by Wayne Douma

Created on: October 16, 2009

Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are both wrestling legends. What each man has done for the professional wrestling world cannot be taken away, and each deserve their spot in the WWE Hall of Fame. That being said, this is a debate, and when it comes to wrestling legends Hulk Hogan stands immortal.

The Hulk Hogan VS Andre the Giant match is often stated by new wrestlers coming into the business as their all time favorite. What this match did was not only skyrocket Hulk Hogan to a new status in wrestling, but put wrestling into a more mainstream scene then it had been in years prior. When Hulk body-slammed Andre it was as if time stood still. How could this clearly smaller athlete garner up the strength to body-slam a 500+ pound man? It still makes wrestling fans cheer with excitement as replays and clips from that match are shown on Monday Night's Raw or around upcoming PPV times.

With the trademark tearing of the Hulkamania shirt entering each match and the famous line "What you gonna do brother" Hulk Hogan became the biggest star in wrestling history. The shirts, headbands, and merchandise sales alone stand out as incredible. Today wrestling has big names like John Cena and HHH who sell merchandise, and Hogan still consistently ranks in the top 10 names of merchandise sales. Fans, whether new or of the past cannot get enough of putting on that Hulkamania shirt and watching the superstars battle each week.

Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan have each retired from the sport, but have made their appearances since saying farewell. The problem for Ric Flair is it got a little annoying almost when he would return after his retirement. The Flair retiring dragged on for far too long (going almost a year of being undefeated against clearly better opponents before losing to Shawn Michaels and being "fired"), and when he finally did retire he was back less than 6 months later. This time to "buddy up" with his pal Batista, and challenge, then champion, Randy Orton to street-fights. After Orton punted Flair's head inside a steel cage on Monday Night Raw 5 months ago we have not seen Flair again, and hopefully it stays that way.

Hulk Hogan is the opposite of Flair described above. When that familiar "I am a real American, fight for the rights of every man..." comes through the RAW speakers fans still go crazy. Whether it was Hogan returning to battle the Rock at Wrestlemania in an epic match between fan favorites, or Hogan returning to fight Randy Orton after Orton disrespected his daughter, it is all pure entertainment and ratings. When Randy Orton RKO'ed Hogan onto a car hood before their match it was amazing to watch; the "legend killer" getting at it with the ultimate legend.

It is hard to say negative things about Ric Flair, but he just not is quite in the leagure of Hulk Hogan. That is not meant as a jab either, because no one is in the league of Hulk Hogan. Hogan is clearly the biggest superstar in wrestling history, and the biggesr legend of all time for the sport.

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