Author: WrestleMania 9 ended with one of the most confusing title changes in WWE history. Bret Hart had just dropped the championship to Yokozuna in the main event… only for Hulk Hogan to hit the ring moments later and walk away with the title—without ever being officially scheduled for a match. Hart and Hogan pull back the curtain on exactly what happened at Caesar’s Palace, how Vince McMahon broke the news, and why Hogan’s promise to "return the favor" never came to pass.
Did you know that this story is featured on The Pro Wrestling Stories Podcast? Hit play and follow along with the article below!
WrestleMania 9: The Controversial Ending Explained
WrestleMania 9 was memorable for many reasons — the outdoor spectacle of Caesar’s Palace, togas, giants in hairy bodysuits… and one of the most controversial title changes in WWE history. What really happened that night? Here’s how Bret Hart remembers it, in his own words, from his recommended book, Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling.
“On April 2, 1993, [I] went to my room just in time to answer a call from Vince, who asked me to come to his suite to talk. I knocked on his door, and he answered it with that goofy grin. We sat down, and Vince said, ‘This is what I want to do. I want you to drop the belt to Yoko tomorrow.’
“This was not what I had expected. I sat there dumbstruck as he went on to explain how Fuji would screw me by throwing salt in my face, blinding me. After Yoko was handed the belt, Hogan would rush to my aid and in some kind of roundabout way Hogan would end up winning the belt from Yoko right then and there!
“Like I was handing Vince my sword, I told him I appreciated everything he did for me and I’d do whatever he wanted. Vince said, ‘Don’t get bitter. I still have big plans for you.’ Sound bites flashed through my mind of Vince assuring me that I was the long-term champion, and not to worry about Hulk Hogan, who still hadn’t even spoken to me yet.
“As I stood up to leave, I asked, ‘Did you take the belt from me because I didn’t do a good enough job?’
"’Of course not! I’m just going in a different direction. It’s still onwards and upwards for you. Nothing is going to change too much for you.’
“I was totally crushed.
“As I lay in bed that night, the more I thought about what Vince had in mind for Hogan, the more I felt that it would completely backfire on both of them. The hokey finish would stink, maybe not immediately, but in the weeks to come my fans, who were the biggest contingent in Vince’s paying audience at that time, would gag on it. There was something different about my fans. They really believed in me as a person.”
The Backstage Fallout
In his book, Bret Hart continued by recounting the atmosphere backstage on the day of WrestleMania 9 and how the locker room reacted to the news of his title loss.
“By the time I got to the dressing room the following afternoon, word that I was losing the title had leaked out to the boys. Most of them were quiet and some were angry. The Nasty Boys, Shawn, Taker and several others expressed their utter disappointment. Knowing I was losing the belt didn’t stop me from planning on having a great match. I went over everything with Yoko and designed the match so that all the best moves were left for the final minute.
“Hulk Hogan arrived with his entourage: his wife, manager, Beefcake and Jimmy Hart. Clearly, he’d been in the know all along, probably from the first day he came back. Now he was suddenly acting like my long-lost old pal and wearing a big smile that rightfully belonged to me.
“During our match at WrestleMania 9, it was hot and dry in the desert heat, but a cool breeze made it impossible to work up a healthy sweat. An exhausted Yoko stampeded like a runaway elephant, short-changing me on my comeback and editing out all my best spots. I was furious that he would take it upon himself to go home on his own. That’s how I came to find myself crouched low, desperately hanging on to Yoko’s two massive calves in the sharpshooter, fighting with every ounce of strength not to let go.
“Mr. Fuji was caught off guard by the sudden ending, and it took him forever to find, unwrap, and throw a packet of what was actually baby powder into my eyes, supposedly blinding me. I fell back as Yoko hooked my leg and Hebner counted one . . . two . . . three. Right on cue, Hogan hit the ring protesting the injustice that had been done to me, and Earl put on that classic expression of utter stupidity that all pro wrestling refs wear when convenient. As I feigned blindness Hogan helped me out of the ring.
