Booker T Says He Never Saw Racism from Hulk Hogan Despite Controversial Remarks

WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan will always remain a controversial figure due to his racist comments that were made public in 2015. Many have commented on Hogan’s racist remarks and now Booker T has offered a nuanced take on the whole controversy.

While speaking on the Underground Dialogue podcast, Booker T was asked if Hulk Hogan was racist. He pointed out that some people might assume racism because of Hogan’s late-life political ties, including public support for Donald Trump, but said those views only surfaced near the end of Hogan’s life and weren’t known during their years together.

Booker explained that you can often tell a person’s character by the company they keep, and during the many times he was around Hogan and his close friends, he never saw signs of racism.

“That’s a good question, man. It really is a good question, but… a lot of people, just like, for instance, at the end of his career, at the end of his life, you know, he was doing a lot of stuff with Trump. And you might equate that to him being a racist. That’s something that he did again, right? His political views were revealed right before he died. We never knew that before. Normally, you know a racist by the people that they hang around. And I was always around Hogan. I was always around the people that he knew—and none of those guys were racist.”

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Booker T also addressed Hogan’s leaked private comments using racial slurs, saying that people sometimes speak differently in private when their guard is down. This is especially if alcohol, drugs, or outside influences are involved. Booker stated that while such words are wrong, a single private moment doesn’t always reflect someone’s full character.

“Capturing a moment, when he did say the racist comments—this is what I always say about that. You’ve been in your house before when the camera ain’t rolling—you might say some stuff that would make people think you’re a racist. Am I right or wrong? You might, because your guard is down and you’re just spewing, you’re just talking. Even though—man, I say stuff about white folks sometimes too. Brad Gilmore is white, and he’s like my best friend.

Especially when you’re drinking… alcohol’s involved, maybe drugs, someone influencing you or coercing you. I don’t think that camera or mic would have been there otherwise. So everybody talks about the racist comment, but no one thinks about the situation that it came out of.”

Drawing on personal experience, Booker shared that Hogan supported him when he was an up-and-coming wrestler and never treated him with disrespect. They weren’t close friends, but they always greeted each other warmly, and Hogan never looked down on him.

“Hogan helped me when I was a young, aspiring wrestler trying to move up in the business. I don’t think he would’ve done that if he was a racist. Racists don’t go, ‘Let me go help the Black guy.’ I never looked at Hogan like a friend, but whenever we saw each other, we always dapped up. He never looked down on me or shunned me.”

Even Koko B. Ware defended Hulk Hogan against racism allegations after Hogan passed away. So at the end of the day, Booker T doesn’t excuse Hulk Hogan’s racist remarks, but he points to many years where Hogan treated everyone with respect. From helping young Black wrestlers to showing kindness backstage, Booker made it Hogan’s actions don’t match theof a racist and that’s all that matters in the end.

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