Tito Santana on What a Rookie Hulk Hogan Was Like to Wrestle in 1980

[@Michael-fc4ch]

Tito in his own right was a legend.

[@andrewmoe7078]

What a treat!! Tito was my favorite wrestler when I was growing up in the 80s. ❤️👍

[@markolsen7010]

Tito was in wwwf in mid70s

[@kevinkelly1529]

I once bumped into Tito in an Elks Club in Steelton, Pennsylvania, sometime around 2010. I went up to him and introduced myself as Kevin Kelly. He looked at me and said, "Nailz? Haha... Yeah... You DO LOOK LIKE NAILZ". 😂👍 He's a good guy.

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

Are you actually Wacholz or no?

[@davidmitchell6873]

I saw Tito and hulk at a high school gym show in 1980, it was a pretty good match.

[@publiccitizen1573]

Tito is such a class act all around. So happy to see him doing these in depth interviews on this channel. McMahon had considered him for the world title but never gave it to him. This is another example of Vince missing the boat. Here you had a bilingual school teacher who was a true athlete and could have taken the company to a level of legitimacy never seen before, imagine a teacher as world champion, it would have been fantastic.

[@toosweet6046]

No it wouldn’t

[@JoseFlores-sv8fb]

Tito would have been a great champ. Look up Tim Storm, he was a teacher and NWA champion a few years back.

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

@@JoseFlores-sv8fb lmao no

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

Tito as a world champ would’ve been a disaster

[@JoseFlores-sv8fb]

@@uncledrosselmeyer6480 I also wanted Tito to return to manage Mankind - calling them “Chico and The Man”. What a booker I would have been!

[@pipepicasso8112]

"That doesn't work for me, Amigo" - Hulk Hogan

[@davidpollock4228]

Well the thing is, if hogan didn't protect his character there would never have been a larger then life hero. Someone has to be that guy.

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

@@davidpollock4228 ...?

[@JonDoe-fo3kl]

@@davidpollock4228 i agree fans nowdays dont understand how different wrestling was back in the days when there were promoters screwing wrestlers and no guaranteed contracts and the only thing that guaranteed you got extra cash was having a championship belt!! If i was world champion back then hell nahh i wouldnt want to lose either....nowdays the title change hands so much n theres so many title cuz they dont mean anything thanks to guaranteed contracts!! Also theres only what 3 or 4 wrestling promotions?? Back then there was alot of promotions and your valued matter nobody wanted someone who constantly lose.

[@greyjedi6430]

brah that was funny as fuck , 🤣🤣🤣good craic

[@greyjedi6430]

@@JonDoe-fo3kl how about when there where two promotions wcw and wwf ,everyone were millionaires do u need to fuck everyone over then also 🤣🤣

[@Tailormademan900]

I loved Tito's finishing move because it was basic but he could apply it out of nowhere. I will never forget when he used it right away in the warlord.

[@fdeadlycommasir]

Tito's son was a phenomenal athlete in high school. Wouldn't be surprised if he followed in his dad's footsteps.

[@toosweet6046]

No he wasn’t

[@oceanview11112]

His daughter did but Tito won't man up and be her dad

[@seltonk5136]

Tito's vodka is good

[@johnebejer]

Hulk Hogan was called Hulk Hogan in his first WWWF run but Hulkamania started when he was in the AWA.

[@bullettoothjosh]

Niiiice. Can't wait for the full video.

[@stephengreen5865]

tito should been wwf champ

[@undertakerfanz628]

You look like Savio Vega

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

No

[@stephengreen5865]

Thank u

[@stephengreen5865]

@@undertakerfanz628 u saying I look like savio vega?

[@undertakerfanz628]

@@stephengreen5865 yup

[@JackBarrett7]

For any real wrestling fans, watch the match between Tito and Flair at Summerslam 1992. Its tragically underappreciated.

[@zackvanhalen]

Tito Santana wrestled Papa Shango in a dark match at Summerslam 1992. Flair was in a storyline with Warrior and Savage.

[@JackBarrett7]

@@zackvanhalen I realized after posting that I didnt specify it was the "Summerslam Spectacular". I was going to correct it, but wrongly presumed everyone would be intelligent and adult enough to know the distinction. Evidently I was wrong.

