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At the height of the Attitude Era, Bill Goldberg would run through all his opponents, leaving only destruction and carnage in his wake. Very seldom has an inexperienced performer experienced such a massive level of stardom. His 173 win-streak put WCW back in the game against WWE, when Stone Cold Steve Austin seemingly turned the Monday Night Wars in favor of Vince McMahon.
Everyone that was around him during his WCW run, his subsequent WWE run or his big WWE return had something to say about Eric Bischoff's greatest creation. We've compiled a list of six comments, both positive and negative, from his professional wrestling peers.
#6 Kurt Angle spoke about the difference between WCW and WWE's booking of Goldberg's matches
It is well known that Goldberg did not have a great first run with WWE, as he only won one title during this chapter of his career. The iconic superstar left the promotion after defeating Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 20. WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle spoke about the difference between how WWE and WCW booked matches for the former Universal Champion, and how it played a massive role in the former Universal Champion leaving WWE:
"Yes, I did," said Angle. "He made it pretty clear. I did discuss it with him one day, but you know, I felt kind of bad for Bill. You have to remember, when he was in WCW, he was marketed differently. He was a killer. He was a beast. His matches lasted two to three minutes tops. In WWE, when they brought him in, they tried to make him into a long-term worker, where he is wrestling 10-15 minute matches. It didn't work for him."
However, the Olympic Gold Medalist praised Vince McMahon and the company for rectifying their errors and booking the WCW legend the way he should have been since his return:
"WWE eventually smartened up because when he left after this, and he came back in 2016, they decided to market him that way as a beast and a killer," Angle continued. "His matches were one minute, two minutes, three minutes. That's how you make money with him. WWE finally smartened up."
With this in mind, it's easy to see why all Goldberg matches follow a similar pattern of being short and explosive.
#5 Scott Hall said that Goldberg didn't like losing
Scott Hall revealed that he got along with Goldberg during the beginning of the latter's WCW run, but also saw through the hype. Per Hall, Goldberg made his debut in front of an arena full of people and never lost any of his matches, which was the only reason the powerhouse ever got over.
Due to his winning streak, Hall believes that the former Universal Champion became a "mark" for himself. In other words, Bill began to believe in his own hype, despite professional wrestling being a choreographed art form. This did not sit well with McMahon.
When McMahon found out that the iconic WCW star did not like losing, he did not book the latter as strongly as the latter had been during his WCW run. We can only imagine that this discontent led to him quitting the company during his very first run. For this reason, it's little wonder that his first WWE run did not work out as planned.
#4 He gave a very special ride to Christian
As the list rolls on, you'll hear a variety of people saying negative things about Goldberg. For this reason, a positive message would be a breath of fresh air for a change. Edge and Christian got along really well with the former Universal Champion.
It's a widely chronicled fact that outside the ring, Goldberg is a very nice guy. He's a hero to kids and goes out of his way to make an impression on them. Christian revealed just how nice he was to his own peers as well.
Christian and Bill were once at a WWE Live Event and Christian had a long drive to the next town. The WWE Hall of Famer invited Christian to come aboard his own private plane and fly him down, to save him the effort of making his way to the show.
#3 Raven recalled how Jericho put Goldberg in a headlock
Chris Jericho and Goldberg had major heat right from their WCW days. The Cruiserweight division in the company (the division that Jericho was in) was considered a step below the'Heavyweight division (the division that Goldberg was in) under Bischoff's rule.
In any case, the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion confronted Y2J, during the former's first WWE run. He ended up putting his hands on Jericho's throat due to a disagreement between the two men. Jericho responded by grabbing him in a headlock and not letting go.
This happened in front of the entire locker room. The legendary WCW star's aura seemingly diminished significantly following this unexpected incident. One can only wonder how they got along during their time together in 2016-17.
#2 Bischoff believes Goldberg only worked because of timing
Eric Bischoff is the only man in history to have taken the fight to Vince McMahon and won, if only for a brief period, and Goldberg is considered to be his greatest creation. Bischoff believes the iconic WCW star only worked because of the timing. After all, it was a hot period for wrestling. He also revealed that the former Universal Champion was difficult to work with, but in a good way:
"That's a tough one," said Bischoff. "I think on a consistent basis; it would have been Bill Goldberg. Not necessarily in a bad way. Just that, Bill was a very intense person. Emotional, and didn't have a lot of experience, and was pretty uncomfortable in a pro wrestling environment when he first got there. So, as a result, you take someone who is an intense personality, a very intense personality, a bit of a perfectionist, who puts a lot of pressure on himself. But, also, lacking a lot of the comfort that comes with experience. You get a guy that's a little hard to handle, or sometimes a lot hard to handle. That's not necessarily a bad thing. That's just a thing."
Bischoff was full of admiration for the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion's look and intensity. However, he felt that if Bill had come along five years before he did, he wouldn't have been as popular. To Bischoff, he benefited from the popularity of wrestling at the time. Bischoff stated that the same can be said of The Rock, as the man hit his peak much at the same time as Goldberg.
#1 Kevin Nash considered him to be a very safe worker
Goldberg was never exactly Curt Hennig in the ring. He was hardly a technician, and a stray kick from him allegedly ended Bret Hart's career. Near the end of the clip linked above, Kevin Nash describes the WCW veteran as essentially safe. He even shockingly compared the former Universal Champion to The Undertaker.
Nash's assessed that when a powerhouse picked you up, all you wanted was to land flat on your back, and the former Universal Champion ensured that would happen. However, Bill was a stiff worker, so one had to prepare for a few really hard shots too.
