The WCW Conspiracy Iceberg EXPLAINED!
8. Steven Regal Was Ordered By Mysterious Forces To Make Goldberg Look Bad
On February 9, 1998, Goldberg defeated Steven Regal in a staggeringly awkward match - one of the most excruciating of all-time, in fact. It’s difficult to conceive of a more stark contrast in style, ability, and experience. Goldberg could mow people down, lift them up, and throw them down. That was literally it. He did not know his a*sehole from his collar-and-elbow. Regal meanwhile was a master scientist who specialised in intricate, holds-based fare - provided he was matched with somebody who he could twist into an agonising shape. Goldberg was not that man.
Regal might as well have been in there with a particularly obdurate boulder. Goldberg actually executed a neat leg clutch takedown at one point, but mostly, he was as lost as a three year-old attempting to navigate the London Underground. He literally stood still at various points, as Regal tried to go for his 54th hammerlock before simply giving up. Regal might have swatted Goldberg in the eye for real. He might have kicked him where he shouldn’t - or Goldberg might have moved his back at the wrong time. It was too much of a mess to work out. So what happened?
The more conspiratorial among you hold two theories.
Regal, a proud pro wrestler, wanted to make Goldberg look bad because he felt he didn’t deserve the spot. Goldberg himself reckons a sense of resentment fuelled Regal’s performance.
Alternatively, some contend that certain dark forces - i.e. major, threatened stars - had a word with Regal. Something had to have happened. Can you really believe that WCW management sent Goldberg into the ring under the belief that he could go hold-for-hold with Steven Regal in an intricate grappling match?
Yes, because WCW was institutionally stupid. It’s actually borderline miraculous that WCW got almost a full year out of Goldberg before botching his career entirely.
Regal maintains (and always has) that he was asked to do six competitive minutes with Goldberg, and as a pro, he did it, and that Goldberg simply froze. “I can’t hit myself. There’s only so much I can do.”