[@zackvanhalen]

@@JackBarrett7 You are a weak-minded little fuck. How about just say, "oops, I made a mistake"? Instead, you insult the guy who corrects your obvious mistake. I don't even know what this "Summerslam Spectacular" you mentioned is. I know about the yearly Summerslam ppvs and that's it. The fact that you think I'm not being adult in this situation is staggering irony.

[@mr.perksy]

Yes that was a good match, I recently saw it. That was one people don’t talk about. I remember Tito’s matches with Curt Hennig also very good.

[@Bellthorian]

@@JackBarrett7 Dude there is no reason to attack someone for a mistake YOU MADE! I had no idea Tito and Rick Flair even wrestled or that there was a Summerslam Spectacular. I am guessing that was a cable TV show right before Summerslam to promote the event.

[@lexbeltran1354]

I loved Ted DiBiase's million dollar man promos about Tito Santana's house😅

[@Elvis68spec]

I remember when Hogan was Sterling Golden, in the AWA, then, when I first saw him on TV in the New York area, the WWWF, it was 1980. Hogan was accompanied by his Manager, Classie, Fred Blassie! The good old Days!

[@michaelsnelling9875]

I remember him as the incredible hulk hogan in the awa when I was in grade school in the late 1970s . I never remember his name being golden Sterling.?

[@danburnette7674]

Hulk Hogan was " Sterling Golden " for Georgia Championship Wrestling. Hulk Hogan made his AWA debut in 81 or 82. I had him in his first AWA TV Match , Hulk Hogan never worked in the AWA in the 1970s.

[@mattthomas1442]

It's hard to look in 2022 or even 2002 glasses on why Hogan started off as a heel but back in those days when you were as big as Hogan you were almost always a heel cause the thinking was that a guy that size couldn't get sympathy from the crowd. Fans naturally want to cheer for the underdog and when you're bigger than everybody else it's just hard to be that guy. Yes Andre was the exception but he also was treated as this spectacle and "friendly giant" but he was the exception not the rule. The thing that made Hogan so good and want to be cheered outside of being in Rocky III was that despite his size Hogan had an uncanny ability to make himself look vulnerable and make you feel sorry for him. His selling and facials may look over the top by today's standards but back then you believed it and felt for him and even related to him. This combined with Hogan's undeniable natural charisma allowed him to break the mold and stereotype and be a huge babyface despite his mammoth size. Also a lesser talked about point that I think helped atleast a little was the rise of Arnold Schwarzenneger movies where he despite being this massive guy was portrayed as the hero, I think that helped change people's mentality on who you should root for.

[@undertakerfanz628]

It's ironic that Tito Santana was in the first match at the first WrestleMania and Hogan was in the last match at the first WrestleMania

[@cubzrulz]

How is that ironic

[@WaldoBagelTopper]

You can Google the definition of ironic. Like it would be ironic if Tito and Hogan wrestled for the wwe for the last time at a wrestlemania and they repeated that same pattern. But as your statement stands, it’s just a coincidence.

[@greenonions7492]

Also, at Wrestlemania 9, Tito Santana wrestled a dark match (which happened to be the first match of the event) against Papa Shango and Hogan wrestled/hijacked the last match against Yokozuna even though it was an impromptu match. It was the last Wrestlemania they would both share after both being in all first 9 Wrestlemanias ( Hogan didn't wrestle in IV but he was still there and participate). Don't know if that counts as irony or a coinkydink🤔🤔whatever.

[@bretmaverick9434]

@@greenonions7492 Yes that's all true, but Hogan did wrestle Andre to a double DQ at WM4.

[@greenonions7492]

@@bretmaverick9434 oh yea, I'd forgotten about that. I got into wrestling in 1990 and I would rent out the colosseum videos of the older pay per views and hadn't watched wrestlemania 4 since then I think. Thanks for that. I only remember Hogan helping Macho Man beat DiBiase. I just assumed since Hogan ain't gonna main event, he ain't gonna be in the undercard. Looking back now he was helping elevate Randy Savage so he could beat Savege the next year. Anyway, thanks.

