(Almost) 5-Star Match Reviews: Hulk Hogan vs. Stan Hansen – AJPW/NJPW/WWE Wrestling Summit 1990

Hulk Hogan versus Stan Hansen has to be one of the rarest matches of the past forty years. The two men only faced each other twice prior and that was back in 1979 when Hulk Hogan wasn’t Hulk Hogan but Sterling Golden. Throughout 1980 and 1981 Hansen and Hogan tagged together in New Japan and only faced each other once during that time. Neither one would face off again for nine years. And in that nine years both of them went on to achieve considerable success.

Both men won multiple world titles. Both men achieved a considerable degree of fame (Hogan in the States and actually most of the world, for that matter and Hansen mostly in Japan). Both would go on to become crossover stars in different ways (Hogan would go on to be a movie/TV star as well while Hansen made his way into 1980s/1990s manga). But which of these two legends was the bigger man once they had reached their pinnacles? There was only one way to find out.

Previously I was writing for a site called TJR Wrestling and now this series is coming to Blog of Doom. For now you can check out the series in its entirety here.

The story

This was a genuine dream match for NJPW and AJPW fans since both Hogan and Hansen were widely considered the two biggest and most successful outsiders to ever wrestle in Japan. Hogan had wrestled for NJPW exclusively and won a few big tournaments, including one to crown the inaugural IWGP Heavyweight Champion in 1983. But Hogan’s appearances in Japan became few and far between, especially with Hulkamania taking off.

Hansen, meanwhile, achieved more prestige but, perhaps, at the cost of more fame. While he didn’t become as internationally recognizable or famous as Hogan, he achieved a sort of reverence in Japan that made him so successful over there that he didn’t need to wrestle in the States. He’s also one of a small handful of men to hold pinfall victories over both Antonio Inoki and Giant Baba, who are still considered the two biggest wrestling stars in that country besides Rikidozan himself. Hogan might’ve been the bigger star but Hansen was the man to beat.

It’s a wonder, then, that this match wasn’t the original plan for Wrestling Summit. Hogan was supposed to wrestle Terry Gordy back when Gordy was still in top physical form and had a solid team with Steve Williams as the Miracle Violence Connection. But the audience for Wrestle Summit didn’t see Hogan versus Gordy as Tokyo Dome-worthy, especially after Hogan lost the WWF Title to The Ultimate Warrior weeks earlier. So when this became a non-title match, Hansen replaced Gordy and fans got to see the two biggest American behemoths go at it (albeit in a match that would be filled with as much politicking and creative influence as it would actual wrestling).

But was there ever a chance that Hansen could win? Could he somehow overcome Hogan’s incredible ability to come back and drop him with the ultimate weapon that was the Western Lariat? Or would Hogan and WWE demand a win and have the wrestlers figure everything else out?

The match

This match originally took place on April 13, 1990. It was rated *** by the Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer.

The crowd is pretty loud as the match begins. After some rough lock-ups Hogan wrestles (yes, wrestles, he actually could do that once upon a time) into a hammerlock and then gets into a shoving match with Hansen. Hogan follows with a drop toehold into a front chancery but Hansen powers him into a corner. Hansen gets an arm wringer that forces Hogan to the ropes and then Hansen wrenches the arm again. another drop toehold from Hogan which he then switches to a grounded cravate lock of sorts and then rolls Hansen over for a one-count. then things turn ugly as both wrestlers start swinging wildly; and with Hansen you never know when he’s working and when he’s hitting for real so Hogan has this sense of unease about him as the two circle each other around the ring.

Hansen dumps Hogan ringside and tries smashing his head into a ringpost but Hogan reverses that move onto Hansen. Hansen gets busted open so Hogan punches the wound and lands a back suplex in the ring for a two-count. The camera catches Hogan clearly missing Hansen’s head with more punches and Hansen kicks out of another cover. More big boots send Hansen to the floor and the brawling continues all over the place. Hansen hiptosses his way out of a cobra twist so Hogan goes back to attacking the wound. Hansen tries escaping to ringside once again but this time Hogan chases him to the commentary area and slams him onto a table that doesn’t break.

