Match #28 Sep. 22, 1984 Hulk Hogan vs. Big John Studd, WWF Championship

A longer match than the Hogan/Shiek match here, but I wouldn't say it was any better. A typical big man match here as Hogan tries to chop the Studd down early on and is mostly successful in doing so. The only times Hogan would get in trouble in this match would be when he'd attempt to bodyslam Studd, and everytime, it failed. Studd would try to wear down Hogan with a bearhug before dumping him outside. Studd would lay boots onto the head of Hogan, busting Hogan open. This would give Hogan that adrenaline rush and he would come back into the match all fired up. Hogan would get the advantage again, but tries to slam Studd, and fails. They both end up on the outside and bump heads. Studd is able to get into the ring before the count of ten to get the victory via count out, but Hogan regains the title, even though Studd would take it anyways.

An interesting thing to note in this match, would be Gene Okerlund on commentary saying how he wouldn't be surprised if Bobby Heenan amassed a big stable of superstars. Oh, how right he would be.

My Grade: D+
Just not that great of a match.

Match #27 Jan. 23, 1984, Iron Shiek vs. Hulk Hogan, WWF Championship

We've made it to 1984, and this is the infamous match that starts Hulk Hogan's WWF Title reign. A pretty short match by title match standards we've seen thus far. Hogan basically beats down Shiek until Shiek is able to take back control. Shiek locks in the Camel Clutch, which no one at that time had been able to break out of. Hogan is able to out muscle Shiek and get out of the clutch and hit the big leg drop to get the pinfall and the WWF title.

My Grade: C-
An average match, but an important one in history.

Match #19 Apr. 12, 1983, Nick Bockwinkel vs. Hulk Hogan, AWA World Heavyweight Championship

'The Incredible' Hulk Hogan takes on AWA Champion, Nick Bockwinkel in another match marred with controversy. A very slow paced match here, as it takes about four minutes just to have a lock up. Hogan pretty much controls the pace of the match, hitting lots of offensive maneuvers that take Bockwinkel down. I would say Hogan is more fluid here in the ring then he would be later on in his career.

Bockwinkel would take back control with a sleeper hold as Hogan has to carry him on his back. Hogan would try to drive Bockwinkel into the corner but the referee would be there as well causing a ref bump. Hogan would dump Bockwinkel over the top rope to get out of the sleeper and wake up the ref. When Bockwinkel would get back into the ring, Hogan would take back control of the match, hitting the leg drop to win the AWA Championship.

Unfortunately, if you look at title histories, you will see that Hulk Hogan did not win the AWA Championship on this date. As a matter of fact, after the match, the AWA President would rule since Hogan dumped Bockwinkel over the top rope, that Hogan would be disqualified, meaning Bockwinkel would retain the title. The fans would be very upset, pelting the ring with garbage. Hogan would then beat up both Bockwinkel and his manager Bobby Heenan and then proclaim that the AWA Championship was the fans title and that he was their champion. A definite precursor to Hulkamania.

My Grade: C+
Not the greatest match, but an interesting finish to say the least.

Match #14 Sep. 13, 1980, WWF, Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant

This is a really unique match up here. The main event of WrestleMania 3, seven years before. The interesting thing is that Hulk Hogan, known as 'The Incredible' Hulk Hogan, is a heel here, managed also by Freddie Blassie. You also get to see how well Andre could go inside the ring, as this is well before his health problems started to come into play.

The match plays out with Andre using his size to his advantage and Hogan playing more of a cowardly heel by going out of the ring and getting advice from Blassie. Not a long match, with Hogan clotheslining Andre with a loaded elbow pad to end the match.

My Grade: C+
Not the best match by any means, but a real interesting look at these two before they get big. Check it out if you get the chance.