and "Invading" would have been entertaining, but without Hogan's heel turn it lacks something, it simply isnt as cutting edge. It might have been enough to energize the audience and shift the numbers more solidly in WCW favor but without Hogan I dont see it by itself creating the massive buzz and kickstarting the 83 week ratings win streak Nitro went on.

After 96 it gets too hard to predict. Hogan's ability to stay on top would have a lot to do with how successful WCW was challenging WWE without him. Just as Vince will make amends with almost anyone to make money, he'll switch horses, even loyal ones with great pedigrees, when he doesnt think they are worth as much money. Hogan wouldnt have been dropped but he may have taken a more secondary road. We saw in the 2000s the way Vince used HBK & Flair, he got a lot of money out of them without making them the face of the company or the giving them the biggest storyline all the time. Both won championships and had major victories during that time but both also had to be willing to lose on occassion. Flair put over Jeff Hardy and RVD during major pushes for both men as well Edge. HBK put over HHH & Taker as well as Cena, among others. The late 90s Hogan would have a lot to do with his willingness to put over the occassional legend or rising star, something he is not known for.

Without the NwO & Austin's firing there would be no "Attitude Era". Vince loosened the strings creatively and went for his adult oriented/cuting edge programming because WCW was kicking his !@$, they had the biggest draws in the industry and the most cutting edge angle with the NwO Invasion. If WWE is holding their own or slightly ahead Vince would completely change gears with direction of his booking. Likewise the biggest catalyst for Attitude Programming was Stone Cold, who obviously wouldnt have been a factor if he stayed in WCW.

This all begs another ineresting topic for a possible thread...If Hogan stays in WWE and WCW doesnt see the uptick in business do Flair & Sting go to WWE by the end of the mid 90s, say 95-96 range ?
 
There are so many things that can be argued or considered etc...

I am going to go with something completely random, because who knows what exactly would have happened and I think he would have just gone to WCW a bit later anyway...

But, in my opinion, one thing we would have seen, is Hogan body slam Yokozuna. I know it isn't what is being searched for in the idea of this thread. But like I said, a million things can be speculated on. Hogan adding one more "giant" to his list is almost a guarantee.
 
At the time Hogan joined WCW, WWF was sinking and Hogan would of brought WWF up bought long term the younger wrestlers of the time (Austin, Michaels, HHH) would not get pushed and WWF would begin to fail.

If Hogan stayed WWE might not be here but WCW would
 
WCW would have been forced to push the young up and coming wrestlers that they had on their roster because without Hogan I'd doubt if Randy Savage and allot of the big name guys that came in because of Hogan wouldn't have either jumped ship or received the big pushes they received so more likely Marcus Bagwell would have been in the World championship hunt along with Dustin Rhodes who would have probably never went to the WWF and adopted that career killing gimmick known as Goldust. And without the NWO overkill the late 90s circa would have been different all the talent that had to take a back seat to them would be getting pushed and or used better in other words you might not of had the radicals or Chris Jericho in the WWF and Raven might have been used better.

Career Killing Gimmick? WTF? Excuse me, i think you left your sanity behind. Dustin Rhodes was going nowhere before he came to wwe and became Golddust. He was a generic and bland performer who couldn't show a personality and was only around for so long because he was Dusty's son. When he had the chance to join WWE and create golddust, he was allowed to create a persona that defined his career and made him first a great heal and then a beloved face. He was entertaining and successful and had a number of memorable moments that he would never have had a chance to get as plain old Dustin Rhodes. He won multiple IC belts and tag titles, had great feuds and skits with every one from Mankind, Undertaker and Booker T. He brought humor and physicality to a role that was among the last real Gimmicks. At that point he had already been around off and on again with wwe since 1990 (at least 5 years with the fed, and some time in texas and memphis). During his first run, he was a credible threat at all times to even Warrior, Taker, and Razor. And when he started doing the comedy schtick he remained a viable in ring threat while continuing to entertain people more then a large portion of the roster.
 
It would be a totally different ballgame, pushes that did happen would not have happened... You cannot say he would have feuded with Austin, because if Hogan hadn't gone to WCW then Steve Austin may never have left there and other WWE pushes didn't happen as a result.

Bret beats Hogan at Summerslam after winning the KOTR and Hogan starts to get boos, at the same time he comes across the path of Shawn Michaels and Diesel who are starting to get face pops and he uses them to soften up Bret for a win and the title back at Survivor Series, turning him full blown heel by taking out Bret and Shawn... this pisses off Diesel who goes face and feuds with Hogan through to the Rumble, which Diesel has to win to get his match. Shawn and Bret get in each other's way, costing them their shot and they begin to feud with each other, with Owen Hart in Bret's corner.

