NJPW Host Hulk Hogan Tribute

The wrestling world has been full of tributes directed towards to late Hulk Hogan following his passing this week, with WWE offering their own tribute on Friday Night SmackDown with a ten bell salute and video package, following by AEW issuing a tribute in the form of some words by Tony Schiavone on Collision. During Saturday’s 2025 G1 Climax event, NJPW held a tribute ceremony for Hogan. 

NJPW president Hiroshi Tanahashi and former referee Tiger Hattori were in the ring as the roster stood ringside. They held a picture of Hogan as a ten bell salute sounded out. 

Hattori later spoke on his experiences with Hogan during his time competing in NJPW, where he was a former IWGP Heavyweight Champion.

“Personally, I can’t believe it. It was too soon, to be honest. Before he became a professional wrestler, I lived in Tampa, Florida for 17 years, and Hogan’s mother happened to live near my house. So I was about 17 when I first met him. I was in my second year of high school or something like that. So I was teaching amateur wrestling at Hiro Matsuda’s gym. He came there as a student, but after about six months he broke his leg. I thought he had disappeared, but then he started coming back. After a while he went to Georgia to make his debut, and then he came back to his hometown of Tampa.

“He was definitely outstanding, more than your average wrestler. He was big in size, but I don’t know, I think he was just a little different. He had such great success so it’s sad that he passed away so early, but I have a lot of respect for him as a professional wrestler. I bet he’s up there again wrestling in heaven. We’ve lost a truly wonderful person. I hope we’ll see another wrestler like him. I want to say thank you for all the great times we had.”

Hogan passed away on Thursday, July 24 after suffering a cardiac arrest. 

H/T F4WOnline

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