The New Day Reacts to Hulk Hogan’s HOF Reinstatement

WWE superstar trio The New Day has made an official statement regarding the company's decision to reinstate Hulk Hogan into the WWE Hall of Fame following racist remarks that caused his contract to be terminated back in 2015.

Earlier this week, the WWE officially announced that it would be reinstating Hulk Hogan into the WWE Hall of Fame following his use of racial slurs in a video tape that surfaced during his very public trial with Gawker in 2015. As should be expected, not everyone is so quick to support the decision to welcome back the disgraced legend of pro wrestling. In particular, popular trio The New Day — Big E, Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods — issued an official statement regarding their stance on the reinstatement. 

The lengthy statement was posted on Kingston'sofficial Twitter account, which Kingston claimed would be the "only" statement the three would be making. "We do not wish to spend the energy debating the point, because between our kids, our external ventures, and this job, our energy is spread thin enough already, lol," the statement partially reads. 

It continues, "Who WWE puts into the HOF is totally and completely up to the company and from a career standpoint, there is no argument on whether or not Hogan should have his place. We have no problem with his re-induction in the slightest degree. It is impossible to even begin to mention the history and evolution of the business without mentioning his name and accolades."

While the groups comments give Hogan his credit for the positive impact he has had on their profession, it also addresses their more personal feelings as three black WWE superstars. 

"When someone makes racist and hateful comments about any race or group of people, especially to the degree that Hogan made about our people, we find it difficult to simply forget, regardless of how long ago it was, or the situation in which those comments were made. But we also do not respond with more feelings of hate. Instead, we just do not associate with the people who convey or have conveyed this negative and hurtful mindset. This instance will be no different."

New Day also noted that there is potential to forgive Hogan if he can show them that he is making some type of real effort to change in the future. "Perhaps if we see him make a genuine effort to change, then maybe our opinion will change with him. Time will tell."

Fellow WWE superstar Titus O'Neil also voiced his "full agreement and support of everything said in this statement" via Twitter following its release and made it known that in time he would also be delivering his own comments on the situation.

Kingston, Big E, and Woods concluded their statement with a message of positivity. "We know we are worth it, we know our kids are worth it, and most importantly, we know that people that look like us are worth it and always have been."

The capacity in which Hogan will be used within the WWE going forward has yet to be made clear by the company.

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