Latest Update on Goldberg’s Potential Opponent as He Nears WWE in-Ring Retirement: Reports

The big man from Tulsa and a pioneer in the world of pro wrestling will set foot inside a WWE ring for the last time this summer. He's none other than Goldberg.

Latest Update on Goldberg’s Potential Opponent as He Nears WWE in-Ring Retirement: Reports

Goldberg [via- ITR]

Recently, it was reported by WrestleVotes that Goldberg‘s name was brought up within WWE over the last week, indicating that his return is near. Shortly afterwards, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful dispensed a story claiming that Da Man had been long discussed for a match against Gunther. It’s been rumored since last October, when the two had a confrontation at Bad Blood.

The WCW stalwart had already hit the ring last month after undergoing stem cell treatment. He’s due for shoulder surgery, which he plans on getting done once his wrestling retirement is out of the way. In a previous interview with Chris Van Vliet, the 58-year-old revealed that he competed with a torn rotator cuff for the majority of his second run with WWE.

Now that it’s very much in the reckoning that Gunther could be Goldberg’s final opponent, it’d be interesting to see how it goes. The Icon enjoyed a constant main event push and title opportunities when Vince McMahon was at the helm. But by the time the 79-year-old executive was ousted in June 2022, the former Universal Champion’s WWE contract had already expired.

Paul Levesque, aka Triple H, superseded his father-in-law, and it took a while for him to reconcile with Goldberg, who’d been upset with McMahon not fulfilling his promise of giving him a proper send-off match. The Game approached the WCW legend, and the two eventually got on working terms. That’s how Goldberg’s heated segment with The Ring General at Bad Blood came about.

Goldberg’s rumored opponent Gunther to take on Pat McAfee at Backlash

This Saturday, Gunther will go one-on-one with Pat McAfee. It wasn’t the expected route for the Austrian after that humiliating loss to Jey Uso at WrestleMania 41. However, on the subsequent episode of Raw, McAfee couldn’t stand The Ring General’s bullying of Michael Cole. The former Indianapolis Colts punter took the gauntlet to the 37-year-old, but the latter turned the tide on the Raw commentator.

Gunther and Pat McAfee
Gunther and Pat McAfee (via WWE)

Gunther was even fined by GM Adam Pearce, but McAfee’s reluctance to let the Austrian go without a fight led to their singles match at Backlash. This past Monday on Raw, both combatants were face-to-face. Some verbal shots were fired from both ends, and the promo battle sold a lot of cynics on the point of their beef. But who has the edge going into the weekend? McAfee will certainly enter St. Louis as a heavy underdog.

The Boomstick hasn’t wrestled a WWE match since WrestleMania 39. He’s being made fun of by the netizens, but the College GameDay host might surprise a lot of people with his overall performance. Meanwhile, on Gunther, there’s some added pressure of not only getting back to winning ways but also precluding someone like McAfee from stunning him.

Could Goldberg cost Gunther at Backlash this weekend?

For a former World Heavyweight Champion like Gunther, it might be detrimental for him to fall to Pat McAfee. However, if that’s indeed the plan, WWE could have Goldberg interfere in their match at Backlash. The former defensive tackle for the Falcons was belittled in front of his family by The Ring General the last time they met.

Gunther and Goldberg
Gunther and Goldberg [via- WWE]

Who knows if Goldberg is just waiting for the right moment to pounce on the erstwhile Walter? As of now, there’s no specified date for Da Man’s WWE return. But it’s nearing. It’d also be interesting to see how Goldberg turns up physically for his wrestling swansong.

He was criticized for his previous stint, where, at times, the Tulsa native allegedly got reckless with his opponents. In one of the most infamous squashes in recent years, The Icon destroyed Dolph Ziggler at SummerSlam in 2019. The Showoff exposed the truth behind the match: it was something that the WWE Hall of Famer had asked for.

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