We hate to start this Monday off with news of a notable individual making a complete ass of himself, but former WWE icon Hulk Hogan has given us a reason. I say former icon because he was fired from the WWE over the weekend after it was revealed that a video of Hogan that leaked to the internet several years ago contained audio of the wrestling star hurling racial slurs, specifically the ‘n-word’.
Once news of this broke out, the wheels turned quickly and you can probably guess the kind of hot water this got him into. He was not only released by the WWE but he’s also been removed from the WWE hall of fame, and any trace of his name, likeness and all of his merchandise have been removed from WWE’s website.
Finally, the last obvious step was taken and 2K Sports confirmed to Polygon that Hogan will not be appearing in the upcoming WWE 2K16 video game, which launches in October. It also appears that DLC content containing Hogan from WWE 2K15 has started disappearing from digital storefronts, yet 2K Sports wouldn’t commit on whether they intend to retroactively remove him from all previous games.
Of course, Hogan has come out and apologized for the remarks and made sure to note that the audio was from eight years ago, but his apology is likely to fall on deaf ears, and it’s unlikely we’ll see him in a WWE video game anytime soon.
spacedelete
of all people to be revealed as a racist its Hulk Hogan of all people wbere his whole gimmick was being a “american” hero yet hates certain race groups. he should be setting examples not being a prat. still don’t think its okay how WWE is giving Hogan the Chris Benoit treatment and other wrestlers like John Cena have done worser crimes like cheating on their wifes.
Forrest_01
I personally wouldn’t say that marital infidelity was a ‘worser’ crime than race hate. That would be stretching it a little.
spacedelete
i’m not defending him but cheating on your wife is a scummy move. besides i’m sure WWE are racist themselves. the only difference is Hulk Hogan got caught.
Forrest_01
& likewise, I agree with you on it being a scummy move. However, the two just aren’t comparable as they are leagues apart in terms of what society is prepared to accept.
Apples & oranges kinda thing.
Kris Lipscombe
Cheating on your wife is hating/disrespecting one person, racism is hating an entire race and is a term with a history of violence and death tied up with it (not to say that Hogan wants to hurt anyone though). They are very different.
JustTaylorNow
Vince has used the N word ever since then never ever watched wrestling nor having anything to do with it but yet it’s one rule for him & one rule for another. I liked hulk hogan but it is what is, your past will always come back to hunt you & be your downfall
Kris Lipscombe
There’s definitely a difference between using the N word and what Hogan said.
JustTaylorNow
How is there a difference in using the N word, it should not be used period!!! Especially in wrestling an entertainment that so many kids love, they will think it’s alright to use the word.
There is no difference in when or how the word should be used
Kris Lipscombe
Using the N word is awful, I’m not denying that. However, using it in the context of a rant about how Hogan didn’t want his daughter sleeping with a black man and literally saying the words “I’m a little racist” is much worse than just using the N word. The whole rant is why WWE have severed ties, not just the word.
Starman
As bad as it was I don’t think they should be removing content that people may have bought, unless it’s still available for them.
Forrest_01
The DLC for 2K15 is still available to those who bought it if that’s what you mean (at least according to what I just read) – You just can’t find it anymore if you haven’t bought it, meaning those that do have it now have exclusive DLC.
He was due to be in the main roster for 2K16, so as he is no longer employed by WWE, he doesn’t feature any more in the upcoming game.