In the 80's, no one could match him. They tried with Savage and the Ultimate Warrior but Hogan was in a class all be his own. Of course in the 80's, he was much younger and healthier and hence his matches were far better quality than they are now. That did help to an extent as well. in addition, Hogan was able to be apart of mainstream media. Part of the reason he became so big is he was around when big things were happening like MTV.
In the 90's, Hogan did provide the initial "Hey, Hogan's back" pop. He was also past the steroid scandal that some people basically forgot about it and others were interested to see what he looked like and did post-scandal.
By 1996, he was stale again and so the unthinkable happened, Hulk Hogan turned heel. That, along with Hall and Nash who had the "we'll do what we want" attitude that endeared to a lot of people, made Hogan a hot property again. Hogan was able to reinvent himself into a nasty, degenerate heel, thereby making him fresh and interesting. He also was hated greatly, partially because he turned on the people, and partially due to his own charisma.
Hogan was ultra popular in 2002 as well. The nostalgia feel coupled with the failed attempt by the WWE to get over the biggest feud ever (WWE Vs WCW), along with potential dream matches involving Hogan, made him popular with the fans again. Hogan also knew how to draw the emotion out of the fans, as he has done so many times in his career.
The problem with 2009 and 2010 is all of the above has happened before. There's nothing new. We've seen Hogan after he went though some personal issues. We've seen Hogan as a face. We've seen Hogan as a heel. We've seen Hogan as a nostalgia act.
That is coupled with two other issues: 1.) the older fans who remember Hogan are now thinking "He is STILL around?" and realizing that by Hogan's age he is severely limited and stale. 2.) The newer fans weren't around during Hogan's glory years of the 80s and 90's. At best they caught him as a nostalgia act and hence only see this "Old guy who was popular in the past but can't wrestle now".
Finally, the fact he is push Abyss is another issue. Abyss just doesn't seem to be the right fit with Hogan. The fact that Abyss is getting super powers from Hogan's HOF ring is preposterous. Abyss' character is based on mystery and destruction. Hogan's is not. It's like mixing oil with water.
I applaud Hogan for at least trying to build a new star but that star needs to be someone who is complementary to Hogan. This guy needs to be someone who has somewhat of the same look, the same talk, and the same aura. He doesn't need to say "Brother" every other sentence, nor use the leg drop. rather, he should be seen as someone who is so close to being a top tier player, someone who can just talk the fans into the arena, and someone that fans are dying to see finally become world champion.
Until that happens, the ratings will stay the same.
