The fans made it clear through the whistles what they thought about the return of Hulk Hogan WWE Raw in the debut of the series on Netflix.
After the wrestling icon entered the arena after just over two hours WWE Raw, was met with the sound of loud boos from the crowd — but despite the unwelcome reception, Hogan, 72, continued to talk through them and congratulate WWE on his debut on the streaming platform, PEOPLE can confirm.
“In the past I’ve had a whole bunch of partners down the line. I had amazing partners, like Macho Man Randy Savage. I’ve had giant-sized partners like Andre the Giant,” Hogan (whose real name is Terry Bollea) told the crowd as they continued to boo.
He continued, adding, “But the greatest partner that WWE has ever had is the fact that we’re making history tonight, and WWE has partnered with Netflix, the best tag team partner of all time.”
Hulk Hogan.
WWE/Getty
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Hogan’s appearance on the show was also meant to promote his Real American Beer brand, and the wrestler’s awkward reception quickly spread across the Internet.
Controversy surrounding Hogan began back in 2007, when a sex tape of him was released to the public revealing that he had used a racial slur regarding the love life of his daughter, Brooke Hogan.
Hulk Hogan.
WWE/Getty
WWE responded by distancing themselves from their longtime star and removing him from the Hall of Fame in 2015.
Initially, Hogan claimed that he had resigned from WWE, but the company quickly shut it down and confirmed that he had been fired.
Hulk Hogan apologizes for ‘unacceptable’ racist speech as he is kicked out of the WWE Hall of Fame
In a 2015 interview with PEOPLE, Hogan apologized for the highly offensive comments.
“Eight years ago I used offensive language during a conversation. It was unacceptable for me to use that offensive language; there is no excuse for that; and I apologize for doing that,” Hogan said at the time.
“This is not who I am. I strongly believe that every person in the world is important and should not be treated differently based on race, gender, orientation, religious beliefs or anything else,” he continued.
Hulk Hogan says racism was part of his ‘everyday environment’ growing up: ‘You greeted your friends with the N-word’
“I am disappointed in myself for using language that is offensive and inconsistent with my beliefs.”
WWE brought Hogan back three years later in 2018.
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