When Bill Goldberg crashed onto WCW television in September, 1997, few could have predicted his success. By the time 1998 rolled around, Goldberg had grown into one of the most popular stars in the entire company. It's therefore fascinating to learn that one of the most remarkable parts of his character's rise nearly didn't happen. Defeating Hugh Morrus on Monday Nitro during his first match, Goldberg racked up an incredible winning streak of 173 victories before being defeated. His first televised loss came at Starrcade 1998 against Kevin Nash, more than a full year after he had first appeared. Every week from his debut right through to the end of 1997, Goldberg was booked to destroy his competition. Most of the matches were short, because of Goldberg's limitations as a pro wrestler. He was relatively new to the industry, so was protected by only featuring in squash-style bouts. Incredibly, there were tentative plans to have Goldberg lose on television or Pay-Per-View. The whole win streak thing was something that just happened, instead of being designed from the outset.
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.
