Originally published on ProWrestlingSheet.
The backstage apology Hulk Hogan gave to the WWE roster was not accepted by everyone, and in a new interview Hulkster says those Superstars don't understand the brotherhood of wrestling.
Hogan was a guest on the new podcast The Apter Chat with Bill Apter and spoke in-depth about WWE welcoming him back. Hulk says it first began with a text from Triple H checking in on him, as well as subsequent texts every few months making sure he was doing alright.
The former WWF champ says ideas eventually got thrown around for how he could contribute to the company again -- Hogan briefly mentions Saudi Arabia without further detail -- but ultimately Hulk told Hunter he really wanted to talk with Vince McMahon again.
Vince reached out not long after, according to Hogan, and they caught up like it was old times.
Triple H contacted Hulk again months later and asked if there was anything he'd like to do in wrestling, to which he said yes. Hunter and McMahon then said the first thing they'd like him to do is have a conversation with the black wrestlers about everything that occurred.
"I said no, I'm not gonna do it," Hogan explained. "If I come back, I want to talk to everybody. Because what I did not only hurt the business, it hurt white, black, every athlete you have. Japanese. Everybody that's involved and loves this business. What I said hurt this business."
The 65-year-old went on to detail his conversation with the roster at Extreme Rules, saying he apologized for the terrible words he said 12-years prior. Hogan doesn't believe, however, that the focus was on wrestlers not getting caught on camera doing bad things -- even if it was mentioned.
Hulk explained, "A lot of people accepted my apology. And a lot of people heard what they wanted to hear and a lot of the narrative that came out of the meeting was on point. A lot of the narrative was really different. I was surprised to hear some people interpreted what I said that I was just sorry I got caught on camera, or whatever they interpreted, but I never said that."
As you may recall, New Day and Titus O'Neil both spoke out after the meeting. O'Neil said the apology lacked remorse and New Day claimed they wouldn't associate with Hulk until "genuine effort to change is made."
In the interview, Hogan had something to say about those who didn't accept his apology.
"I just hope the brotherhood can get back to the way it was," Hulk remarked. "Outside the ring, you're supposed to protect your brother. In this case, it's a situation where 75, 80, 90 percent of the wrestlers are protecting me and they're giving me another chance to move forward. There's just a few wrestlers that kinda like don't understand the bond and the brotherhood of wrestling. If someone makes a mistake, you need to forgive them and move on and try to let them prove themselves.”
Listen to the interview below (WWE return talk begins around 46 minutes into the conversation).