Bill Goldberg Recalls Build-Up To ‘WrestleMania 33,’ Teases New Book Based On His Wrestling Comeback

Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar’s match at WrestleMania 33 was, in the eyes of many, an improvement over their much-criticized first match at WrestleMania XX in 2004. That’s saying something, as Goldberg was already 50-years-old at the time of his WWE comeback and wrestling for the first time in over a decade. And in a new interview, Goldberg opened up about how things were different with Lesnar 13 years after their WrestleMania XX debacle and how it was working with one of the biggest names in both professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.

Speaking to Wrestling Inc.’s Raj Giri, Bill Goldberg said his final match with Brock Lesnar was a difficult one, considering he had a lot to prove to fans who felt he was too old and too rusty to put on a quality match. Prior to WrestleMania 33, Goldberg beat Lesnar in 86 seconds at last year’s Survivor Series, then won the Universal Championship from Kevin Owens at this year’s Fastlane, beating “KO” in just 22 seconds. These matches, as the Inquisitr previously reported, were both unpopular with many fans, especially the latter match, which saw a wrestler best-known for his work in the ’90s beat a 32-year-old, present-day main eventer.

As such, Bill Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar at ‘Mania got much better reviews, and Goldberg wanted to make sure of that ahead of that Universal Championship match, which Lesnar won.

“It was a very tense build-up and everything; 13 years far removed from the business, 13 years removed from the match, and the way we had went out. At the same time it was different circumstances, but in everyone’s eye it was a negative, self included so to be able to be able to have an opportunity to put something positive ahead so people don’t dwell on that the rest of their lives and get a little retribution and go out and show everyone that I can still do it.”

In the lead-up to Bill Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar at ‘Mania, Goldberg got more flak from fans for commenting on Edge and Christian’s Pod of Awesomeness that he was “miserable” in his WWE return. But as seen in quotes from that podcast appearance printed by Fox News, he was mainly referring to his physical state and not his state of mind upon returning to a company he left on bad terms back in 2004.

Goldberg reiterated this in his Wrestling Inc. interview, saying that the physical aspect of his comeback was very taxing indeed, largely due to his age and long absence from the wrestling ring, stressing that he nonetheless felt humbled to be given a second chance by WWE.

@Goldberg steps into the #SugarFactoryLV Ring on Saturday, May 20th from 2-5pm! For reservations, please call 702-685-0483. pic.twitter.com/ve82YCaOFD

— SUGAR FACTORY (@SugarFactory) May 17, 2017

One reason why Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar had a better match than most had anticipated at WrestleMania 33 was the chemistry both men had in the ring. Goldberg would expound on this, “putting over” his onscreen enemy as one of his best friends in real life.

“He has done a lot of things in his life and is the utmost professional. That guy can work his a** off. Whether we shell two moves or 200 moves, whether it’s the psychology or the simple art of selling, Brock Lesnar is one of the best that has ever been out there.”

While Goldberg did spend a lot of time discussing his WWE comeback and his match against Lesnar, one interesting thing he mentioned to Wrestling Inc. was his admission that he’s currently working on a book based on his return to the company, as there was “a lot packed (into)” that short, six-month comeback run. He chose not to go into detail about the book but stressed that he feels like the “luckiest guy in the world,” despite all the physical sacrifices he had to make in the run-up to WrestleMania 33.

Life does seem to be good for Bill Goldberg after what turned out to be a successful program with Brock Lesnar. And while no one knows for sure if or when he’ll be back in a WWE ring again, his book should be something to look forward to in the future.

[Featured Image by WWE]