Bigger Legend - Hogan or Austin?

[Trip in the Head]

Apparently in a recent interview Hulk Hogan was asked the question whether he thought he or Steve Austin was the bigger legend in wrestling..........

YS: In a recent interview, Steve Austin said he’s a bigger legend than Hulk Hogan. What are your thoughts about that?

HH: I think that’s in his own mind. My career was twice as long as his. I’ve been a main eventer since 1978 when we sold out Shea Stadium. I just totally disagree with him. I know he had a good run when he was in the Attitude Era. I don’t know how long the Attitude Era was — four years, eight years — I don’t know how long it was. That’s where we totally disagree. Maybe he and I should lock up and figure this thing out. That would be a nice match.

I thought that might cause a nice discussion on here. Hogan goes on to state that he actually encouraged Sting to get in the ring now that he is finally part of the WWE universe.

YS: Do you think we will see Sting in a WWE ring?

HH: Sting and I last talked when he made his appearance at Comic-Con and they announced he was part of the WWE Universe and that his dolls were coming out. We had a long talk on the plane and I said, "Brother, you have got to wrestle. I mean, I don’t care what kind of deal you signed, I said you can still go. You’ve never made a mark in the WWE. I was begging you to come here in the '80s and the '90s and now you just show up out of nowhere. You’ve got to wrestle." So, I hope it happens really soon. And I think by the time I beat on him for the three hours from Los Angeles to Dallas that I think we were on the same page and he knows that he needs to get in that ring and leave his mark in the WWE and make a huge statement. I hope it happens sooner than later.

More topics for conversation I suppose.

Who do you guys think is the bigger legend in WWE? Hulk Hogan with his long standing involvement in wrestling as a whole (including WCW and TNA) or Stone Cold Steve Austin - the man at the helm of the Attitude Era in WWE?

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/the-turnstile/hulk-hogan-q-a--072028372.html

 

[CM Punk]

Hogan is obviously the bigger, correction, the BIGGEST legend in professional wrestling.

 

[Danielson]

I didn't get to see Hogan in WWF, but in the 90's while he was in NWO, I thought Austin was better overall. I can't say for sure who is more of a legend other than what I seen. I thought Austin was the most entertaining character of all time. He was the first real anti-hero. He blurred the lines between good guy and bad guy.

 

[Trip in the Head]

I think its hard to distinguish between the two honestly. Who doesn't know either of those names when you mention them in conversation? TBH I liked SCSA better. And I grew up watching Hulk Hogan in WWF. Cartoons, sticker books, action figures, you name it.

 

[Butters!]

There is no "Bigger' legend in my books, both were very different eras. Hogan brought the wrestling, Stone brought the attitude.

Both are equal in my book.

 

[Senhor Perfect]

• How anyone can say Austin is on Hogan's level is just being completely bias. Hogan has main evented countless wrestlemanias and all WCW PPVs. Hulkamania and nWo were arguably the two most over gimmicks in wrestling history. Hogan was on top for three decades, Austin was on top for 3 years. Movies, commercials, TV shows, worldwide recognition. It's no contest. No one was bigger than Austin while he was on top, but he wasn't on top long enough to challenge Hogan.

Brother :hogan:

 

[DK JAMES]

Hogan for sure, but being completely biased, I gotta go with SCSA in my mind at least. Never really a Hogan fan, but I can't speak for the millions that are.

 

[Trip in the Head]

• How anyone can say Austin is on Hogan's level is just being completely bias. Hogan has main evented countless wrestlemanias and all WCW PPVs. Hulkamania and nWo were arguably the two most over gimmicks in wrestling history. Hogan was on top for three decades, Austin was on top for 3 years. Movies, commercials, TV shows, worldwide recognition. It's no contest. No one was bigger than Austin while he was on top, but he wasn't on top long enough to challenge Hogan.

Brother :hogan:

I see the point here - basically pointing out that Hogan has been in the business FAR longet than Austin - which is completely true. But Austin ended up on the winning team during the Monday Night Wars (which included NWO IIRC), that must count for something right? And when NWO started it was over like nothing before it, but then it just became this huge gang that everyone wanted to be part of (and became part of). It just became silly near the end IMO. People like Virgil and other lower tier stars joining was a mistake.

