Vince McMahon wanted WWE legend to replace Hulk Hogan, JBL says

Hulk Hogan was WWE's marquee attraction in the 1980s and early 1990s before joining WCW. According to John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL), former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon once viewed Sid Eudy as a long-term replacement for The Hulkster.

Eudy was known as Sid Justice, Sid Vicious, and Sycho Sid during his legendary wrestling career. The six-foot-nine star held the WCW World Heavyweight Championship twice and the WWE Championship twice. He also headlined two WrestleMania events.

On the Something to Wrestle podcast, WWE Hall of Famer JBL recalled how McMahon wanted Eudy to fill the void left by Hogan:

"Sid was a good guy, and his presence walking to the ring was just amazing. His presence in the ring. He wasn't a good worker, but he was a good worker in a different way. His presence was freaking amazing, and the look that he had was something you can't replicate. I mean, Vince at one point wanted him to take over from Hogan. It was that big." [1:03:29 – 1:03:48]

Eudy worked with several high-profile names in WWE, including Bret Hart, Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, and The Undertaker. He had spells with the company from 1991 to 1992 and from 1995 to 1997.

JBL explains why Sid Eudy did not become the next Hulk Hogan

Over the last three decades, many stories have emerged about Sid Eudy prioritizing softball games over wrestling during the summer months.

JBL believes Eudy's non-wrestling activities prevented him from reaching Hulk Hogan's level of stardom. He also claimed the former WWE Champion's love of softball gained him backstage heat.

"Sid had a little bit of heat sometimes when he'd come back," JBL said. "Sid famously would skip summer wrestling for softball, which is true. That's true. The Road Warriors used to give him so much hell about that." [1:03:14 – 1:03:25]

Eudy last wrestled for WWE in 2012 when he returned for a one-off match on RAW against Heath Slater. In 2024, he passed away at the age of 63 after a battle with cancer.

Please credit Something to Wrestle and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.

About the author

Danny Hart is a journalist who has been reporting on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda since 2017. He grew up as a massive fan of football/soccer and wrestling, leading him to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Before assuming his current role, Hart worked as a football writer at Goal.com between 2009 and 2016. He prides himself on writing original content that is fact-based and highly accurate. Hart thoroughly proofreads his work before submitting it and relies only on credible sources for information.

Hart’s favorite pro wrestler is The Undertaker. He admires the 2022 WWE Hall of Famer’s ability to reinvent his character and remain relevant across his decades-long career. If given the keys to WWE’s creative department, he would bring back The Phenom for a farewell bout against AJ Styles in a stadium full of fans. Not only that, but he would love to have the multi-time world champion’s greatest rivals seated at ringside for the spectacle.

When not watching and covering sports, Hart enjoys long-distance running, playing video games, and listening to audiobooks and podcasts.

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Edited by Danny Hart