‘He said some racist things’ – Vince McMahon gives his honest thoughts on Hulk Hogan’s controversial remarks that almost derailed his career

The life and legacy of Hulk Hogan were in the spotlight once again on Tuesday night when FOX aired TMZ’s documentary The Real Hulk Hogan. Among the voices featured was former WWE owner Vince McMahon, who spoke candidly about the scandal that nearly ended Hogan’s career.

McMahon, who promoted Hogan to global fame in the 1980s, called the remarks “unforgivable” but insisted his longtime friend was not, in his view, a racist.

Vince McMahon recalls the fallout and defends Hulk Hogan’s character

Hulk Hogan, real name Terry Bollea, was fired by WWE in July 2015 after a leaked s*x tape captured him making racist remarks, including a racial slur and comments about his daughter potentially dating a Black man. “It was unforgivable and I was agasp, ‘What happened?’” McMahon told TMZ’s Harvey Levin. “When those things occurred, that’s not like him. ‘What in God’s name is going on?’”McMahon said WWE severed ties immediately.

“As soon as it happened, obviously, the company didn’t have anything to do with him anymore. We took him out of the Hall of Fame. You just don’t do those things.”

Yet, when the subject turned to Hogan’s eventual return three years later, McMahon’s tone shifted. “I knew he wasn’t a racist. I’d been with him for so many years. He wasn’t a racist. He said some racist things, and he should pay for that. And he did. But in the end, I think everyone saw the real Hulk Hogan, Terry Bollea, and they felt, ‘Wait a minute, this guy—he doesn’t act like a racist.

He’s not a racist.’ We all make mistakes.

That was a big one, but he wasn’t a racist.”

Vince McMahon addressed the anger over Hulk Hogan’s final WWE appearance

The TMZ special also revisited Hogan’s last WWE appearance on January 6, 2025, when Monday Night Raw debuted on Netflix from the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Instead of a hero’s welcome, the wrestling legend was met with loud boos.“I was angry; he deserved much more,” McMahon said, noting the segment “wasn’t set up properly” and claiming it’s “not the way I would have done it.”Hogan’s image had grown even more complicated in recent years. Beyond the s*x tape scandal, his public appearances alongside former President Donald Trump and remarks about politics drew polarized reactions. Still, McMahon’s defense painted Hogan as a man who made an enormous error but was not defined entirely by it.Also Read: Are Karrion Kross and Scarlett free agents? The 6’4”, 265-pound star addresses latest WWE updateThe special was McMahon’s first televised interview since his January 2024 resignation from WWE amid se*ual abuse and trafficking allegations by former employee Janel Grant. While the program featured perspectives from figures like Mark Henry, Bill Goldberg, and Mick Foley, the standout takeaway was McMahon publicly breaking with WWE’s past handling of Hogan as he vowed to stop character assassination of the WWE legend.