Page 3 - The Complete History of the WWE Championship

Hulk Hogan (April 21, 2002 - May 19, 2002)

Hulk Hogan upset Triple H to win a joint record sixth WWE Championship

Hulk Hogan returned to WWE after a nine year absence at the 2002 No Way Out pay per view on February 17, 2002.

Many in WWE opposed the signing of Hogan, along with his nWo comrades, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall, fearing they would be a bad influence in the locker room. In particular, Stone Cold Steve Austin was deeply upset by the signings and when he was offered a WrestleMania bout with Hogan, he refused it. Austin suspected (rightly) that Hogan would attempt to steal the spotlight in the 'Mania match. Hogan did exactly that but it was The Rock who was the victim, not Austin.

Attempting to wring every drop of nostalgia out of Hogan's return, he was booked to defeat Triple H for the Undisputed Championship at Backlash on April 21, 2002.

However, WWE soon realized their mistake when the numbers came in. Backlash pulled 345,000 buys, fewer than WWE expected for Hogans's quest to win the modern version of the Championship he had previously held five times between 1984 and 1993.

Hogan's joint record sixth title win (matching The Rock and Stone Cold's six title victories) was a memorable moment to be sure, in a decent bout with "The Game." However, the disappointing numbers meant it was going to be short lived,

Hogan would drop the belt to the man he lost his third title to: The Undertaker.