[@WaldoBagelTopper]

I don’t care what anyone says, I used to fuck w the Matador gimmick. Tito’s costume was dope.

[@thomasfriday1]

Yes, and the vignettes he did during his El Matador training were cool too.

[@jabbahursty]

vince sr named him "hogan" as he loved those irish names

[@774CISCO]

A great worker Santana , certainly carried a lot of Vince's steroid flops in the ring.

[@stevemash7505]

I probably saw Santana and Hogan work with each other during dark matches a time or two at the Allentown tapings.

[@stevesousa1475]

Loved going to AG hall at the fairgrounds.

[@gopherstate777]

Right, the Hulk Hogan persona was developed in the AWA. But who worked with him, James? It wasn't Verne who was too old at this time and out of touch (as many claimed) so it had to be somebody else.? I know you don't want to hear it but he did a whole lot of three-man tags with the high flyers and I remember one card in Bloomington when they announced his name both Jim Brunzel and Greg Gagne ripped his shirt off of him at the same time and for the first time. (check KZbin) Afterward his wife Linda would score his t-shirts to make them easier to rip. And don't forget Mean Gene was there doing the Hulkster interviews. (Jesse named Mean Gene, not Hogan) Greg developed Hogan and Hogan himself did a lot. But when he got to the AWA he was a broken man ready to quit wrestling because he couldn't make any money. Many great wrestlers were trained in the AWA James why is it so hard for you to give Greg Gagne his due? Greg should be on your show. Ask him what you need to because you have talked around him for a couple years now. Call him on his bullshit because he does talk it, but also be open-minded enough to learn some things that you would never have a clue about until you speak to the source. WWE marks will speculate that the AWA crumbled because Verne would not give him the title. Greg and Verne had to sign a non-disclosure with CBS because there was a plan in the works to create an Andre Hogan match for CBS in the spring (April 1984) Had he fulfilled his commitments and stayed loyal and a man of his word he would have taken the title. Instead, Vince Jr. had him walk out on his commitments and leave the AWA without its biggest star for the Holiday matches. The McMahons did not control Andrea's rights in the US. He first wrestled for Verne through Ed Carpentier in 1971. And I saw him wrestle along with Lani Kealoha (Jimmy Snuka) in their first big-time American Territory matches. And in the late 80s we also had Eric Bishoff who was and will always be loyal to Verne, so imagine had Hoan stayed loyal and had been a man of character what might have been. Curt Hennig vs Bockwinkle for the title leading to Hogan and David Schultz who was also in the AWA.

[@smyersfishingadventures]

Here is a 1981 video of Hogan in an interview with Gordon Solie on Georgia Championship Wrestling, referring to himself as Hulk Hogan. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nZy8nJiHlN6MnLs

[@willshad]

Would have been crazy to see Orndorff in Rocky 3 as Thunderlips lol

[@zacharycarter9887]

There is a video of tito vs hulk in a high school gym for the wwf somewhere on youtube

[@kenterminateddq5311]

3:37 Tony Atlas told the story of Stallone contacting Paul Orndorff, Gorilla Monsoon, (Andre, not mentioned) & Hogan for the Rocky III role too. 3 of the 4 wrestlers would've been fit the role of Thunderlips (Sorry, Andre).

[@Bellthorian]

I hate how he went from a guy who could compete for the IC title to enhancement talent.

[@davel7791]

Tito's career was still much better than the vast majority of wrestlers' careers. Not everyone should be world champ.

[@Bellthorian]

@@davel7791 Agreed but I still hated seeing him as enhancement talent, he was better than that.

[@davel7791]

@@Bellthorian He was really good.

[@masterfulsky]

chico with a flying buritto

[@bigdaddyroy5382]

Rip Bobby heenan

[@Bellthorian]

@@bigdaddyroy5382 I think that was more Jesse The Body Ventura.

