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The Hulkster Gets Spiritual

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By WALT BELCHER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 14, 2008

TAMPA - He gets knocked down but he gets up again.

Faith in God is helping former pro-wrestling superstar Hulk Hogan get a grip on life, he told a half-dozen reporters on a conference call Tuesday.

The 54-year-old former Terry Bollea of Port Tampa says the events of the past two years have led to a spiritual awakening that is going to shape the rest of his life.

In a telephone news conference Tuesday to promote his new "Celebrity Championship Wrestling" TV series, Hogan said "there are no accidents in life, everything happens for a reason…. And what happens is in God's hands now."

Hogan says the problems he and his family faced were "a wake-up call" that has shown him what is really important in life.

His 18-year-old son, Nick, is in jail. His wife, Linda, filed for divorce after 24 years of marriage. And a former close family friend, John Graziano, has suffered a life-altering brain injury.

Graziano was a passenger in the Toyota Supra that Nick Bollea was driving when it went out of control and slammed into a tree In August 2007.

Hogan's son is expected to be released from the Pinellas County Jail on Oct. 21. He's getting out early for good behavior, after serving five months of an eight-month sentence for pleading no contest to a charge of reckless driving involving serious bodily injury.

"I was pushing so hard all my life to be Hulk Hogan," he says. "And then with the divorce, my son, the accident and a close friend who was like an extended family member being injured, it was like when these things being stripped away and you realize what is really important."

What's important now, he says, is having faith and keeping a positive attitude.

"I am moving forward being aware in the spirit of Christ," he says. "I have played the first half of my life and it's halftime now. Things have changed and I'm ready to play the second half."

He's also trying to keep his career as Hulk Hogan going without having to get back into the ring. "I've got a fake knee and a fake hip, and I understand these replacements come in pairs," he jokes. "When I get a matching pair of fake knees and hips, I may crank up the walker and head back."

For now, he is concentrating on "Celebrity Championship Wrestling" which debuts at 8 p.m. Saturday on CMT.

Hogan co-created and is host of the series on which celebrities are trained in "the art" of wrestling, from creating a character to learning wrestling moves.

Taking to the ring are former NBA star Rodman; former "Saved by the Bell" geek Dustin "Screech" Diamond; "Diff'rent Strokes" actor Todd Bridges; "Partridge Family" star Danny Bonaduce; singer Tiffany; Sylvester Stallone's brother, Frank; Playboy playmate Nikki Ziering; "Bewitched" actor Erin Murphy (Tabitha); heavyweight boxer Butter Bean; and Trishelle Cannatella from "The Real World."

The celebrities will be trained by Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake and Brian "Nasty Boy" Nobs. Tampa-based radio personality Bubba the Love Sponge provides the play-by-play analysis.

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