 

[Senhor Perfect]

I see the point here - basically pointing out that Hogan has been in the business FAR longet than Austin - which is completely true. But Austin ended up on the winning team during the Monday Night Wars (which included NWO IIRC), that must count for something right? And when NWO started it was over like nothing before it, but then it just became this huge gang that everyone wanted to be part of (and became part of). It just became silly near the end IMO. People like Virgil and other lower tier stars joining was a mistake.

Very true but that's not hogans fault. Hogan turning heel was the biggest heel turn of all time. WWE winning the Monday night wars wasn't just due to Austin. Credit has to go first and foremost to McMahon, then shared with the Rock, foley, sable, DX, etc. I admit Austin was the most over star in the late 90s but then he was gone. Hogan also made his mark In Europe and especially Japan over the years. I don't believe Austin has a following overseas anywhere near what Hogan does.

 

[Red Rain]

What is your basis for deliberation?
Is it money? Is it pops? Is it PPVs? Is it merchandise?
Kareem Abdul Jabbar scored more points than Michael Jordan, is he abigger star?
Emmitt Smith ran for more yards than Barry Sanders, is he better?
Babe Ruth or Hank Aaron?

Can we penalize a man who chose to hang it up early? Austin wasnt given a shot for many years, whereas Hogan had his immediately. Can't choose. Impossibl debate

 

[Trip in the Head]

What is your basis for deliberation?
Is it money? Is it pops? Is it PPVs? Is it merchandise?
Kareem Abdul Jabbar scored more points than Michael Jordan, is he abigger star?
Emmitt Smith ran for more yards than Barry Sanders, is he better?
Babe Ruth or Hank Aaron?

Can we penalize a man who chose to hang it up early? Austin wasnt given a shot for many years, whereas Hogan had his immediately. Can't choose. Impossibl debate

Good points though

 

[Swift]

Comparing real sports athletes to WWE entertaining is a bit silly.

Hogan has always been the much bigger star/name in Wrestling and probably always will be.

 

[The GOAT]

No matter who you want to argue was bigger in their prime, Hulk Hogan no doubt has the bigger legacy overall... A huge component of both boom periods (both the 80's AND the 90's), the leader of the most infamous stable in wrestling history (the New World Order, which is the angle that started the second boom period to begin with), set all kinds of records for WCW and still has the largest television rating and live attendance record in North American wrestling history. The list goes on. His name is also more synonymous with pro wrestling than Austin's is, which Austin himself even admitted in an interview a week ago.

That said, McMahon has said on more than a few occasions that Austin was his biggest money-making superstar in history, and a lot of tangible evidence supports it. His crowd reactions were always louder, his DVD's have always sold better, he has bigger PPV buys to his name, he sold more merchandise, the mention of his name to this day almost always gets a bigger pop than the mention of Hogan's, etc. Of course, there were massive differences between the two eras, which is why this debate is one that will never end. It's wrestling's version of Elvis vs The Beatles... you can literally make arguments and counter-arguments to support either side.

 

[The GOAT]

I see the point here - basically pointing out that Hogan has been in the business FAR longet than Austin - which is completely true. But Austin ended up on the winning team during the Monday Night Wars (which included NWO IIRC), that must count for something right? And when NWO started it was over like nothing before it, but then it just became this huge gang that everyone wanted to be part of (and became part of). It just became silly near the end IMO. People like Virgil and other lower tier stars joining was a mistake.

Well, it helps to remember who WWF and WCW were run by. WWF was spearheaded by Vince McMahon, a man who had already long established himself as The Greatest Wrestling Promoter Of All Time by then, and WCW was being run by people who largely had no clue about wrestling and who pissed away every hot angle they ever had. The NWO angle was never given a proper conclusion and was largely mismanaged and driven into the ground until people were so sick of it to the point where they were just praying for it to finally die. Bill Goldberg was a super-hot commodity who could have been a lot bigger and accomplished a lot more, but they squandered most of his momentum away, too. There's a lot of tangibles that went into WCW losing the war other than just "Austin must have been bigger than Hogan."

 

[Red Rain]

Comparing real sports athletes to WWE entertaining is a bit silly.

Hogan has always been the much bigger star/name in Wrestling and probably always will be.

I wasn't comparing real athletes to WWE a**hole
If you bothered putting it into perspective, you'd realize I was referring to longevity vs lightning in a bottle.