"There was the fear" – WWE Hall of Famer opens up on the backstage details behind Goldberg's championship win (Exclusive)
WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page feels Goldberg won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on Nitro because WWE was coming for WCW in the ratings war.
On July 6, 1998, the undefeated superstar beat Hulk Hogan to win the WCW World Championship at Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The WCW veteran downed Hogan with a Spear and Jackhammer to claim the victory.
Speaking on the Bro Show this week, DDP said WWE was quickly gaining ground in the ratings in mid-1998, and this prompted WCW to put the belt on Bill on an episode of Nitro. Page mentioned he felt it was rushed and the title change should've happened on a pay-per-view:
"Oh absolutely. I didn't understand it being on that. But again, there was the fear that here come Vince and the WWF. They were coming. It wasn't like we were whooping their as**s every week dramatically, like we did in '97 and early '98. No. You could feel it coming." (from 19:09 onwards)
You can watch the full episode here:
Goldberg had a 173-0 winning streak in WCW
Goldberg had the "it factor" when he debuted in WCW. The Atlanta-based rookie smashed through opponents one by one and quickly got over with fans.
"The end of the streak had to be done, but did it have to be done on my birthday?!" - @Goldberg
#WWETheBump https://t.co/brpi3M9Fwo
During this time, he also won the United States Championship from Raven. He finally got his world championship match against Hulk Hogan in July 1998, where he beat the Hulkster to win the title.
The WWE Hall of Famer's streak finally came to an end at Starrcade 1998 when he lost to Kevin Nash. Scott Hall disguised himself as a security guard and made a run-in. In the chaos that followed, Hall tased Goldberg, allowing Nash to pick up the tainted win and end the streak.
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