Nick Hogan was moved to tears as WWE paid tribute to Hulk Hogan at SummerSlam 2025 with a touching video and theme song dedication celebrating his legacy

Hulk Hogan’s tribute to open WWE SmackDown on Friday night was nothing short of a tear-jerker. The event in Cleveland was opened with loud applause and the crowd chanting “Hogan” in unison to honor the late wrestler who died at 71 years old on Thursday. Fellow wrestler Triple H led the tribute for Hogan.

Hogan began his wrestling career in 1977 before gaining fame in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in the early 1980s. He had his last official match in the WWE in 2005 against Randy Orton at SummerSlam, and was later inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005 and again in 2020 as part of the nWo.