Hulk Hogan: Ric Flair is my hero, the greatest of all time

New Year 2021 is finally here and the World Wrestling Entertainment WWE has figured out the best way to celebrate it on Monday Night Raw WWE will host its first Raw episode of 2021 on January 4 and has huge plans for the weekly show With a host of matches including a WWE title presumably in the main event WWE is sure to get the fans hooked onIn a highlight of the show the WWE Universe will witness some of the biggest Superstars in the history of Sports Entertainment during this mustsee episode of Monday Night Raw WWE Legends confirmed for Legends Night emanating from the WWE ThunderDome live on Sony include The Immortal Hulk Hogan Booker T Mickie James Big Show The Nature Boy Ric Flair and moreIn a fun interview WWE caught up with Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan as he discusses his appearance at Thunderdome his thoughts on Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre his greatest of all time in WWE expectation from the Legends Night show and much more Excerpts from the interviewAt Raw lsquoLegends Nightrsquo this Monday January 4 yoursquoll be entering the WWE ThunderDome for the first time What do you think of the ThunderDome and are you excited to witness it in personHH Oh man Irsquom really excited I love the way the way the ThunderDome looks with all the screens and the fan interaction I think it is a step above what I expected you know with all the craziness in the world today I mean Irsquove had very exciting moments I remember going into WrestleMania 1 with goosebumps not knowing what the heck was going on I remember being scared to death of Andre the Giant and being afraid of my own shadow not knowing if he was going to break me in half Then I remember wrestling the Rock and the fans were cheering Itrsquos kind of one of the crazy WrestleMania moments For me to show up at the ThunderDome after all this time To have Flair and Kurt Angle with me all my buddies the Big Show Wersquove even got Beth Phoenix and Tori Wilson Itrsquos just the unexpected wrestling moment I didnrsquot think was going to happen this late in my career I am just totally pumped for this I feel like Irsquom getting ready for WrestleMania or somethingThis year marked 18 years since your iconic clash against The Rock at WrestleMania 18 He recently spoke of what you said to him backstage after the match and the generosity of ldquopassing the torchrdquo to him How important do you think it is for Legends to ldquopass the torchrdquo on to the next generationHH I think itrsquos the most important thing in this business to maintain the artform and to make sure that the next generation the next decade of wrestlers is ready There was a time I was red hot in the 80s and all of a sudden the 90s came and it was time to pass the torch but it didnrsquot happen that way I mean they didnrsquot have enough guys ready to lead at that time so you know we skipped a generation It took time to pass that torch which should have been passed at the end of the 80s I mean we tried with a couple of guys putting the belts on them and stuff but they werenrsquot ready to run They werenrsquot ready like John Cena they werenrsquot ready like The Rock they werenrsquot ready like Stone Cold So itrsquos very very important that the torch is passed in the correct way and the guys that have all this experience donrsquot just walk away They stay there long enough to build the storylines build the talent and then pass the torch in the correct way Itrsquos very very importantA few years ago you identified Kevin Owens as the lsquonext big thingrsquo after his NXT Championship win Is there anyone else that you have identified as a major future starHH Kevin Owens was an exception to the rule you know I was really into the NXT thing and I didnrsquot see any one guy there that really grinded and just thumped and thumped and stayed on it and was just vicious and knew when to back off and when to beg and knew all the Pat Patterson tricks Then I saw Kevin Owens and I thought ldquoWow thatrsquos the guy Thatrsquos the guy You know he can be the next one if hersquos given the opportunityrdquo Right now therersquos another guy thatrsquos stumbling into that situation You know acting like he doesnrsquot know whatrsquos going on but hersquos smart as hell Thatrsquos the ldquoBrordquo Riddle who kicks his flipflops off when he comes into the ring Irsquove been watching him and hersquos really got good instincts Hersquos really got a good aptitude for understanding what needs to be done you know Itrsquos all about instincts and timing His timing is off a little bit but itrsquos starting to come each and every week so I mean he would be the next one Irsquod put my money onYou are huge on social media particularly Instagram How do you think your early WWE career might have been different if social media had existedHH Oh my