At Wrestlemania X Diesel defeats Hogan for the World title and Bret and Shawn face off in the first Ladder Match for the IC title - Owen costs Bret the title and Randy Savage makes the save for Bret.

Meanwhile in WCW - Rick Rude misses the trip to Japan that ended his career as he is being offered a top run by Vince and clandestinely makes the switch while Vince releases several talents such as Charles Wright, Crush and Jacques Rougeau who go straight into WCW. Wright and Adams form a new tag team and immediately win the straps while Jacques Rougeau enters the upper mid-card title, skating dangerously close to being sued over the Mountie gimmick, he wears the same outfit and keeps the same character, just using his real name and becomes part of the Dangerous Alliance. He feuds with several younger talents over the TV title and later the US. In the Main Event - Vader feuds with a newly returned Scott Steiner over the WCW Title - Rick is in the US title picture with Steve Austin.

Rude makes his debut at Wrestlemania X feuding Mr. Perfect, costing him he and Tatanka's match to Money Inc. DiBiase tries to pay Rude but only succeeds in getting a Rude Awakening for his troubles, setting Rude as a lone wolf. At RAW he states he is out to decimate the roster, one by one until he gets what was rightfully his, the WWF title - he also singles out Hulk Hogan for a barb about how he refused to face him in the past for the title and how even Warriors were scared of this real man. Bobby Heenan offers his services to Rude once more and he too is given a "Rude Awakening" that "ends his career". Rude beats Perfect to win the King Of The Ring title, after Perfect had dedicated his win to Heenan when The Brain tries to help and appears hurt.

Meanwhile, at KOTR 1994 - The Undertaker battles Yokozuna in a Casket Match and Owen & Shawn face Randy Savage and Bret in tag team competition with the caveat that whoever gains the pinfall becomes #1 contender to Diesel - Randy Savage takes advantage of a quick opportunity to pin Owen and gets that role - Bret is frustrated but happy for his friend.

In their title rematch, held inside a cage and with Jesse Ventura as special referee - Diesel beats Hogan, when he gets in Ventura's face and their old feud backfires, Jesse slams the door onto Hogan's head to stop him escaping.

Savage runs down and is torn, he is a good guy but concerned about his friend Hogan, who is bleeding profusely. He is quickly blindsided by Rick Rude who attacks him with the sceptre and "puts him on the shelf". On RAW he reveals that he has been named the #1 contender to Diesel's title for Summerslam, by virtue of his KOTR win and Savage's inability to compete due to "severe concussion".



This is just how 1993 and 1994 could have differed, lots of different knock on effects. You can see here that Rude would be heading the route Austin did, within 2 years he could easily have been in that "face/anti-hero" role that Austin was, had simple decisions been different - How someone like Shawn and Bret would have worked higher up the card, but still not have been the "main guys" while big men like Hogan and Diesel were around and marketable, how some lower guys could have stepped over to WCW like Scott Steiner and gotten bigger pushes. That kind of story would have prevented the "sucky" era of 95 in WWE and the boom in WCW that got them to the stage they could poach talent. Eventually Hogan would have moved, probably Savage too - but certainly had things been done this way, Bret, Shawn, Diesel and Rick Rude would have all been major players by the time Hogan and Savage did depart - Where it left the Undertaker? that is the question - I could see him being the "odd man out" in that WWF and being the "shock switch" in the way Luger was.

almost all of this is some of the most ridiculous 'what could have been' shit I have ever read. Hogan would never had let someone of lesser size beat him in a match, let alone a feud. Bret and HBK would not have been brought to main event singles stars, HBK stays at upper midcard IC level, with maybe a token title shot or two. Bret lingers in tag teams, and also feuding with HBK. Without HBK being higher on the card and with more influence, Nash likely doesn't go far, though Sid might stick around and do similar to what happens, except with feuds against Hogan and possibly Warrior instead of HBK. Lesser power for Nash and HBK also makes lesser impact for Hall.

The Attitude era might be delayed as prior to the full effect, they were moving into the Faction Era, where every one was part of a four or five man group. Delay the Attitude Era and you don't get Stone Cold, Rock, or Mankind, which lowers the legacy and impact of Taker, HHH, and Vince himself. Vince likely doesn't acknowledge on air his backstage role with the same rippling effect.