“Fuji stayed in the ring, absurdly challenging Hogan to a title match with Yoko right then and there. Yoko was still teetering from exhaustion and looking for a second wind that wasn’t there. Hulk Hogan blinked in astonishment at his sudden good fortune. As scripted, with my face buried in the crook of my arm, I waved him to avenge my loss. ‘Go get ’em, Hulk!’
“I was really thinking, ‘Go ahead, Hogan, take from me what I worked so hard to get. We’ll see just how long you last!’
“Hogan was champion again without even having a match—and before I’d even made it backstage. He simply ducked the powder Fuji threw in his face, clotheslined Fuji and dropped his big leg on Yoko. I could hear the one . . . two . . . three, the roar of the crowd and Hogan’s music thumping. I couldn’t help but stare at the TV monitor watching Hulk Hogan work the crowd with the same old posing routine, a hand behind the ear, shaking the World belt in the air as if to say it belonged to him all along.
“A few minutes later, Hogan came up to me excited and happy and said, ‘Thank you, brother. I won’t forget it. I’ll be happy to return the favor.’
“I looked my old friend in the eye and said, ‘I’m going to remember that, Terry.’
“As for Yoko, I was always a little pissed off at him for going home on me and not letting me show Vince, Hogan and everyone else that we could tear the house down without their bullshit finish. Even so, it was the best match that Yoko ever had.”
Bret Hart’s Final Thoughts
Looking back on the aftermath of the event, Hart didn’t hold back. He described in detail how Vince McMahon handled plans moving forward—and how Hogan’s actions deepened the wound.
“On May 29, Vince called me at home to tell me the big news that I was getting the belt back. What I didn’t expect to hear was that he was getting ready to call Hogan and hated the thought of telling him that he was too old and tired for a company whose marketing strategy was now based around a "new generation" concept.
“Vince wanted to make Hogan into the Babe Ruth of the WWF and use him as more of a special attraction. He asked me not to say anything until he had spoken to Hogan. Ten days later, Vince called again. He warned me that he was about to tell me something that would make me really angry: Hogan was flat-out refusing to put me over, saying I wasn’t in his league.
“Vince had decided that Yoko would be getting the belt instead. I couldn’t believe that Hogan would do this to me. I remembered him shaking my hand at WrestleMania 9, and telling me he’d be happy to return the favor. Vince said he’d have one more meeting with Hogan to try to sell him on it, but if he didn’t go for it, I’d work with Lawler at SummerSlam instead.
“Hulk Hogan didn’t go for it. I wanted to believe that Vince hadn’t told me the whole story, and I made up my mind to confront Hogan as soon as he’d dropped the belt to Yoko. I’d wait till then because it didn’t seem right for me to change Yoko’s destiny.
“I showed up in the dressing room for King of the Ring in a dark mood and promptly drew a blackboard cartoon of Beefcake with his face buried in Hogan’s ass cheeks with a caption that read, ‘Be careful, Brutus, you don’t want to loosen the screws in your face . . . speaking of screws . . .’ I was taking my frustration out on Beefcake, which wasn’t right, but I was too pissed off to know it at the time.
“What Hogan had done was perfectly clear to the boys, and they enjoyed the humor of my cartoon. Since Hogan rarely bothered to come into the dressing room, he didn’t see it, but Beefcake sure did and went slinking back to Hulk. But it didn’t matter to me: Hogan was no longer one of the boys, and he never would be again.
“I was determined not only to have the three best matches on the pay-per-view but three of the best matches of my career.”
Hulk Hogan Responds to Bret Hart’s WrestleMania 9 Claims
In various interviews, Hulk Hogan has addressed the controversy surrounding WrestleMania 9 and his relationship with Bret Hart. Hogan contends that the plan for him to win the WWF Championship from Yokozuna was orchestrated by Vince McMahon and that he was unaware of any promises made to Hart regarding a future title match.
In a 2023 appearance on the Full Send Podcast, Hogan stated:
"Bret Hart thought I basically sabotaged his career because he thought he should have been the greatest wrestler that ever lived, and he said it was my fault."
