10 Best WWE Redemption Stories

Goldberg may not have spent enough time on the Vince McMahon payroll to be considered a WWE legend, but having played a pivotal role in the Monday Night Wars, he is most assuredly a wrestling legend.

For a decade, he was also a wrestling legend who departed the business under a cloud. His original WWE run from 2003 to 2004 was largely seen as a disappointment, capped off in the end by his being booed at WrestleMania XX by a crowd of die-hards who resented the fact that he was leaving.

His return last year was regarded by some as a cynical cash-grab, but really, what in wrestling isn't? The fact is that Goldberg confounded all expectations by staying for four months and sharing one of the most exciting feuds in recent memory with Brock Lesnar.

Considering that the former WCW star was regarded for a while as one of the few wrestlers beyond the reach of Vince McMahon's cash, this was a moment none of us saw coming, giving Goldberg the opportunity to make peace with the wrestling world after 12 years of acrimony.