Two weeks ago, Goldberg challenged Kevin Owens to a WWE Universal Title match at Fastlane on Mar. 5. This challenge was known for days as Vince McMahon wants the Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar rematch at WrestleMania to be bigger than their first match at Survivor Series. So what better way to make a match bigger than to add a title to it.
To be honest, I was not a fan of the first Lesnar/Goldberg match back in November. I thought it would be a disaster with two old guys just flailing around in the ring. The WWE saved themselves that embarrassment by having a one-minute match where Goldberg buried Lesnar like his name was Bo Dallas. It was one of those matches that made fans react like “What did I just watch?” The whole point of the match was to make Goldberg, a 50-year old man, look like a monster which no one really believes. The man sweats after just walking down to the ring.
Add in the part-time powerhouse that is Lesnar and the WWE are putting all their eggs in the basket of two older guys who may or may not have any passion for the industry. And now the promotion is dragging down Kevin Owens, who has had one of the worst reigns as a major champion in the history of the WWE, which is not his fault. The writing for Owens, besides his work with Chris Jericho who has free reign with his character, has been awful as he has been made to look like a weak champion. Nothing makes a champion look worse than losing to an old washed up former champion.
I have nothing personal against Bill Goldberg. I was a big fan of Goldberg when he was running through the competition in WCW during the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. His first run in the WWE was a complete disaster, but it was not his fault as Triple H refused to lose to anyone during his reign on Monday Night Raw. And the problem I have with Goldberg in 2017 is not really with Goldberg himself, but with what Goldberg represents.
The WWE are still leaning on part-time bandaids, former stars who still has name recognition to fans and who the WWE still want to bring in. The company has major issues with their current crop of stars (except John Cena and oddly Roman Reigns) as they feel that those men and women who work every night are not big enough stars to carry the company. That is why names like The Rock or Shawn Michaels are always mentioned as returning to the ring. At some point the WWE needs to let the past go and begin to depend on their current stars and begin the process of building real, new stars for the company and not depend on the one-time returns of former big names.
No matter what is said in this article or what the fans say, we will see Goldberg win the Universal Title. We will then see the Universal Title defending at WrestleMania between the champion Goldberg and the challenger Brock Lesnar, and more than likely, Lesnar will win the title...and then play the no-show champion on Monday nights. But hey, there’s nothing like a long Goldberg entrance at a pay-per-view other than like, you know, a real good match in the ring.
