At this time, news sources started to allege that Dr. George Zahorian III, a physician for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission, had been promoting steroids illegally to wrestlers typically and Hogan in particular. Following the controversial loss (which was as a result of a “contract clause”), the WCW World Heavyweight Championship grew to become vacant and a new champion was to be crowned in a 60-man three-ring battle royal at World War III, where The large value Hogan the title. On the May 28, 1994, episode of WCW Saturday Night, Hogan tore up his Thunder in Paradise contract and said he was now willing to stop the present and return to wrestling, and Okerlund issued a phone survey asking if individuals wished to see Hogan in WCW. Hogan continued his feud on the international house present circuit with Yokozuna until August 1993. After that, Hogan sat out the rest of his contract which expired later that year. Hogan appeared on an episode of The Arsenio Hall Show to deny the allegations. On the Thanksgiving episode of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Hogan officially introduced his retirement from skilled wrestling, as well as his candidacy for President of the United States.
Hogan defended the title till July of that yr, when WCW booked him in a match against newcomer after which WCW United States Heavyweight Champion Goldberg, who had but to lose a match in the company. Hogan’s reign as WCW World Heavyweight Champion (which, at 469 days, is the longest within the title’s history) ended when he lost the WCW World Heavyweight Championship to The large at Halloween Havoc by way of disqualification. Hogan reportedly used his influence to have the end of WrestleMania changed the weekend of the event so he could be champion throughout an upcoming worldwide and de facto farewell tour. Hogan then defeated Vader (who was managed part-time by Flair) in a non-title leather-based strap match at Uncensored. Hogan misplaced the WCW World Heavyweight Championship to Ric Flair at Uncensored in a steel cage First Blood match. Later, Hogan was severely injured in a Texas twister match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship featuring him, Diamond Dallas Page, Flair, and Sting at Spring Stampede. Hogan went into the match injured (he had a cut above his left eyebrow, and the left eye itself was fully black). Starting in March 1994, Hogan began making appearances on WCW tv, as interviewer Gene Okerlund-who was now a WCW worker-visited him on the set of Thunder in Paradise episodes.
On March 10, 1997, Raw was officially renamed Raw Is War in reference to the continued score battle. Hogan grew a beard alongside his famous mustache and dyed it black, traded his pink and yellow garb in for black and white clothing, often detailed with lightning bolts, and renamed himself “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan (typically shortened to Hollywood Hogan). As a take a look at, Hogan labored a match in Orlando, Florida on November 14, for the Xcitement Wrestling Federation (XWF) promotion run by his longtime supervisor Jimmy Hart. In the match, WCW’s newly contracted Bret Hart accused referee Nick Patrick of quick-counting a victory for Hogan and had the match restarted – with himself as referee. At WrestleMania IX, Hogan and Beefcake took on Money Inc. for the WWF Tag Team Championship, a match the Mega-Maniacs lost through disqualification. In early 1996, Hogan reformed The Mega Powers with Randy Savage to feud with The Alliance to finish Hulkamania, which culminated at Uncensored in a Doomsday Cage match that Hogan and Savage gained. This led to a steel cage match between Hogan and The giant at SuperBrawl VI, where Hogan received to end their feud. Later that evening, Hogan gained his fifth WWF Championship by pinning Yokozuna in an impromptu match only moments after Yokozuna had defeated Bret Hart for the championship.
On May 3, 1993, Hogan returned to NJPW as WWF Champion and defeated IWGP Heavyweight Champion The good Muta in a dream match at Wrestling Dontaku. Savage took the WCW World Heavyweight Championship from Sting at Spring Stampede, whereas Hogan teamed with Kevin Nash to take on Roddy Piper and The large in the primary-ever bat match. The WWF used Hogan’s damage in a storyline that had DiBiase allegedly paying a gaggle of thugs in a failed try to take Hogan out before WrestleMania. At No Way Out in February 2002, Hogan returned to the WWF as a heel. Although Hogan was presupposed to be the heel in the match, the crowd cheered for him closely. Within the no disqualification match for Savage’s newly received title, Nash entered the ring and hit a powerbomb on Hogan as retribution for the attack the earlier evening, but Bret Hart interfered moments later and jumped in to assault Savage and preserve the victory for Hogan, who gained his fourth WCW World Heavyweight Championship.
