“Worst Picture” Shows ‘Overweight’ Hulk Hogan Hiding His Fat Gut in 1986

While not a lot of wrestlers can claim to have slammed Andre The Giant, the legendary Hulk Hogan can. Standing at 6 feet 7 inches, weighing 302 pounds, with 24-inch biceps, ‘The Immortal One’ packed an impressive physique. However, there was a time when he didn’t look as crisp.

Sharing a photo from the 80s, the ‘Hulkster’ once tweeted how he hid his fat gut while posing for the same. “Rare and worst picture Sun In in my eyebrows,left arm hiding my fat gut,over weight,not training because of injury,but still huge brother HH,” his tweet from 2017 read.

Steve Taylor clicked the photograph for the now defunct World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Hogan posed as the World Wrestling Heavyweight Champion, wearing the coveted belt.

He held onto the belt for a little over four years, 1,474 days to be precise, from January 1984 to February 1988. The world domination started after he beat The Iron Sheik inside Madison Square Garden on 23rd January, 1984.

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Hogan’s physique left Arnold Schwarzenegger in awe

Over the years, the 2x WWE Hall of Fame recipient has enthralled and inspired thousands of pro wrestling fans with his muscular build. That 7x Mr Olympia Arnold Schwarzenegger himself was in awe of him, spoke volumes about Hogan’s physique.

As strange as it may sound, it was difficult for the Hulkster as a kid, as he was subjected to constant bullying.

Speaking about it, he once told Marc Mero that he was fat and it led to other kids, including his brother, coming “down strong” on him.

“When I was younger, I was very fat. Everybody from my brother to everybody in the neighborhood teased me. And said everything from your head is too big or you need a bra. They really came down strong on me and tease me,” he said.

Well, the 6x WCW World Heavyweight Champion did pull up his socks and how! Following years of training, Hogan was not only able to shed the extra kilos, he also possessed an impressive figure, headlined by his renowned ‘pythons’.

A legendary career tainted by allegations of steroid use

For a promotion that has entertained pro wrestling fans for over four decades, the WWE has had its fair share of controversies. One such was the steroid use by several of its performers, including Hulk Hogan, in the early 90s.

During his appearance on the Arsenio Hall Show in 1991, The Immortal One not only denied using steroids for anything other than medical purposes, he also named one of his seniors as a heavy steroid user.

After years of denial, Hogan later admitted to substance abuse in his book, ‘My Life Outside the Ring’. The revelation came as a shock to his fans, who idolized the wrestler for his electrifying stage presence.

In a 2015 interview with The Hannibal TV, ‘Superstar’ Billy Graham, who Hogan had named as a steroid abuser, opened up about the allegations.

Not only did Graham admit to taking steroids, he also revealed that the Hulkster was abusing steroids even before signing with the WWE.

In a 1993 interview with the Los Angeles Times, he once defended his steroid use as “peer pressure”, further stating that “everybody was doing it”.

While the allegations may have dented his reputation a little, one can barely doubt the impact the Immortal one has had over pro wrestling fans over the years. Even in his “worst picture” the man looks intimidating.

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