By John Christopher Aquino
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Hall-of-Famer Goldberg announced his retirement during “Saturday Night’s Main Event”, after failing to capture the World Heavyweight Championship.
The 58-year-old stepped in the ring one last time hoping to dethrone the reigning champion, Gunther.
Goldberg came out to a hometown crowd in Atlanta, with fans all chanting his name before entering the ring, as he was accompanied by his son, Gage.
Goldberg fought valiantly during the match, however, he accidentally “Speared” the referee at one point, which led to Gunther removing his opponent’s knee brace and bashing him with it on the head.
Gunther then goaded and taunted Gage, which gave enough time for Goldberg to recover and hit a “Spear” and “Jackhammer” to the champion.
Another referee dashed to the ring to count the pin, but it was not enough, Gunther kicked out.
Goldberg then succumbed to Gunther’s signature “Sleeper Hold”, ending an illustrious career with a loss.
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Controversy during post-match speech
Following the match, Goldberg was surrounded by family and friends as he addressed the fans.
“First off, I don’t think I have ever lost here in Atlanta, so I do apologise for going out a little subpar.”
“I’ve got over a hundred friends and family that came in from all over the world, and I just got to say I cannot thank you all enough,” Goldberg said.
“The fans in Atlanta have been absolutely wonderful. I love you, I could not have done it without you,” he continued, as the feed was cut short in the main broadcast.
Fans were outraged about the abrupt cut, but WWE released the full speech on YouTube, with the video garnering over one million views.
“And again, treat everybody with respect. This can be a really crappy world if you let it,” Goldberg further said.
“But if you stand up and you put your damn foot down and you lead by example, then it’s going to be one hell of a ride.”
“And I want every one of you to take that ride with me.”
What’s next for Gunther?
On “Monday Night Raw”, Gunther mimicked Goldberg’s catchphrase: “Who’s next?”
He then announced that five competitors would duke it out in a Gauntlet Match to determine his next challenger.
CM Punk eventually won that match and will face Gunther at the two-night “Summerslam” on August 2-3 for the World Heavyweight Championship.
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