Some wrestlers from Waterloo Region are mourning the loss of an icon who inspired their careers. Hulk Hogan, a WWE performer known for his famous mustache and in-ring antics, died on Thursday at the age of 71. For some people in Waterloo Region, he was more than just a professional wrestler, he was one of the reasons they pursued their own passions. “Life wasn’t really easy in the 80s,” independent wrestler Corey Spade recalled. “But I watched Hogan and no matter what anybody does or how evil they are, Dirty Deeds Hogan is always true.” Spade said before he first saw Hogan, wrestling was just something that came on TV. “I didn’t really know who anybody was or anything. It was just a guy in red against this guy in blue,” he said. “But all of a sudden, one day, this Hulk Hogan came up.” Spade said he drifted away from wrestling at one point in his life, but a meeting with the icon got him back into the ring in his late 30s. “They brought me up on the stage and Hulk Hogan signed the frame for me and shook my hand. When he shook my hand, I don’t know. It’s magic. I said, ‘I think I can still do this stuff.’ And then I did it,” he said. Jeff Black, co-owner of Off the Ropes Wrestling Studio in Kitchener, shared similar childhood memories. “It was Hulk Hogan,” Black said. “Anyone that was across the ring from him, I hated him. [Hogan] was the ultimate good guy.” For many, Hogan’s name is synonymous with the sport. “When I describe what we do here, I say, ‘Stuff like Hulk Hogan did.’ He encapsulates professional wrestling,” Black said. Outside the ring, Hogan’s reputation was more turbulent. He was criticized for disrespecting other wrestlers, getting caught in several lies and a messy public divorce. He also lent his celebrity status to politics, throwing his support behind Donald Trump. At one point, he raised eyebrows by asking the crowd if they wanted him to ‘body slam Kamala Harris.’ He also made headlines in 2012 after Gawker Media posted a video of him having sex with his former best friend’s wife. Four years later, he won a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against the company. However, during the trial, an audio file including Hogan using a racist slur was submitted as evidence. Both Black and Spade say they are choosing to mourn the wrestler and not the complicated human being. “I may not agree with a lot of the stuff he does in his life, but none of that will ever change my memory of Hulk Hogan,” Spade said. “You’ve got to separate the man from the character,” Black said. “I like to remember the character because it has got a special place.”
