Hulk Hogan passed away at the age of 71 on July 24 after suffering a cardiac arrest. In his latest podcast episode, WWE Hall of Famer John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL) expressed how much The Hulkster meant to the wrestling business.Hogan, real name Terry Bollea, headlined eight of the first nine WrestleMania events. The WWE icon went on to join WCW, where he turned heel in one of the most shocking moments in wrestling history.On Something to Wrestle, JBL said former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon would likely have succeeded even if WrestleMania failed. However, he believes Hogan's star power turned the company into a global phenomenon earlier than anticipated."We're all here because Hogan was successful," JBL stated. "If Hogan's not successful with WrestleMania, Vince may make it later, but it's gonna be years. It's not gonna be like it looks now. Again, Hogan comes in the late '90s, he had the greatest run I think of all time. If he didn't, he's one of the top two or three." [1:56:23 – 1:56:43]During the early WrestleMania years, Hulk Hogan feuded with legends including Andre the Giant, Randy Savage, and The Ultimate Warrior. He also faced The Rock and Vince McMahon at The Show of Shows after returning in 2002.JBL thinks wrestling owes Hulk Hogan "a massive debt"In 1996, Hulk Hogan formed the nWo faction with Kevin Nash and Scott Hall in WCW. The legendary group played a vital role as WCW Nitro rivaled WWE RAW in the battle for television ratings supremacy in the mid-to-late 1990s.Reflecting on that era, JBL said the wrestling industry was "dead" before Hogan's unexpected heel turn:"He comes back in the '90s and creates the Attitude Era when the business was dead. It was dead at that time. He didn't create it, but he was one of the main figures. Just like he didn't create WrestleMania, but he was one of the main figures. I mean, it's just an incredible run. We owe him a massive debt in this business." [1:56:44 – 1:57:00]WWE paid respect to Hogan with a 10-bell salute on the July 25 episode of SmackDown. Triple H also narrated a video package covering The Hulkster's greatest career moments.Please credit Something to Wrestle and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.