Hulk Hogan Was 'In and Out of the Hospital for Years' Amid Health Struggles

Pro wrestling legend Hulk Hogan had been facing multiple “huge” health struggles before his death.

A source exclusively told Us Weekly that Hogan was “in and out of the hospital for years,” describing his issues as “the culmination of having over 30 surgeries over the course of his life.”

Hogan died on Thursday, July 24, a member of the Hogan family confirmed to Us. He was 71 years old. 

The WWE Hall of Famer suffered cardiac arrest at his home in Clearwater, Florida, and later died after being transported to a local hospital, according to the Clearwater Police Department. 

Hogan had various “back and spine surgeries” for decades, the source explained, including after he “tore his whole back” after body slamming André the Giant at WrestleMania III in 1987 in one of the most famous matches in professional wrestling history. 

“Wrestling like he did for so many years has done so much damage,” the insider added. “His body was so beaten up. Although wrestling can be fake, it’s not physically fake. There were predetermined outcomes to the matches, but the physicality was very real. He was always in some sort of pain. He paid for his success.”

Hogan was revealed to have heart issues while “having a surgery for something else” earlier this year, which led to “pretty serious” heart surgery.

Despite his recent health history, a source told Us that Hogan’s death came as a “huge shock” to his friends. 

“He had been calling and texting as normal,” the source explained. 

In a 2023 interview in Men’s Health, Hogan himself explained the toll the wrestling business had taken on his body. 

“Along with all of the injuries and treatment came the pain, the inflammation and the prescription drugs,” Hogan said. “I just got so sick of the brain fog, the trouble sleeping, feeling tired all the time and not being myself that about a year ago I decided to [stop taking] all of the pain meds I was on.”

Hogan is survived by his wife, Sky Daily, whom he married in September 2023, and his daughter, Brooke, and son, Nick, whom he shared with ex-wife Linda Hogan. 

At the time of his death, Hulk was “very close” to Nick, 34, a source exclusively told Us. 

However, he “did not talk at all” to Linda, who he finalized his divorce with in 2009 after 24 years of marriage, or Brooke, whose falling out with her family was splashed all across social media earlier this year. 

“I have completely separate reasons for going no contact with each of my parents,” Brooke wrote via Instagram in March. “No contact with my mom has nothing to do with my dad, and no contact with my father has nothing to do with my mother. … This decision was made based purely on how they have each dealt with me my entire life.”