Ric Flair Says Wrestlers Skipped Hulk Hogan’s Funeral Over Old Grudges

Ric Flair isn’t biting his tongue when it comes to Hulk Hogan’s funeral—especially about those who didn’t bother to show up.

During a conversation with Johnny Manziel on the Glory Days podcast, the WWE Hall of Famer opened up about the family tension, the politics of Hogan’s era, and the no-shows who, in his view, should’ve paid their respects. Flair revealed he received a private letter from Brooke Hogan the day after Hogan passed, which gave him a different perspective on the situation.

“I—I had—I have become privileged—no one—I just can’t talk about—his—his daughter wrote me a letter. So I knew about some stuff that was going on, and I just—I can’t share it with you because I’d be betraying her.”

He admitted he spent much of the service observing how others reacted—and who was even in the room.

“There was so much going on. And I got the letter the day after he died from her that I was just watching everybody. Does that make sense? I mean, a lot—Kid Rock came, I mean, every wrestler—I think there was a lot of wrestlers that should have been there that didn’t come. But that’s—you know, everybody makes their own choices.”

Flair believes the reason some stayed away goes back to the way things were in the business when Hogan was on top. Back then, you had to fight to stay in your spot—and Hogan wasn’t afraid to ruffle feathers to do it.

“He wrestled at a time when it was very political. And, you know, you had to stand up for yourself. It wasn’t like now where it’s, ‘Hey, it’s this way or the highway.’ You had to fight for your position in life. And he did. And he made some enemies along the way, and I think those guys didn’t show up.”

Despite the way their careers were framed on-screen, Flair made it clear that Hogan was there for him during one of the darkest times of his life.

“We were always depicted as enemies, right? Hogan and Ric Flair. But he really was a great guy for me.”

Flair’s comments add another layer to the ongoing conversation around Hogan’s death—and the real relationships that existed beyond the wrestling storylines.