Ric Flair Breaks Down in Tears Discussing Hulk Hogan's Death

Legendary professional wrestler and cultural icon Hulk Hogan died at the age of 71 on Thursday, Jul 24, due to cardiac arrest.

After authorities had responded to a 911 call Thursday morning, Hogan was seen being taken by paramedics from his Clearwater, Florida home to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Once the tragic news hit, a range of tributes flowed in, with notable WWE legends like The Undertaker and Triple H among the many offering their thoughts on social media.

Perhaps of most significance, at least from a wrestling perspective, were the words from Ric Flair, a longtime rival of Hogan's in the ring, and a dear friend outside of it.

Following a lengthy post from Flair on X, referring to the late Hogan—real name Terry Gene Bollea—as a "close friend" who once prayed at his bedside, an overwhelmed Flair was brought to tears in discussing the passing of Hogan.

In what was an especially raw interview with TMZ, which likely took place not too long after Flair's emotional social media tribute to Hogan, the 76-year-old wrestling legend in his own right couldn't help but let it all out.

#RicFlair spoke with TMZ about #HulkHogan in the minutes after the wrestling legend's death ... and he got super emotional remembering his good friend.#Exclusive story at the ????HERE: https://t.co/1s5PTQxHO9 pic.twitter.com/ssxjKjKi4T

— TMZ Sports (@TMZ_Sports) July 24, 2025

After TMZ founder Harvey Levin began by saying how hard the news of Hogan's death must have hit Flair, he tearfully responded by saying, "More than you'll ever know."

"People always wanted to paint us as enemies, but we were actually very, very close friends," a clearly distraught Flair continued after a much-needed pause. 

"I just talked to Jimmy Hart [a famous WWE manager and longtime friend of Hogan's] yesterday and he [Hogan] was fine," Flair said. "To have this happen, it's horrible."

"When I went there [the WWE] in the '90s, I had never seen anything like it [the crowd pop/reaction to Hogan] in my life ... It was just an unbelievable relationship," Flair shared while struggling to get through his words.

For Flair, the extra emotion on display may have stemmed from the multitude of serious health struggles and surgeries he's been through himself for the last decade or more, with one as recently as June 30, where he asked his fans for prayers.

Hogan was pronounced dead on July 24 at 11:17 a.m. ET and, according to a report from TMZ, Clearwater police added that there were "no signs of foul play or suspicious activity."

Rumors regarding Hogan's possible health issues had circulated just last month, but were somewhat downplayed by his rep as a minor surgery that had gone well.

Related: Hulk Hogan's Final Instagram Post Came 1 Day Before He Died