[@bigdaddyroy5382]

@@Bellthorian he said it as well. I think ventura said it first. But I remember Bobby saying at at a ppv. I didn't appreciate him in my youth but I remember my grandpop always laughing at him. In my teens I appreciated him by that time he was in wcw and his best stuff behind him

[@Bellthorian]

@@bigdaddyroy5382 It is gunny you said that because when I was a kid I HATED Jesse for always siding with the bad guys. As an adult I understood what Jessie was doing and loved him for how good he was at doing it.

[@bigdaddyroy5382]

@@Bellthorian yea growing up opens the eyes and ears when it comes to jokes

[@jpbart1390]

tito's mixed some stories up there. hogan didn't join awa until after filming rocky 3. plus 'hulk hogan' became terry bollea's ring name during his 1st run in wwf. vince sr named him.

[@Randy-ry9ss]

Chico Santana played in the MFL!

[@jabbahursty]

the fans in new york also liked superstar graham as a heel but not quite as much as hogan as a heel

[@davidtweed8986]

Only through the wrestling magazines. Or vcr tapes did I know who either were. The Wwf didn't become available to my Mid Atlantic Area until around Wrestlemania and After. Tito was a major Champion then he went away .. what happened during that transaction that made Tito not show up as a Wrestling Icon

[@wildcelt88]

Hulk started I. Southeastern as Terry the hulk Boulder. And his Brother Eddie boulder...aka. brutus beefcake

[@BOBBYSOX86]

"That doesn't work for me hermano"

[@jondiblasi700]

I remember Tito hurting Huk (accidentally) in a match, you could hear him saying "sorry Hulk"

[@JoseFlores-sv8fb]

Tito just looks like a nice guy in and out of the ring.

[@wyattwilkinson2187]

Hogan was sterling golden

[@bwtv147]

After he was Terry Boulder.

[@markolsen7010]

Y'all don't know but Tito had tag title and other things before Hogan came along

[@davidfrederick1971]

Verne Gagne like some REALLY old school promoters thought their CONTROL of the company included the fans. You will be what I tell you tube be and the fans HAVE TO ACCEPT IT. The Rocky 3 deal, I think it was Verne said to him "your a wrestler not an actor" and threatened to fire him if he did it. Its said Verne was so far behind he couldnt accept the changes that were happening to professional wrestling. Thats why Vince succeeded.

[@howardzuckerman8197]

No it was after the movie that he went to the AWA because It was McMahon Sr. Who fired him . This story has been told many times but I rechecked Wikipedia to make sure . But of course you are right about Verne not having the vision of McMahon Jr .

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

@@howardzuckerman8197 vision meant nothing. Gagne was located in the midwestern area of murica, AKA the armpit of the planet. The macmahons were located in freaking Manhattan 😂🤣. That’s why they won out.

[@Jimbeam151]

He's a cool interview. Originally, I liked Tito but Bobby the brain did a such a good job as a heal announcer that I lost interest in him. LOL

[@SmaugUKA]

APW finally wanted/starting asking for recognition in the videos looks like. Makes sense since there's been many, many wrestlers who you Interviewed under APW's Banner.

[@BarryFrancis]

It might be because on previous interviews where they are arranged with the help of APW they have been sitting in front of an APW banner. This time there is no banner, it looks like Tito is sitting in his hotel room.

[@SmaugUKA]

@@BarryFrancis He is

[@theevn7]

👍

[@justint8635]

Hard to imagine a skinnier Hogan

[@xPadge112x]

I guess things "would work for him brother" At least in the early days surely.

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

Wut..?

[@markstiburski9136]

Sent him to gain weight wasn't hulk like 200 pounds in the fourth grade or some shit

[@CerealKiller5150]

When I was a kid Hogan was my favorite wrestler in the 80s now that I'm older and looking back, Hogan sucked at wrestling with just a few punches, body slams, the big boot to the face and that silly leg drop 🤣🤣

[@uncledrosselmeyer6480]

You’re not very bright, eh?

[@bullettoothjosh]

Wonder if he talks about his illegitimate child?

[@jasminenicole3427]

He won't because he posted on his fan page that if you mention her, you will be thrown out of his fan club. If people only knew the whole story.

[@cshaw9083]

The Sheik says Hogan is a no talent mega JABRONI JOBBER who had no business being anywhere near a ring. And baba booey to y'all.. 😂