A NJPW legend has revealed that Hulk Hogan had plans to start his own wrestling promotion after leaving WWE in 2003.
Tiger Mask IV has revealed that Hulk Hogan once planned to launch his own wrestling promotion following his departure from WWE in 2003. Speaking to NJPW1972.com, Tiger Mask IV recalled meeting Hogan during New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Ultimate Crush II event in October 2003, where the WWE Hall of Famer was reportedly attempting to recruit NJPW talent for the proposed promotion.
According to Tiger Mask IV, Hogan and longtime manager Jimmy Hart invited him to discuss joining the venture after the event.
“The day after (NJPW Ultimate Crush II), there was an all-hands meeting with the boys at the office. At the time, Hulk Hogan was talking about starting his own company, and he was trying to book the New Japan guys,” Tiger Mask IV said. “I was just minding my own business, and I got a tap on the shoulder, ‘Can you have a word with Hogan?’ I went into a room with Hogan and Jimmy Hart there, and they just went, ‘We want you,’ and all of a sudden we’re taking promo photos together.”
Tiger Mask IV Said Hulk Hogan Offerred To Let Him Stay In His Home
Tiger Mask IV said Hulk Hogan even invited him to stay at his home if he joined the promotion.
“Hogan goes, ‘Oh, you should come over, you can stay at the house,’ and I have images of staying at the Hogan house running through my head,” he said with a laugh.
Despite the discussions, the proposed promotion never came to fruition.
“In the end, the new company talk fell through, and nothing happened. But I grew up watching Hogan and Inoki and that whole rivalry, so it’s wild to have those stories.”
Hogan instead returned to WWE in 2005 after spending time wrestling in Japan. The WWE Hall of Famer later had runs in TNA and WWE before passing away at the age of 71 in 2025.
