Goldberg's career is still going strong today, after over two decades of dominance. He made a name for himself in WCW, with a legendary undefeated streak of 173 consecutive wins that made him the face of the company. WWE eventually signed Goldberg to their roster in 2003, for a hugely disappointing run. A return in 2016 would see Goldberg finally find success in WWE and the company still brings him back in part-time roles today.
We will look at how things worked out for some of Goldberg's opponents. In some cases, he made wrestlers look fantastic, since he had the star power to pull that off. Unfortunately, there were wrestlers that ended up looking like a joke after working with him as well.
10 Looked Legit: Diamond Dallas Page
The Halloween Havoc 1998 main event between Goldberg and Diamond Dallas Page was one of the best matches in WCW history. Goldberg wasn’t known for having a great in-ring style, but this was arguably the top performance of his career.
Fans viewed DDP as the hero that they wanted to end the streak during this match. The reactions were extremely loud, with Page’s false finishes hooking the fans in. Goldberg having such a competitive match with DDP made Page a credible world title contender, eventually winning the gold the following year.
9 Looked Like A Joke: Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho tried his best to get a match with Goldberg in WCW. His promos would often see him calling out Goldberg in comedic fashion. Despite being a mid-carder, Jericho claimed that Goldberg was afraid of him with each challenge.
Future superstar Jericho's hope was to tangle with Goldberg on a PPV, but the match never happened. Goldberg interrupted a Jericho promo, leading to an attack. The two never had a real blow-off match, though, as Goldberg had no interest in even working with Jericho.
8 Looked Legit: Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash ending Goldberg’s undefeated streak at Starrcade 1998 made him a legitimate main eventer in WCW. It was his first WCW Championship, with Scott Hall interfering and using a taser to stun Goldberg before Nash hit the Powerbomb.
Nash’s win may have been controversial, but the moment itself made him a top name for the rest of WCW’s run. The feud between Goldberg and Nash failed to provide much entertainment, but Nash still benefited immensely from being the first person to defeat Goldberg.
7 Looked Like A Joke: Bam Bam Bigelow
WCW signed the talented Bam Bam Bigelow solely to place him in a feud with Goldberg. His larger size and intimidating presence made Bigelow an ideal opponent for the undefeated superstar. Unfortunately, WCW never built up the feud well.
Bigelow would interfere in Goldberg matches, trying to attack him with security getting in between them. The match never drew much hype as Bam Bam was treated like a secondary star trying to challenge the face of the company. Goldberg eventually destroyed Bigelow with ease in their few matches.
6 Looked Legit: Mark Henry
One of the few wrestlers in WWE to benefit from working with Goldberg in 2003 was Mark Henry. WWE was still trying to figure out how to get Henry over, due to his potential. The story of their match on Raw would see Henry manage to get some offense in on Goldberg, a rare feat.
Henry had the power advantage and used it to take early control of the match. Goldberg eventually overcame the big man, but Henry had a stronger performance against Goldberg than bigger names like Chris Jericho, Christian and Kane.
5 Looked Like A Joke: The Giant
WCW loved pitting The Giant against Goldberg, as their styles meshed so well. Giant was the biggest athlete in WCW that often played a heel role. Goldberg would face off with him a few times throughout his undefeated streak.
Most of the matches would run under 5 minutes, since neither man had much experience. Goldberg would usually win in a few minutes, with fans enjoying the spectacle of The Giant being lifted into the air for Goldberg's Jackhammer finisher.
4 Looked Legit: Booker T
Booker T’s push as the WCW Champion made him one of the last major face stars for the company. The year 2000 would see Booker's hard work and long journey pay off, as he reached the top of the mountain. Booker faced off with a heel Goldberg on Nitro, in a huge match.
The fans would rally behind Booker in his toughest fight yet. A chair shot from Jeff Jarrett would play a role in Booker defeating Goldberg. Even with the interference, Goldberg losing to Booker made fans look at his opponent in a different light, as a credible WCW Champion.
3 Looked Like A Joke: Kevin Owens
Kevin Owens is one of the few wrestlers to have a respected Universal Championship that wasn’t part-time or forcibly vacated. The loss at the end was still a huge disappointment for his momentum, though. Goldberg challenged Owens for the title at Fastlane, just weeks before WrestleMania 33.
Chris Jericho’s music played before the match to distract Owens. Though this was unfair, the referee rang the bell to start the match. Goldberg hit the Spear and Jackhammer to win the match within seconds. Owens saw his long title reign end in the most disappointing match possible.
2 Looked Legit: Scott Steiner
The most fascinating instance of a wrestler looking strong against Goldberg was Scott Steiner at Fall Brawl 2000. Both men surprised the world with a great match, thanks partially to the No DQ stipulation. Steiner used weapons to get an advantage over Goldberg.
This was the first instance of a wrestler beating Goldberg without having another wrestler interfere in some way. Steiner was made into a legitimate main event star after this win, winning the WCW Championship shortly after. Goldberg made Steiner look like a million bucks as he claimed what was arguably the biggest win of his career.
1 Looked Like A Joke: Raven
Raven was one of the better mid-card talents and rising stars in WCW around 1998. His United States Championship triumph gave him arguably the biggest win of his career. Instead of getting a respectable reign to prove himself as a good champion, it ended after one night.
Goldberg defeated Raven the following evening on Nitro to win the title. This match was quite entertaining, but Goldberg destroyed Raven and the rest of his Flock faction. One man beating his entire faction on his own before taking his title was enough to end all of Raven's momentum.