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The rumor was true about Goldberg returning. WWE Champion Bobby Lashley had a non-title open challenge on RAW. It was answered by the returning Keith Lee - who made his comeback after five months away.
Lashley won the match clean and WWE wasted no time with Goldberg's return. The WWE Hall of Famer returned after half a year away. The last time we saw him was at the 2021 Royal Rumble when he lost to then-Champion Drew McIntyre.
It's a different Champion this time around and a different stage as well. It seems as though both blockbuster World Championship matches have been set for SummerSlam 2021. Here are five reasons why Goldberg returned to challenge Bobby Lashley on RAW:
#5. Goldberg is the alternative to Brock Lesnar
While Brock Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley is the obvious first-choice match that fans would have wanted, Goldberg seems to be the alternative. When asked about why WWE hasn't booked the dream Lashley vs. Lesnar match, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter said that the match was constantly denied:
"The Lesnar match was talked about a lot but constantly denied. The feeling was that Lesnar isn’t coming back for a number of shows right now, so he’d have to lose"
Meltzer elaborated by saying that there is a party in WWE that views Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns as a bigger program, especially with Paul Heyman's involvement. But Meltzer also admitted that having Lesnar lose in 2021 doesn't affect a 2023 program.
Either way, Goldberg appears to be a Brock Lesnar alternative, for better or worse. Lashley would likely have preferred the Lesnar match since he has openly admitted before that it was his main motivation behind returning to WWE.
The window seems to be closing on that match, but at least The All Mighty will have a legend on his résumé if he wins at SummerSlam.
#4. The lack of top babyfaces on RAW made WWE turn to Goldberg
RAW has a big babyface problem right now and Goldberg was the go-to man. Drew McIntyre spent over a year being RAW's top babyface, but after his program with Bobby Lashley, he had to take a step down the card.
It was the best course of action for McIntyre, who is now involved in a lighter non-title feud with Jinder Mahal - one where he can easily gain his popularity back.
Two other babyface options would have been Randy Orton and AJ Styles (who has been a heel for a while now), but both men seemed to be occupied with the tag team division.
SmackDown's roster is undoubtedly more stacked and RAW is lacking in top babyfaces. Keith Lee would have been an option but he was out for nearly half a year. In a way, it's hard to blame WWE for going with Goldberg because they simply had no better option.
He is the best babyface option for Bobby Lashley at SummerSlam 2021.
#3. Goldberg is a big and marketable name for SummerSlam
The most obvious reason why Goldberg returned to RAW is that the company needs a big marketable name for SummerSlam. With the event happening at the Allegiant Stadium, it's set to host over 60,000 people and will be a bigger show than WrestleMania this year.
WrestleMania 37 lacked part-time superstars, but they weren't needed as much for a show with a little over 25,000 fans on each night. There are no restrictions this time around and WWE needs to sell tickets. John Cena certainly sells tickets and so does Goldberg.
As much as the vocal WWE fanbase resents him, there is a reality that must be accepted - he puts eyes on the product and is a legitimate draw who can sell tickets. With WWE's current system, there are no larger-than-life stars this generation, and the chances of there ever being a Goldberg-level star seem slim to none.
WWE doesn't want to rely on superstars to draw, but while they have the option of names like Goldberg and John Cena, they won't hesitate to take it.
#2. Goldberg normally only returns for one-off shows
After Goldberg's run concluded in 2017, there were only a series of one-offs or extremely short programs when he returned to WWE. The longest stretch he had post-2017 was last year when he faced and defeated 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt in Saudi Arabia and was scheduled to face Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 36.
Reigns pulled out of WrestleMania and Braun Strowman replaced him without so much as a word said. Since Goldberg was never going to have an extended run in WWE with the Universal title, Strowman was the beneficiary, defeating the legend clean.
Even his Royal Rumble appearance was a one-off. It's hard to imagine him having a run that lasts longer than SummerSlam unless there is an actual plan in mind from WWE.
While they would prefer to have a top draw like Goldberg as the World Champion, it's not always feasible given his age and demands. He is a big, marketable name that only wrestles twice a year at most.
In 2019, he faced The Undertaker at Super ShowDown and Dolph Ziggler at SummerSlam. In 2020, he faced 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman.
This year, it's Drew McIntyre and Bobby Lashley. 2021 is perhaps Goldberg's best year since 2016-17.
#1. Goldberg will elevate Bobby Lashley at SummerSlam
For all the criticism that Goldberg has received, he has lost clean more times since 2017 than he has throughout his career. In fact, his WrestleMania 33 loss to Brock Lesnar was the first clean defeat of his entire career. Let that sink in.
Since then, The Undertaker, Braun Strowman, and Drew McIntyre have all pinned him clean. Since Bobby Lashley is a heel, there's a chance that WWE may have him win via MVP's help. It isn't a bad option, but Lashley winning is simply the right outcome.
Given that Goldberg has only been returning for two shows a year, it stands to reason that The All Mighty will retain the WWE Championship. We don't expect him to win clean, but he doesn't need to. If he does win clean against Goldberg, it will do wonders for him and his reign as the WWE Champion.
It's the biggest match of Bobby Lashley's career and if he wins, it will be the biggest one as well. There has been no bigger name that Lashley has defeated in his career, so it stands to reason that he could defeat the WWE Hall of Famer Goldberg.