Rude still goes when he did to wcw. Perfect as well since he's in the same role, never going to win the big title as long as hogan is around. Savage also leaves as the real issues between him, Vince, and hogan are too much to stick around and deal with. Remember, he wasn't wrestling and vince had made it clear that he didn't want macho man as a wrestler any more, only as a commentator. if he stays, he likely doesn't step foot in a ring for a long time. Eventually Hall and Nash leave, and likely bring HBK instead of Hogan. With HBK and the rest of the Klique in wcw, there is no DX, so no New Age Outlaws, no HHH, just Hunter Hearst Helmsley. That is, if he didn't stick around in wcw. Perhaps instead of nwo, there would have been some version of a wcw DX.

And Austin leaving wcw would still have happened. He would still have gone to ecw, and likely come to wwe, but unlikely to make the same impact since there would have been little chance of the same situations happening that lead to the creation of 'Stone Cold'. Same can be said for Foley. Delay the timing slightly and the beats that lead to their popularity are off and they don't quite hit the highs that they did.

Without DX and Austin to feud with, then the Rock likely doesn't become the story he has been. With Hogan still around, you can be sure the Rock doesn't get the opportunity for the movies he did, and that shortens the spread of wwe popularity.

If Hogan stayed and Savage and HBK go, then the 'outsider' and nwo would be completely different. A heel HBK turn would not be as unexpected as a Hogan turn, and neither would a Savage turn, since both had by that point spent considerable time in both roles of face/heel with success.
Not to say it couldn't have succeeded, but it would have been different. And that could have meant the difference between the short overtaking of wwe that wcw had, or a longer/slower drawn out fall of the company. Perhaps the AOL/Time Warner buyout doesn't happen or happens earlier/later.

the biggest effect though could have been on the Hart Family. Perhaps with HBK gone, and Bret on a lower slot on the card, he isn't signed to that 20year contract that Vince later tries to dump. This would mean no Montreal Screwjob and bad blood between the mcmahons and harts. Bret could still have left to try his hand at getting a higher spot with wcw without the drama of the events leading to the screwjob.
With no resentment towards the hart family on the part of mcmahon, perhaps owen doesn't pull that dumb spot and break austin's neck, which took years of austin's career. With no stress of the so-called betrayal by bret and the injury to austin, owen might not have been put in the position to do that idiotic stunt that lead to his death. Bret might have had the chance to work with Goldberg more safely, if he managed to get to the level he did, and might not have suffered the concussion that ended his career and the strokes it caused that nearly killed him.
 
Interesting thread. Imo if hogan stays his politics forces other wrestlers such as da kliq as a whole henning possibly bret hart Owen hart hell da whole hart for foundation and others sick of being held back by hogan 2 wcw. Austin stays n wcw or ecw as well as ecw probably never loses benoit guerrerro malenko jericho etc. Da streak probably never happens nwo is lead by sting maybe if it ain't hbk bret or nash. If Austin or foley ever do make it 2 wwe they would never b more than ic champions or transition champions at best. No kane.quite possibly or at leastonot as takers brother. I can actually c awa circa 96 n da federation w/vince being gagne and hogan being bockwinkel
 
Really good hindsight 20/20 thread. I will say this. While Hogan did help catapult WCW, once he got there he was very selfish in not putting younger guys over. The WWE was going in a new direction with newer guys. With Hogan still there that meant that he would either have taken a backseat (unlikely), or start putting newer generation guys over. My guess is that Hogan would have pulled much the same as he did in WCW and let his ego keep guys like Hart down. Remember him coming in after Hart's match with Yokozuna?

The key thing is to think about what guys still went where regardless of Hogan's actions and how that effected the main event scene.

WCW

1.) As we saw with Savage's disappointment with his announcing gig, he would have left regardless of Hogan and the effects on the company chronologically.

2.) Luger would have left WWF much earlier. He was still the narcissist at the Wrestlemania that Savage commentated at, and Hogan came in after Bret lost. His biggest accomplishment in the WWF was his Yokozuna feud. If Hogan stayed, no doubt his feud would have been extended (Hogan's rematch with yokozuna was his last in the WWF). Hogan would have never let Luger become the rehash of his All American gimmick with a better body. The only other scenario would be heel Luger as the Narcissistic feuding with face Hogan which may have been interesting.

*WCW's main event picture at this time would be well established with Flair, Vader, Luger, and Savage. Hogan typically overshadowed Savage, despite Savage; IMO, having almost as much charisma. Savage would have been the face of WCW as champion after probably returning to feud with Flair, while Hogan would stay the face of the WWF.

