Hulk Hogan has been a busy bee over in the U.K. for the TNA tour currently making its way through. He's been promoting the product, candidly telling folks he knows he should retire but can't seem to get away from that pop from the fans (even if it's canned, I guess), and even wrestling unadvertised in matches.
Now, he's addressed the situation with Ric Flair and whether or not TNA is going to let him go to Miami on March 31 for the Hall of Fame (HOF) ceremony, where he will be inducted once again as a member of the Four Horsemen.
From his recent interview with Sports Vibe, Hogan makes it seem as though they already have an agreement in place:
"I think it's great, everybody is being very open and Dixie Carter is open and the lines of communication are open. It's great that the two companies can agree on this and have a common bond because Ric Flair has been a staple in this industry, and as they are going to induct the Four Horsemen in the Hall of Fame it's only right Ric Flair is there. It's like WWE saying Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair were never here just because we're now with TNA. It doesn't make sense because people know we were there and helped build that company. I think with the lines of communication opening it's good business for everybody."
Credit where it's due here, if Hogan is, in fact, being honest on all fronts. TNA was put in an undesirable position by WWE with absolutely no warning and while they've been silent on the matter since the announcement that the Four Horsemen were going into the HOF, the answer was likely always going to be yes.
Flair was already telling folks that he would be up on stage no matter what, also revealing that he's been told he's got seven minutes up there to speak his peace, so there's definitely been communication on his side.
Hogan is smart enough to know that it's better for TNA to take the stance he's presenting because they would have had a public relations nightmare on their hands had they tried to play hardball. The really interesting thing to look for in all this is how far WWE will go to woo Flair to come back to the company, which is something they want to do for various reasons.
It should also be noted that the HOF ceremony is not on the docket to air on the USA channel the night before WreslteMania 28, as the network released its March schedule and the HOF was nowhere to be found.