“Can’t you just lay off the man?” - Hulk Hogan’s longtime friend Kevin Nash defends late wrestler’s past controversies

The world is still reacting to the death of wrestling legend Hulk Hogan, but not all the conversation has been about legacy and tribute. As some resurface Hogan’s past controversies, his longtime friend and fellow wrestling icon Kevin Nash is hitting back hard.

“Can’t you just lay off the man?” Nash asked during the July 28 episode of his Kliq This podcast, making it crystal clear where he stands.

Hogan's real name was Terry Bollea. He passed away on July 24 at the age of 71 following a cardiac arrest. Since then, renewed attention has turned toward the WWE Hall of Famer’s 2015 scandal, when audio recordings of him repeatedly using the N-word and describing himself as “racist, to a point” surfaced. But Nash, who alongside Hogan and Scott Hall formed the legendary New World Order faction, isn’t interested in watching his friend be dragged posthumously.

“For the people that want to go after Hogan for doing this, doing that, doing this — how about f*** you, man?” Nash said. “He’s dead. How about his kids, man? Can’t you just lay off the man?” (Kliq This podcast, July 28).

“Think about his friends and family” - Nash said about Hulk Hogan

Nash, 66, wasn’t finished defending his friend. Throughout the podcast, he expressed frustration with what he called performative outrage online, urging listeners to remember that Hogan’s family is the one truly impacted now.

“Think about his kids,” he said, referencing Brooke, 37, and Nick, 35 — Hogan’s children with ex-wife Linda Hogan. “Think about his friends and family. If you don’t have nothing good to say, shut the f*** up.”

The controversy surrounding Hulk Hogan dates back to 2015, when WWE cut ties with him and temporarily removed him from their Hall of Fame. At the time, Hulk Hogan issued a public apology via Us Weekly, saying,

“I believe very strongly that every person in the world is important and should not be treated differently based on race, gender, orientation, religious beliefs or otherwise. I am disappointed with myself that I used language that is offensive and inconsistent with my own beliefs. It is not who I am. I continue to work every day to improve as a person, and this matter is an important learning experience for me in that regard.”

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Still, even after being reinstated in 2018 and returning for sporadic WWE appearances, Hulk Hogan remained a divisive figure. In what would be his final WWE appearance this past January, he was booed by fans at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood during the Netflix premiere of Raw. Reflecting on the criticism now flooding social media, Nash said bluntly,

“Ain’t nothing’s gonna change now. It’s sensationalism. It’s, ‘You know, I never liked him anyway.’ Who gives a f***? I know he doesn’t. I know he didn’t.” (Kliq This, July 28)

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