3.) The Horsemen. Probably would have reformed regardless being the WCW's bread and butter heel stable. Arn, Flair, Mongo, and Benoit would have ensued feuds against Savage, Sting, and Luger. It would have been decent TV in WCW.

4.) The Dungeon of Doom. May or may not have existed. Without Hogan's baby face to combat these cartoonish evildoers it's difficult to say. Sting may have been the focus of their wrath. If the Dungeon of Doom had talent like The Giant and Vader I think they would be a bigger focus.

3.) The NWO, would probably have happened regardless. Did the NWO need Hogan? Difficult to say. The NWO revamped everyone's gimmicks, including Hogan's. The NWO angle probably wouldn't have lasted as long, however that would probably have been a good thing.

*Nash probably would have won the heavyweight championship at some point. He would have been a good front man for the NWO as he was with the Wolfpac split. Maybe Hall as well. Whether or not Savage joined up would be largely conjecture. Regardless, Savage was a big draw in the NWO and outside of it in the WCW. The Giant would have probably still jumped ship with the demise of the Dungeon of Doom.

WWF

1.) Hart. As stated, Hart would have been overshadowed as a babyface by Hogan. If he eventually started the Hart Foundation up, their anti-American angle may have played well as heels against him. More than likely, the HBK match would have never happened at Wrestlemania.

2.) HBK. May have continued to be pushed as heel. I don't see Hogan interfering too much with this.

3.) Undertaker. Probably would have still been pushed as a heel. I see Hogan and him having a long feud.

4.) Austin. May have stayed with WCW, but if he wasn't marketable even under Hogan's shadow, he most likely would have still left for the ECW, then to the WWF. Hogan may replace Hart during his feud with Austin and that would have been interesting as well.

*The biggest thing to consider is where Hogan would have fit in the Attitude era? An era that was typified by being the antithesis of babyfaces and cartoonish heels. Hogan turning heel to a WWF audience would have been more dramatic, but more difficult to pull than his WCW heel turn. Remember, Hogan was still a headliner even well into the Attitude era.

With Hogan out of the WCW, you have a host of main eventers who haven't had a problem putting younger guys over. WCW would have been more sustainable in the long run. Hogan would have either had to retire during the Attitude era, heel turn, or the Attitude era would have not existed, because he would not as the face of the company, allow it. Hollywood Hogan would be interesting to see in the Attitude era WWF.

Without the Attitude era, we would be having the reverse conversation of what if Hogan had went to WCW, because I believe the WWF would be dead after the Monday Night Wars.
 
If Hogan had never joined WCW then they never wouod have had the increased exposure that they had and I highly doubt the Monday Night Wars would have happened. Hogan brought mainstream to WCW, people forget thus in their endless need to bash a Hulk Hogan. I highly doubt the nWo would have happened aswell, so much was down to Hogan signing for WCW initially that had a knock on effect on both companies. The attitude era was a direct response to what WCW was doing. So no Hogan, no nWo, no Attitude era, no Mondsy a Night Wars!

I also still think WCW wouldn't have been around still, the biggest thing that went against the company were the higher ups hated wrestling and wanted it off the air. They succeeded in doing so in the end and would have anyway.
 
Career Killing Gimmick? WTF? Excuse me, i think you left your sanity behind. Dustin Rhodes was going nowhere before he came to wwe and became Golddust. He was a generic and bland performer who couldn't show a personality and was only around for so long because he was Dusty's son. When he had the chance to join WWE and create golddust, he was allowed to create a persona that defined his career and made him first a great heal and then a beloved face. He was entertaining and successful and had a number of memorable moments that he would never have had a chance to get as plain old Dustin Rhodes. He won multiple IC belts and tag titles, had great feuds and skits with every one from Mankind, Undertaker and Booker T. He brought humor and physicality to a role that was among the last real Gimmicks. At that point he had already been around off and on again with wwe since 1990 (at least 5 years with the fed, and some time in texas and memphis). During his first run, he was a credible threat at all times to even Warrior, Taker, and Razor. And when he started doing the comedy schtick he remained a viable in ring threat while continuing to entertain people more then a large portion of the roster.

But while Golddust did boost his career a little he never really got any further than upper mid card where as prior to returning to the WWE he was before getting buried by hulkamainia the number one contender to the WCW worlds heavyweight championship and I'd like to think that if Hogan would've never jumped ship Dustin would have either had a short run with the belt or would've been in the hunt instead of feuding with the Blacktop Bully.
 

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