It’s hard for me to put into words exactly what I felt when I saw Bill Goldberg walk into Survivor Series, spear Brock Lesnar twice and finish him off with a jackhammer. To coin a phrase from the late, great Jack Buck, “I don’t believe what I just saw.”
So many emotions and thoughts ran through my head, as it did for millions of wrestling fans who had waited to see what was billed as the biggest match of the year. Surely, with all of its pre-planning, WWE is going to explain itself tonight. If it doesn’t, there may be a revolt. Just like the situation with Seth Rollins and Triple H, this could be one of those mysteries that is never solved. This could, however, lead to something bigger, with the Royal Rumble two months away, and an even bigger match at Wrestlemania 33 in Orlando.
Those are the only logical reasons I can come up with for what essentially amounted to a squash match with Lesnar taking the fall. If this is how WWE ends this feud, it dropped the medicine ball on millions of unsuspecting fans while it laughs all the way to the bank.
Usually when I’m stuck trying to figure out why wrestling fans get duped month after month after plunking down $9.99, I look to the voice of reason. Mike Mooneyham, an authority on wrestling and a columnist for the Charleston Post and Courier, has been covering this business longer than most. And if he is satisfied with the ending, which I assume is the case after reading his Facebook page, then we all should be OK with it.
I would venture to say even with his training and the fact that he looked in phenomenal shape for a 49-year-old former athlete, it didn’t go the way the McMahons had hoped. Everything came down to the fact Goldberg couldn’t carry a match more than five minutes. I’d also like to think that history will not repeat itself, where both Lesnar and Goldberg drift off into the sunset without issues being resolved. This outcome might have been worse than the original match.
What happens to Goldberg now? Was this really a one-off match? Is there a future match or two booked for 2017? Is the Undertaker involved at some point? What about Sting? And, of course, you can’t leave out Lesnar, who we all know is going to want revenge.
The best thing about something like this, although we hate it, is everyone is talking about professional wrestling. Now more than ever, the red brand and the blue brand will go balls to the wall to try new and innovative things because WWE has the fans’ attention. That means dollar signs for the McMahon dynasty.
WWE has two remaining pay-per-views, one for each brand. I doubt seriously that any kind of issue between Goldberg and Lesnar is resolved before the end of the year. I also don’t foresee the company taking more than Monday night or maybe another week to justify the ending of a really good pay-per-view. Everything fell into place. Stories were told. Feuds begun. Most of all, it was the best show of 2016.
Now comes the hard part of selling Lesnar as the biggest, baddest and most feared individual in this company. Mooneyham said Lesnar can’t beat everybody on the WWE roster. It’s not feasible to think he can run roughshod over wrestlers without a speed bump or two. Only problem is Goldberg winning the way he did wasn’t a speedbump, it was more like a drive-by. Now, the company that wants Lesnar to be the dominant force of the universe has to explain why it took less than two minutes to knock him down to mere mortal status.
I’m still trying to process what I saw on Sunday night.
David Levin
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