Goldberg’s Genuineness Is the Appeal Of WWE Comeback

In the pomp and circumstance of Bill Goldberg’s return to the WWE, his heartfelt message to the wrestling world that many – including himself – believed he’d never return to was the real story.

Walking down the ramp at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, on October 17, Goldberg took the time to fist-bump, hug, or simply acknowledge all the kids in the front row. He acknowledged his son Gage, and wife, Wanda – both of whom have never seen him perform inside the ring. He took the microphone and thanked the WWE fans – chanting his name in unison – for the “humble return.”

The 49-year-old noted that aside from “kicking ass,” the thing he missed most about the industry was being “a superhero for kids all around the world.” In the current WWE landscape, John Cena has been that superhero, catering to younger audiences and giving them a positive role model – something Goldberg has admired from afar since he left the industry.

“Absolutely, there has to be guys like that,” Goldberg said to the Inquisitr last year. “Everybody should do that, good, bad or indifferent whether they’re heel, babyface or whatever. We have to be a positive role model for these kids.”

Being a role model, no matter what was happening in wrestling, was always important to Goldberg. He acknowledged that he grew up a fan of Bruiser Brody, a vicious heel (bad guy), known for inflicting as much punishment as possible. Despite being a fan favorite for most of his career, Goldberg did briefly turn bad in WCW, a move that was widely considered a huge flop.

“They turned me [heel] one time in WCW, the night before I wrestled ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan and he just got over surgery and he had cancer,” Goldberg said. “I had to go out and blast him and had a Make-A-Wish girl in the back with cancer. So I come back after the match and she’s in tears; wrestling is wrestling, I get it, the good, bad and evil and trying to storyline people in and out of what they think is going to happen. But I wasn’t going to do that.

“I failed as a wrestler in that I didn’t turn heel but I think I won as a human being. Because if there is one girl or one kid that thinks less of me and doesn’t idolize me because of the fictitious stuff I’ve done in the ring in a negative fashion, I don’t want to risk that. I didn’t reach the level I could have reached but it doesn’t matter to me. That one little girl destroyed me and I told them the next day that we’re going back — immediately.”

It is apropos that Goldberg’s return promo – outside of his comments toward Brock Lesnar – focused on the kids he gets to inspire once again. It focused on the positivity of his return, rather than the negativity of his departure. Since leaving WWE in 2004, ironically after his poorly-received match at WrestleMania 20 against Lesnar, the former WCW World Champion never missed an opportunity to thank fans.

The one instance of Goldberg returning to pro wrestling came last year when he made a few appearances for Legends of Wrestling (LAW). He didn’t wrestle a match – instead spearing former WCW foe Scott Steiner both times. But Goldberg made it clear that he wasn’t back to compete but merely as a man thankful for his supporters.

“I am looking most forward to being able to shake the hands of the people who put me in the position that I am in today,” Goldberg said of his involvement with LAW. “My involvement is to purely give back to the fans because what I do now, whether it be Glory Kickboxing or the TV show stuff, it doesn’t get me the opportunity as much as I really want to thank everybody who put me on this pedestal.”

After finishing his return promo, Goldberg brought his son from his seat to ringside, hoisted him above his head and gave him a memory of a lifetime. He wasn’t done there, he made one final lap around ringside, interacting with all the young fans. It was the memories that fans remember, not who had the longer title reign or how many matches they won in row.

Even Goldberg’s former WCW boss, Eric Bischoff, chimed in on his return. Speaking on his podcast Bischoff On Wrestling, he explained to fans that the Goldberg people saw in his return is “the real Bill Goldberg.”

“That’s one of the things about Bill Goldberg is that he is a very raw, real, emotional, intense person. There’s no acting going on there. That’s really who he is… You saw the tears. You saw his eyes well up. It was just such a refreshing thing to see and I am just happy for Bill. I am happy for wrestling fans who got a chance to be a part of it. I am really excited to see where it goes. Thank you, Bill Goldberg.”

It’s a stark change just a year ago when Goldberg said the professional wrestling industry “stinks” and that if he ever returned to wrestling, he’d do it without WWE or any other wrestling company. But if people like Bret “The Hitman” Hart, The Ultimate Warrior, Sting, and Bruno Sammartino made up with WWE, Goldberg was no exception.

But as he prepares to face Lesnar at Survivor Series on November 20 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Goldberg has his work cut out for him. He’s facing a possibly hostile Canadian audience, one that still hasn’t forgiven him for the errant kick that he delivered to Hart, ending his career. He’s also facing Lesnar, the man he faced the last time he laced his boots for a match.

It is ICON vs. ICON at #SurvivorSeries when @Goldberg goes one-on-one with @BrockLesnar! #FantasyWarfareJustGotReal @WWEgames pic.twitter.com/NCCCQrxpIt

— WWE (@WWE) November 1, 2016

In recent interviews, Goldberg has made it clear that he doesn’t care if he’s booed or if it’s his final match. He’s not looking past November 20, but is open to more work with WWE in the future and much like he told Inquisitr last year, he’s still trying to win over a huge part of the audience.

“I’m still trying to convince them that [I deserved my spot],” he said. “The reality is when you sign on with a wrestling company, your success in many ways is predicated upon how many people you put in the seats.

“And I may have felt guilty about not putting 25 years in the business, jumping off buildings for five bucks just to get my shot, but the reality is I gave it everything I had, 150 percent every single time I put the boots on.

“So don’t hold it against me that it wasn’t a dream of mine to be a professional wrestler – when I took it as a dream, I gave it my all.”