Jimmy Hart has opened up about the moments leading into Hulk Hogan’s final WWE appearance, revealing that concerns about the crowd reaction were discussed well before the segment took place.
Speaking with Cody Rhodes on the What Do You Wanna Talk About? podcast, Hart recalled his conversations with Hogan ahead of the January 6, 2025 episode of WWE RAW. That show marked WWE’s debut on Netflix and was held at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles.
The segment was designed as both a major appearance for Hogan and a promotional push for his Real American Beer brand. However, the live crowd responded negatively throughout, loudly booing Hogan during his time on screen. The reaction was widely linked to his public political stance leading into the event, which became one of the biggest talking points coming out of the show.
Hart explained that he had serious concerns about how the California audience would respond and made those clear to Hogan multiple times throughout the day.
“I said, ‘you know where we’re going? We’re going to California.’ And like I said before, I’m not a Democrat or Republican. I’m jabroni. But here’s the deal. I said, ‘I don’t like this.’ ‘Jimmy, don’t worry about it.’ I went, ‘Okay.’ We get out of the van there, nice town car puts us there. Some fans go ‘Hulk, we loved you, but you love them. We don’t like you anymore.’ You know. I said ‘Hulk, I don’t feel good about this.’ ‘Jimmy, don’t worry about it.’ We go in the back. You know what I’m worrying about it.”
Even shortly before going out, Hogan checked in with Hart again for his thoughts.
“So we’re in the back and Hulk, he goes ‘Jimmy Hart, what do you think?’ He’d always ask before we do something. And I just said, ‘no, everything’s good, you know, everything’s okay.’ So, we went out and did the little thing with, rehearse where we were going to stand and help coming out, do his little deal. And I’m waving the flag.”
Following the segment, Hogan acknowledged that he had anticipated the possibility of a negative reaction.
“So we finish it, then we go in the back. And of course, then Hulk comes up going ‘hey, the radio was good on that segment we did.’ And I said, ‘well, I guess they should be because with all the commotion that happened on it, I guess we should have.’ And I said ‘but you kept telling me, don’t worry about it. Well, I was worried about it.’ And he goes, ‘Jimmy, look, sometimes you got to do what you got to do.’ And he said ‘I’ve made my bed and I’ve got to lie in it. That’s who I wanted to vote for. That’s what I wanted to do.’ He said ‘I knew in my heart going in there might be a catchy thing.’ But he knew it, you know.”
The appearance would go down as Hogan’s final WWE television segment. Vince McMahon later commented that the presentation could have been handled differently, noting that the crowd reaction overshadowed the intended legacy focus of the moment.
Hogan passed away in July 2025 at the age of 71. A two-time WWE Hall of Fame inductee, he was honored individually in 2005 and again in 2020 as part of the nWo. His last appearance, now further detailed by Hart, highlighted both his awareness of the situation and his willingness to proceed despite the risks.
Hart and Hogan shared a long history together dating back to the early 1990s. Hart notably managed Hogan and Brutus Beefcake as The MegaManiacs and remained aligned with him through his WCW run and the Hollywood Hogan era.
Jimmy Hart Reveals Hulk Hogan Knew Crowd Reaction Before Final RAW Appearance
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