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So saddened to find out about the passing of Mike Hogewood.
— David Lagana (@Lagana) September 6, 2018
He really was a nice gentleman who worked hard and let me push him to call a sport that was not native to him. He really was passionate about @ringofhonor and I am proud to have worked with this legend. https://t.co/Pikbnm0mpy
Mike Hogewood, who was hand-picked by HD Net (now AXS TV) to be the voice of Ring of Honor during ROH's two year run on the cable network, passed away today at the age of 63, according to WGHP FOX channel 8 in Greensboro, NC.
Hogewood was a well known sports announcer in the Carolinas and was sports director for WGHP for a number of years and then held the same position for WFMY News 2. He called a huge variety of sports, including college basketball, auto racing and college football. Hogewood was also very involved in the Greensboro theater community.
In 2009, Hogewood was the personal choice of HD Net's then-longtime vice president and executive producer of event programming and production, the late Darrell Ewalt and was brought in to become the voice of the series, despite having never called pro wrestling before. Hogewood loved professional wrestling but had not followed it closely before signing on for the series, which he called with SHIMMER promoter Dave Prazak, who was working for ROH at the time.
"He was a total professional, " said NWA Vice President Dave Lagana, who produced the series and worked closely with the announcers during ROH on HDNet's entire run, told PWInsider.com "He worked tirelessly to get better every week."
Hogewood may best be known within professional wrestling for the odd but memorable "Slap the porpoise" line that he used regularly. The line was designed as a catchphrase for Hogewood to give him something that would stand out during enhancement matches. The over the top, strange nature of the line stuck and is still remembered today. ROH announcer Ian Riccaboni commented on Twitter tonight that he intended to slip the phrase in on the 9/28 ROH Death Before Dishonor PPV broadcast as a tribute to Hogewood.
Hogewood's relationship with the company ended when HD Net and ROH ended their business relationship in April 2011 after producing 100 ROH on HDNet episodes.
On behalf of everyone at PWInsider.com, we'd like to express our deepest condolences to the Mike Hogewood's friends, family and fans.
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