Hogan smashes Hansen’s bloody head into a post once more, gets yet another two-count, and hits a big corner clothesline. Hogan lands some stiff chops and sends Hansen into the opposite corner but Hansen gets his boot up and then hits a huge running shoulderblock for a two-count of his own. Hogan bails to ringside but Hansen cracks him over the head with a chair. Hansen rolls back into the ring to break the count and goes back to wailing on Hogan. He covers in the ring but only gets more two-counts. Now Hogan’s bleeding as well. Hansen drops some elbows but Hogan still kicks out. Hansen lands some jabs but Hogan kicks out yet again.

Hogan escapes once again and tries using Hansen’s bullrope but he can’t beat the master at his own game and Hansen whips Hogan with it instead. More jabs and kneedrops to Hogan’s throat give Hansen control and then the crowd pops as he teases the lariat. Hansen shoots Hogan into the ropes and cocks his arm…but Hogan hits first with a strike to the head. Hogan misses a leg drop and Hansen covers for a two-count. Hansen sends Hogan into the ropes again…and this time Hogan lands a flying crossbody for another two-count. Hogan blocks an O’Connor roll and boots Hansen to stop a charge. Then Hogan hits his Ax Bomber crooked arm lariat to get a 3.1-count to win the match out of nowhere!

Winner after 12:30: Hulk Hogan

Review

This was a surprisingly good match and serves as a reason why some fans still consider Hulk Hogan the greatest of all time. He wasn’t a one-trick pony; he knew how to adapt to different audiences and change what he did to get over. His cartoonish character work and over-the-top personality worked in the English-speaking world but had he tried that here, especially against a straight-laced monster like Hansen, he’d have been laughed out of the building.

And so, Hogan grappled, brawled, and put on something closer to a competition than his usual WWF fair. His “hulk up” lasted all of three seconds instead of the usual thirty. His leg drop of doom got a two-count (as it should have because every top-level wrestler in the country used that as a transitional move). His finish came with the Ax Bomber, a type of lariat, which was way more credible as a finish given how many top names used it as well.

That’s one of the marks of a good wrestler: the ability to adapt to different audiences and live up to their expectations without going too far and turning yourself into something completely alien. And while I doubt that, if Hogan ever went to CMLL or AAA he’d don a mask and do headscissors and acrobatics with the likes of El Hijo del Santo, Blue Panther, or Konnan, you can be sure that he’d do something different to tie into what made lucha different from WWF/E-style wrestling at the time.

There was still likely an element of politicking here; Hansen kicked out at 3.1 and the sudden finish looked like it was a ploy to protect Hansen while still giving Hogan a win. But that was to be expected since three promotions were working together here and interpromotional matches always put business over pure competition.

As for Hansen, he was his usual self: gruff, stiff, and menacing. He always moved, struck, and carried himself with an aura of realism and seriousness and that was still the case here. He spent most of the match on defense since he was the man to beat and it was Hogan’s task to prove he was on Hansen’s level. Hansen didn’t have to do much to get huge reactions or make a convincing case for himself; simply hitting a few elbows, kneedrops, and forearms that were thrown by a guy who knew how to make them look real was enough to get this crowd behind Hogan as the underdog. He was a great example of a wrestler getting more out of less and his actions between moves having as much of an impact on the match as the moves themselves.

Final Rating: ***1/2

This isn’t some technical marvel or an even competition; there was a clear styles clash going into this based on Hogan being a character that knew how to work when needed and Hansen being a worker with a straightforward character. But it’s the simplicity and straightforwardness of the action that’s the draw here. Hogan wrestled and fought with Hansen in a way that allowed both men to get the best out of each other and the best out of the circumstances. There was no way Hogan was going to be made to look vulnerable, even in front of a different audience. So Hansen beat the crap out of him, only for Hogan to return in kind and pin him out of nowhere.

I doubt that a high-escalation closing sequence ending in a clear and decisive finish was going to happen here given the names of the wrestlers and the companies involved. But the live audience clearly loved it and there’s still that curiosity factor in seeing Hulk Hogan doing something other than what he did in 99% of his matches that makes this an interesting piece of wrestling history.

It’s far from the best match of either man’s careers, but it’s still one to seek out, especially since it flies by, which is more than what can be said by a lot of more recent inter-company/interpromotional “dream” matches.

Thanks for reading.