Lansing Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer jokingly revealed at an event Monday night that she’s a fan of the Iron Sheik, a professional wrestler and longtime rival of Republican National Convention Chairman Hulk Hogan.
At the convention in Milwaukee, Hogan praised Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, saying he has known him for more than 35 years. During his speech, Hogan removed one shirt to reveal another with the Trump campaign logo.
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“Let the Trump mania run wild, brother.” Hogan told the Milwaukee crowd:“Let Trumpmania rule again. Let Trumpmania make America great again,” he said, playing on words in reference to the Hulkamania fanbase.
Whitmer, a Democrat and supporter of Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s presumptive opponent, is touring to promote her new book, “True Gretch.” On Monday night, she appeared at the Purple Rose Theatre in Chelsea to answer questions from actor Jeff Daniels.
Daniels asked Whitmer what she thought about Hogan’s prime-time speech at the Republican convention.
“I’m an Iron Sheik fan myself,” Whitmer replied, drawing laughter and applause from the Chelsea crowd.
Whitmer noted that the Iron Sheik is Hogan’s nemesis.
According to the World Wrestling Entertainment website, the Iron Sheik held the World Wrestling Federation title for just under a month before losing the championship to Hogan at Madison Square Garden on January 23, 1984. It was one of the most famous matches of all time, The WWE website states:.
Iron Sheik, His real name was Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri, and he died last year.However, the account on social media platform “X” remains active and frequently posts expletive-filled criticism of Hogan.
“Hulk Hogan is a jabroni,” the account said. 1 message dated January 14, 2022.
“I’m sure that if he were still here, he would be proudly supporting President Biden and Vice President Harris,” Gov. Whitmer told the crowd on Monday.
But in his brief remarks, Whitmer, a Lansing native, appeared to confuse the Iron Sheik with another professional wrestler named Ed “Sheik” Farhat. From the Lansing area.
Whitmer said the Iron Sheik is from Lansing, but the Associated Press reported that he grew up in a small village in Iran.
The Detroit News could not immediately determine how to reach Hogan for comment.
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Staff writer Adam Graham contributed.
