The man who once went 173-0 in WCW and unseated the then-mega heel “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan in July 1998 to win his first world title stepped into the ring for the last time on Saturday. He’s none other than Bill Goldberg. But going toe-to-toe with Gunther was never going to be a cakewalk for The Icon. And, as it turned out, the veteran’s physically regressing body couldn’t hold up for more than 14-odd minutes.
The hometown hero passed out to a sleeper hold from Gunther, who can now boast of retiring the former WCW Champion after a nearly three-decade-long career. Contrary to what fans expected, the match was highly competitive. It wasn’t one of those infamous three-minute outings from Goldberg. He turned it up to eleven despite a strapped left knee. Gunther had identified the Achilles’ heel early and continued to work on it throughout.
During the closing moments, Da Man inadvertently speared referee Charles Robinson after The Ring General moved out of harm’s way. Growing frustrated with Goldberg’s tenacity, the former Imperium leader decided to confront the WWE Hall of Famer’s son, Gage, at the ringside. The erstwhile Walter shoved Gage to the other side of the barricade, but Gage responded with killer instinct and began trading blows with Gunther.
However, the on-site security personnel held Gage back. Back in the ring, Goldberg finally struck his rival with one final spear and a Jackhammer. A new referee rushed in to count, but Gunther kicked out. The Vienna-born wrestler eventually locked the Tulsa native in a sleeper hold to retain his World Heavyweight Championship.
NBC cut Goldberg’s speech off at Saturday Night’s Main Event
In a move being criticized all over social media, Goldberg’s post-match speech at Saturday Night’s Main Event was cut due to alleged time constraints on NBC. The former Universal Champion was on-air for less than a minute, during which he apologized to the people of Atlanta for his first-ever loss in that city.
The former defensive tackle for the Falcons mentioned that over a hundred of his friends and family members were present to witness his WWE farewell live in person. Goldberg finally thanked everyone who made it to Saturday Night’s Main Event and said he couldn’t have done it without them.
Last night was his first wrestling match since losing to Roman Reigns in February 2022. Moreover, in a fascinating stat, the submission loss to Gunther was only Goldberg’s fifth of its kind in his entire career. The long-overdue WWE swansong of Da Man is now finally in the books.