Graham continued wrestling around the country to smaller and smaller crowds, and it seemed as though he might have left the industry altogether if he wasn’t contacted by Vince McMahon Jr. in 1982. Now in control of his father’s company, the younger McMahon wanted to bring the “Superstar” back. He reached Graham at a time when the wrestler was exceptionally desperate, living in a hotel and withdrawing from various substances, and successfully convinced him to come back. However, when Graham arrived, it wasn’t the version McMahon had expected.

Now sporting a bald head and a thick moustache, Graham had adopted a karate-inspired gimmick that stood in stark contrast to his old persona. It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that Graham failed to connect with audiences in the same way he had before. With McMahon evidently feeling buyer’s remorse, Graham’s second run with the company came to an end after he failed to win the title back from Backlund.

Hogan would enter the picture soon after, and though Graham would eventually return for another run, he’d never again reach the early heights of his career. Graham’s career went off the rails following his loss to Backlund, but the question of whether the fault lies with Graham or someone else remains. 

Graham was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004 and continued to make occasional appearances for the company in the years that followed. Following a long series of health issues, Graham died in 2023 at the age of 79.