10 Wrestlers Who Should Have Stayed Retired

4. Bill Goldberg

Ric Flair
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Bill Goldberg was an unstoppable force in WCW during the late 1990s, to such a degree that even the wretched booking that defined the company's dying days couldn't quieten chants for his name in the years following its closure. That was ultimately the biggest creative crime attached his 2003/04 WWE run - the fans tired of the version of 'Da Man' they were given by the time he exited at WrestleMania XX.

His return to WWE in 2016 was subsequently met with trepidation rather than excitement, but a series with Brock Lesnar changed everything. At long last booked to perfection in his Survivor Series and WrestleMania matches with 'The Beast' his short, sharp, shock of an Undisputed Title reign looked and felt like the perfect way for him to put a bow on his career while exorcising the demons of his first failed run.

Then, frustratingly, on it continued. A disaster against The Undertaker in Saudi Arabia remains the headline, but the Super ShowDown 2019 contest wasn't the only stinker, and fans pounced on the lost magic. Save for a remarkably cool squash win over Dolph Ziggler at SummerSlam later that year as a rehab, his increasingly laboured efforts (and controversial creative decisions such as an easy victory over The Fiend Bray Wyatt ahead of WrestleMania 36) did much to undo the incredible Lesnar one-two punch. 

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett