Goldberg Unhappy At How WWE Retirement Played Out

WWE Hall of Famer Goldberg has spoken about his recent retirement match and how things didn’t exactly go as he would have liked.

On July 12, the 4-time World Champion, 58, stepped into the ring one last time as he challenged Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship at the Saturday Night’s Main Event special in Atlanta, Georgia.

Although Goldberg hit the big moves in the match and the crowd were behind him, it wasn’t enough as the Hall of Famer lost via referee stoppage after Gunther locked in the sleeper. While many felt the match was a good send-off, Goldberg has seen things differently.

Appearing on The Ariel Helwani Show on July 15, the Hall of Famer first stated that he would have more to say on the matter in 2 weeks, confirming to Helwani that he effectively signed an NDA. The veteran added that he was “pissed off” with multiple aspects of how the final run was handled, noting that he would have preferred to have the match on a Premium Live Event than a TV special:

“Ultimately, to have a little bit more control over the time and the space would have been much more preferred, let’s just put it that way. But to be given that opportunity on such a special show with the lineage of the show, to be able to go against the World Heavyweight Champion, to be able to go against Gunther, again, it was an honor and a privilege to be given that opportunity, and I had to make the most of it.”

Goldberg WWE Retirement Speech Cut

Following the match, Goldberg cut a promo with his family and friends about what his career meant to him, which was cut soon afterwards due to the strict timing of the special, meaning that there was no possibility of an overrun. Later in the interview, the former World Champion spoke about his retirement promo not being broadcast:

“Yeah, absolutely. They cut me off (after) freaking 20 seconds with the microphone in my hand, for God’s sake.”

“I have two weeks before I can really spill the beans and make my feelings known about the entire rundown. From the inception of the idea to its delivery, it was a little less than to be desired, but again, I’m not gonna complain because not many people get that opportunity.”

The Hall of Famer also stated that the match was put together with just 3 weeks’ notice and that he would have done things differently:

“I would have loved for them to announce it in January and have a build up to it and do something I thought was maybe worthy of my career. But let’s just say that they chose to do it with three weeks notice. It is what it is. It’s part of the package.”

“Let’s just say I’m pissed off at the way I went out. Because I put so much into it and I don’t feel as though the effort was reciprocated to put a stamp on what I’ve accomplished. Again, I’m not going to say that I’m not ecstatic with the opportunity that I got.”

“I think it could have been done a little bit differently. That’s all. I’m happy with my performance. I’m happy with the setting, but could it have been better? Absolutely, it can always be better.”