Hogan elaborated that after WrestleMania 9, Hart confronted him, asserting that Hogan was supposed to drop the title to him. Hogan recalled:
"I said, ‘No, I’m not.’ He goes, ‘Well, yeah, you are.’ I said, ‘So let’s talk to Vince then.’ So we both went in and sat down and talked to Vince. Then Vince looked at Bret and said, ‘Bret, that’s what you thought you heard.’ So ever since then, he hated my guts and wanted to kill me."
Furthermore, Hogan has claimed that Hart’s famous catchphrase, "The Best There Is, The Best There Was, The Best There Ever Will Be," was originally his. He has suggested that Hart adopted it without acknowledgment.
In a 2009 appearance on The Bubba the Love Sponge Show, Hulk Hogan claimed:
"I was sitting in the hot box doing an interview–and Bret Hart and Owen Hart used to sit there and watch me, right? They come in and watch me, and one time I said, ‘I’m the greatest there is, was, and ever will be, brother!’ Bret picked it up and ran with it. He just stole one of my lines and ran with it."
However, Bret Hart has consistently stated that he adopted the phrase from the 1984 film The Natural, where Robert Redford’s character uses a similar line. Hart began incorporating it into his persona during his early WWF days, well before the events of WrestleMania 9.
WrestleMania 9: A Controversial Legacy That Still Echoes
WrestleMania 9’s chaotic conclusion remains one of wrestling’s most controversial moments. Bret Hart’s abrupt loss to Yokozuna—followed by Hulk Hogan’s impromptu title win—left fans and wrestlers alike questioning the fairness and direction of WWE’s storytelling. For Hart, it was a stinging betrayal; for Hogan, just business as usual.
The fallout was immediate and lasting. Promises were broken, relationships were strained, and the New Generation Era was born under a cloud of backstage politics. Decades later, the events of that night still spark debate. In wrestling, as is often the case, the real drama often happens behind the curtain, and the legacy of a single night can echo for years to come.
Watch the moment unfold:
These stories may also interest you:
- Foreman Grill – An Opportunity Lost for Hulk Hogan
- How Hulk Hogan Got Discovered Playing Bass at a Nightclub
- Yokozuna and His Unusual WWF Title Reigns
Can’t get enough pro wrestling history in your life? Sign up to unlock ten pro wrestling stories curated uniquely for YOU, plus subscriber-exclusive content. A special gift from us awaits after signing up!
Want More? Choose another story!
Be sure to follow us on Facebook, X/Twitter, Instagram, Threads, YouTube, TikTok, and Flipboard!
"Evan Ginzburg’s stories are a love letter to wrestling, filled with heart, humor, and history. A must-read for any true fan." — Keith Elliot Greenberg
Wrestling Rings, Blackboards, and Movie Sets is the latest book from Pro Wrestling Stories Senior Editor Evan Ginzburg. 100 unforgettable stories—from sharing a flight on 9/11 with a WWE Hall of Famer to untold moments in wrestling history. A page-turner for fans of the ring and beyond. Grab your copy today! For signed editions, click here.
"Evan Ginzburg’s stories are a love letter to wrestling, filled with heart, humor, and history. A must-read for any true fan." — Keith Elliot Greenberg
Wrestling Rings, Blackboards, and Movie Sets is the latest book from Pro Wrestling Stories Senior Editor Evan Ginzburg. 100 unforgettable stories—from sharing a flight on 9/11 with a WWE Hall of Famer to untold moments in wrestling history. A page-turner for fans of the ring and beyond. Grab your copy today! For signed editions, click here.
Pro Wrestling Stories is committed to accurate, unbiased wrestling content rigorously fact-checked and verified by our team of researchers and editors. Any inaccuracies are quickly corrected, with updates timestamped in the article's byline header.
Got a correction, tip, or story idea for Pro Wrestling Stories? Contact us! Learn about our editorial standards here. Ever wanted to learn more about the people behind Pro Wrestling Stories? Meet our team of authors!
ProWrestlingStories.com participates in affiliate marketing programs. This post may contain affiliate links, meaning we may earn commissions at no extra cost to our readers. This supports our mission to deliver free content for you to enjoy!
