With American Gladiators set to battle for its place in the NBC schedule on Sunday, January 6 at 9pm before landing a regular spot on Mondays, we caught up with the show's new, imporved, and famous hosts Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali to see how the new American Gladiators stacks up.

Hulk Hogan on the demands of being a TV personality and host as compared to being a wrestler:

"Well, the wrestling, you know, even though I would only wrestle for 15 or 20, or 30 minutes at a time and it would look like that’s all the time I would put in, it was really a 24-hour a day job that you don’t think as far as keeping yourself alive, reinventing yourself, staying physically healthy, the training, the traveling - all the other commitments that go along with being more than just a wrestler. It was a crossover situation where it became sports entertainment. You actually became a media star. So it was very demanding. This - I’m just now dabbling into being the host of the show and the only thing I have, really, are the last two and half weeks I’ve spent with Laila and the 14 or 15 hours days that we’ve put in. So I’m just getting my feet wet with this one, but it’s a lot of fun. But it’s a lot of work, too, you know."

Hogan on whether it's ever tempting to compete instead of host:

"Well, at this stage with cooler heads prevailing and knowing my limitations at 54 years old, it’s a lot more fun to watch than actually get kicked in the head. Believe me."

Laila Ali on where the popularity of American Gladiators fits in with other shows and sports:

"I don’t really know. I mean, I just - I know that a lot of people loved this show the first time around. And I think they’re going to love it even more this time around because it’s new and improved. The games are bigger. The show is visually impressive. You know, you have two hosts that people can recognize. And, you know, I don’t really try to figure all that out. I just want the show to do well. I want people to like it because anything I’m involved with, obviously I want to do well."

Laila Ali on whether we'll ever see a celebrity version like the old Battle of the Network Stars:

"No. I think that would be cool, though."

Hulk Hogan on what hosting means to him at this stage in his career:

"It means a lot. You know, sometimes you get in situations career-wise where you get to invent yourself or sometimes you get in situations career-wise where you run into a dead end. And sometimes everything in your life kind of keeps going and or it comes to a dead stop or it’s like you have highs and you ride them. And you have lows and you survive them. And just out of nowhere, when the show popped up, it made sense because it was kind of like a logical extension of what Hulk Hogan should do for his next move. You know, it’s not like just riding off into the sunset.

"But it’s kind of like Hulk Hogan’s going to be part of the media on the big screen or the little screen, or print advertising, whatever. This is just like a huge, logical extension after the reality show to keep myself alive, to reinvent myself, to be part of network programming. It makes a lot of sense so it fits perfectly in with the continuing of the Hulk Hogan career when I really didn’t know if I was going to start a business or get into broadcast media business or eventually retire."

Laila Ali on the games in the new American Gladiators:

"Mainly - there’s a lot of the same games as there was in the first show, but then there’s also going to be some different games. But everything is just improved and more - I mean, it’s harder, you know. It’s like, for example with the joust where they actually stand on these little perches and they have to try to fight each other with these large sticks - well, now instead of falling on the pillows, they actually fall 15 feet into water. And then there [are] underwater cameras and everything. And, you know, there’s fire involved in the show that’s going off and the whole set itself is just very impressive when you just walk in and see it."

Ali on whether she watched the original American Gladiators:

"I did watch the show. I’ve always liked watching just competition and action, and athleticism. Just seeing the average person go up against these gladiators is always something I enjoy because I’m not even really a big sports fan. But I do like the show."

Hulk Hogan on what fans can expect from both of them as hosts:

"Well, I think that we both bring a couple dimensions and change the parameters of the show. I think that we’ve both been in the combat zone in one form or another and wherever these gladiators or contestants are going as far as competition or physicalities, we both have already been. I think Laila is a constant. She is a professional. I think she’s like very, very grounded and she’s always on track, and knows right where she wants to be in the groove. And that kind of gives me the artistic liberty to be Hulk Hogan or not be Hulk Hogan, or bounce all over the place.

"And I think she kind of like keeps me in line. And I like have a chance to bounce all over the place because I know she’s always going to be there and always going to be on track, and always right on the money. So I think, you know, we bring the element of having been in the (civil) arena with a little experience and a little bit of level headedness to this thing, plus we also -- on an artistic, creative level -- have a chance to bring an entertainment value as a team."

An American Gladiators Smackdown with Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali Page 2