Hulk Hogan, at the height of his career, received more perks, more opportunities, more money, and just about more everything than most wrestlers throughout his and their own career. Some stars couldn’t even be around him even though they worked with him.
One day, Hogan flew back to Tampa, Florida, via a private plane after WCW Nitro episodes as part of his lucrative contract. Paul Wight, also known as The Giant and The Big Show, was initially allowed to ride on Hulk Hogan’s plane for some time, but eventually – it would come to an end and his weekly travel arrangements with Hulk did not last very long.
In 2016, Wight recalled on radio station, Sports Talk 790AM that he used to impersonate Hogan and Randy Savage in a romantic relationship together – which he and others found to be very funny. Brian Adams, formerly known as Crush in WWE, then encouraged the up-and-coming star to perform his impression in front of the two legends. To no surprise – this did not end well for the giant.
Wight said: “I’m a dumba** rookie, so what do I do? [In Hogan’s voice] ‘Whatcha gonna do, Macho, when the largest python in the world comes for you, brother?’ [In Savage’s voice] ‘Ooh yeah, Hulkster. Go to infinity and beyond. Give me the beef, Hulkster.’ And believe me, I’m cleaning it up for radio.” (H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcription)
Wight thought his impression would receive laughs, but Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage did not see the humor in any of this.
Paul continued: “I had a big grin on my face, and, I mean, I’m getting a dead stare from Hulk [and] a dead stare from Randy. Brian looks at me and goes, ‘Oh, I can’t believe you did that.’ Completely threw me under the bus!”
This would ultimately end Paul ever being allowed back on the private jet.
The following week, the pilot cited turbulence as the reason why Wight was not allowed to travel on the plane. However, the seven-foot star suspected he had been kicked off future flights due to his mocking of Hogan and Savage.
Paul went on: “The pilot, Captain Ron, comes and says, ‘Hey, Giant, I just want to let you know that there are [sic] a lot of turbulence going home this week, so if you don’t mind, can you catch a commercial flight tomorrow? Because we’re concerned about the weight,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, no problem.’ So it’s like [for] two months, I was kicked off the plane ride home.”
The former WWE Superstar is not the only wrestler who was not allowed to travel with a specific co-worker. In 2003, Triple H banned Mark Jindrak from riding in cars with himself, Randy Orton, and Ric Flair.
