Making Sense of Goldberg vs. Lesnar

We waited 12 years for Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg. After their confrontation at Wrestlemania 20, both men went their separate ways. It looked like their paths would never cross again, but fate brought them back together on Sunday.

A 12 year wait lasted 80 seconds.

Goldberg defeated Lesnar at Survivor Series. Check that. Goldberg destroyed Lesnar at Survivor Series. Two spears, one more than even Goldberg himself thought he had in him, and a jackhammer. That’s all it took for the greatest champion in WCW history to defeat a man who had not lost clean in over three years.

Sometimes these things happen in pro wrestling.

Brock Lesnar is the greatest combat athlete of all-time. He’s a fighter, not a wrestler. He doesn’t step into the ring with the intention of pinning people. He steps into the ring with the intention of hurting people. Look what he did to Randy Orton at SummerSlam. Orton is the second biggest star in the last ten years. And Lesnar bloodied him, forcing the referee to stop the match. He was cocky and confident heading into the match. He was going to punish Goldberg in front of his wife and kid. He was going to lay waste to Goldberg like he laid waste to The Undertaker, Roman Reigns, The Wyatt Family, Dean Ambrose, Randy Orton, John Cena, and countless other.

About that.

Goldberg isn’t a wrestler, either. He never has been. Goldberg, like Lesnar, has always been a fighter. But a different kind of fighter. While Lesnar enjoys beating on his opponents until the ref steps in or his opponent can’t take it anymore, Goldberg wants to end things quickly. He doesn’t get paid by the hour. If Goldberg can be in and out in a minute, he’s happy. He doesn’t take any pleasure in seeing his opponent suffer. He takes pleasure in winning. He’s a knockout artist. Everyone knows what’s coming, but they can’t stop it.

Lesnar thought he was getting another pro wrestler. He thought he was getting an old man who hasn’t wrestled in almost 13 years.

The funny thing about Goldberg, is that it doesn’t matter that he’s nearly 50 and that he hasn’t wrestled in over a decade. He had two moves when he was in his prime. They were unstoppable then, and he banked on them being unstoppable now. He didn’t forget how to do those moves. It’s like Bruce Lee said, “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” Goldberg has practiced the spear and the jackhammer well over 10,000 times. They are the two most devastating moves in wrestling history.

While everyone else wanted to expand their arsenal and become more well-rounded, Goldberg stuck to what he’s always done best.

When you put two fighters in the ring, anything can happen. That’s the reality of the situation. WWE promoted this match as, “Fantasy Warfare Becomes Real,” but that was a falsity from the start. This wasn’t a video game. In WWE 2K17, your goal is to have a great match. Your reversals are limited. You have to wear your opponent down. Goldberg vs. Lesnar was never going to be a video game.

WWE knew they were taking a risk with this match. They’ve been building it for 12 years. They centered their entire video game campaign around it. They knew that Lesnar could have gone out there and made Goldberg look silly. That Goldberg could have shown his age and his ring rust and been beaten so bad by Lesnar that WWE could have been sued for even allowing this match to happen. They also knew that Goldberg could put him away quickly. That Goldberg still had the home run in him and that Lesnar was too cocky.

A rematch seems likely, but that’s up to Goldberg. He may be satisfied with this victory. His wife and kid saw him turn in a vintage performance and that might be enough for him. Retire on top, where few get a chance to remain. Even if Goldberg wants to continue, Lesnar seems beneath him at this point. Goldberg may decide to chase history. He held the WCW World Title and US Title at the same time, why wouldn’t he try to do the same thing in WWE? Pursue the World and Universal belts. Become a double champion. Get equity in the company.