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WWE Hall of Famer and former WCW senior executive Eric Bischoff revealed his final visit with longtime friend and business partner Hulk Hogan prior to the legendary wrestler's death last week.
Bischoff had worked closely with Hogan for decades dating back to their tenure in WCW in the 1990s, which later continued in TNA Wrestling. The two also founded the Real American Freestyle professional wrestling promotion, which is set for its inaugural event on August 30.
“I could tell he was weak, he sounded tired, but he still had that ‘What are we going to do next?’ Kind of underlying current of energy in his voice, even though he sounded tired, sounded weak. He still had that, ‘What’s going on with Real American Freestyle? Where we at?’ Checking up on me to make sure I’m on top of my s**t," Bischoff said on his 83 Weeks podcast released Tuesday (July 29).
Bischoff said he visited Hogan for about an hour and the two discussed the Real American Freestyle professional wrestling promotion during their final encounter.
“All he wanted to talk about as business, but in a fun, energetic way even though he was struggling — it was just a little more effort than it should have been for him to talk at that time because of his larynx and all that stuff got moved around during surgery, so it was work for him to have a conversation. ” Bischoff said. “He was the same guy.”
“He said, ‘Brother, I can’t wait. I may not be able to do anything on camera for a couple of weeks, but I’ll be good on the phone. You can set some stuff up for me on the phone,'” Bischoff added. “He was so anxious to get back to work.”
WWE confirmed Hulk Hogan's death in tribute posts shared on its social media account following TMZ Sports' initial report on Thursday (July 24).
Medics reportedly responded to a reported "cardiac arrest" at Hogan's Clearwater home early Thursday morning, with the dispatch audio clip obtained and shared by TMZ Sports. Sources with knowledge of the situation told TMZ Sports that several police vehicles and EMTs were parked outside the wrestling legend's home and he was reported to be carried out on a stretcher and into an ambulance.
Hogan's death came weeks after his wife denied rumors that he was in a coma, claiming his heart was "strong" while recovering from surgeries, according to TMZ Sports. The website had previously reported rumors of the wrestler being on his "deathbed," which were later clarified to be symptoms of a neck procedure in May.
The Hulk Hogan character is one of the most well-known in the history of professional wrestling, leading WWE to become a global enterprise in the 1980s as the face of the company during its popularity boom. Bollea was a five-time WWE (then-WWF) Champion, which included a 1,474-day reign as the longest of the WrestleMania era and a six-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, where he was the leader of the New World Order as 'Hollywood' Hulk Hogan during his tenure with the now-defunct promotion.
Hogan was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame twice as both an individual and as a member of the faction.