gosh I got a feeling we would have been selling tons and tons more merchandise Irsquom sure Back in the day there were no cell phones there was no internet we didnrsquot even have camera phones to take the picture I know how my merchandise sold at the live venues and I know how the VHS tapes sold ndash lsquoThe Best of Wrestlingrsquo lsquoHulkamaniarsquo lsquoHulksterrsquo ndash so if we would have had social media I think the numbers would have just blown through the roof as far as licensing and merchandising And of course the awareness We would really have had a better handle on how big our fanbase was and how to service the international audienceTriple H has high praise for WWE Champion Drew McIntyre and Universal Champion Roman Reigns comparing their clashes as on the level of a Hogan vs Flair match What do you think of the current ChampionsHH Irsquom a little biased to both of those guys Romans Reignsrsquo father Sika and his partner Afa they pretty much put me on track when I was lost I mean my first run in WWE I left Florida and we met up and drove to the first TV and when we were up there they had been in the business quite a while so they groomed me and they helped me and kept me from making too many mistakes when yoursquore first in the business Irsquove got so much respect for the Samoan dynasty and to understand how it peaked with The Rock I see Roman Reigns taking it to a whole other level now Hersquos solid hersquos consistent hersquos got the look and there are no holes in his workhellip hersquos really really spot on Then on the other hand Irsquove watched Drew McIntyre and the years of training and inring experience now hersquos as legit as they come Hersquos got the eye of the tiger look in his eyes Hersquos got the body of a god His work is solid everything he does is spot on His interviews are good So I think Triple H was right when hersquos comparing those two guys having classic matches like the stuff Flair and I hadhellip I think hersquos spot on but I think they can take it to a whole other levelHow do you feel when people say you are one of the greatest WWE Legends of all time Who do you think is the greatest WWE Legend of all timeHH Well you know I will gracefully accept and acknowledge that compliment because it means so much especially coming from my peers to say that The guy who is my hero and who I think is the greatest wrestler of all time thatrsquos Ric Flair So I do appreciate the comment but I have a different opinion about who is the best wrestler and the greatest of all time I have to go with Flair Itrsquos in his bloodhellip he laid the groundwork He raised the bar that no one has really been able to follow as far as work ethicEarlier this month we sadly lost Pat Patterson You shared an emotional tribute to him with a photo of your first onscreen interview Just how big is the legacy that Pat has left to the world of professional wrestlingHH Pat helped so many of us I mean hersquos got a huge legacyhellip he evoked all kinds of emotion When I wanted to get into the wrestling business these guys were wrestling seven nights a week on the road and the last thing they wanted to do was mess around with some kidhellip Pat Patterson took time out of his schedule to come down and teach me how to take bumps how to go out through the ropes and do all kind of stuff and then as the years went by we became really close friendshellip When he passed away it was really a tough day It was a very tough dayWhat should fans expect from Raw Legends NightHH Well the fans should tunein because you never know what to expect I donrsquot even know what to expect Irsquom going there just to have a great time reminisce with friends but when yoursquore talking about having Flair and Kurt Angle there Big Show Carlitohellip anything is possible We could end up in the ring brother We could end up taking over the whole WWE in one given night You donrsquot know whatrsquos going to happen Thatrsquos why Irsquom so excitedRoyal Rumble is coming up on January 31 what makes that match so special and what is the secret to winning a Royal Rumble matchHH Yoursquove got to realize the odds are against you When you go out there with 30 other guys the odds are definitely against you You have to have a whole lot of luck but more than anything itrsquos pacing I donrsquot care if you get Number 1 or you get Number 15 or you get Number 29 itrsquos pacing because once you get out there you just never know how long yoursquore going to be pounding and grounding Itrsquos a real lucky situation and an enduring situation itrsquos like having an Iron Man right in the ring You just never know who is gonna come at you who is gonna cheap shot you who acts like they might help you but is just there to set you up and stab you in the back You have to pace yourself You have to have eyes on the back of your head Otherwise you donrsquot survive the Royal Rumble