In an interview with Randy Zellea of Back Sports Page, former WWE and WCW superstar Bill Goldberg discussed locker room resentment for his success in a short time, the differences between working with the WWE and working with WCW, Steve Austin and more.
Highlights of the interview are below:
On whether there was resentment for the success he reached in a short time: “I still think there is. No doubt about it. I will never forget driving with Kevin Nash and Raven riding with us and Raven jumped in the front seat and he said ‘Man you have to pay your dues’ I was like dude I paid my dues in the NFL man. I worked my a** off and its’ not about tenure of being on the road. It’s not my fault that you came up the way you did. We all have positions and I felt bad about mine from time to time but it didn’t mean I didn’t work less or any harder then the next guy. I believe my dues were already paid before I got there. The fact that I wasn’t on my high horse or calling my own shots made me a little different from others. From the beginning all the way to the end, 99% of the time I would do anything anybody had asked of me within the wrestling business. The reason for that is they knew more about it then I did. I’m just a guy who was given the opportunity to try and compete to do better then the next guy. I’m not a creative guy. As long as things are logical and I protect my character then I would do it. That’s truly the most important thing. If I could put a**** in a seat and help put money in peoples pocket then I don’t think it matters if it was on the road for 15 years. I think it is towards me for that. Look at Brock right now with WWE. He is in and out and the reality of it is he has a great agent that got him a great deal. There is resentment towards him for it because of the deal they cut. I don’t blame the talent because of the deal that they made because at the end of the day it’s a business and there is money to be made. Who are a bigger draw right now then Brock Lesnar? Obviously there is John Cena but he is been there for a long time already. Hulk Hogan taught me that sometimes less is more. You may not be around as much but that would add to your drawing power.”
On the differences between working with WWE and working with WCW: “Oh, man, like night and day. You could write a book on the differences between the two companies. The WWE is an entity that is much more professional because of its tenure and experience; they have been through it all. It is an empire. Like I said before WCW was run a little crazy as the inmates ran the asylum but that also made it fun at times. WWE was everything I thought it would be and I don’t mean that in a positive way. There are issues that people are going to have on any given profession and wrestling is filled with backstage drama. I thought there was a bit too much there. There was enough drama for me not to want to be there.”
On working with Steve Austin: “Oh man, Here is a guy that lives, breathes eats the business. Steve is the best at what he does and has such a passion for it. He is an Icon and to be around him for such a short capacity that I was, I learned a lot from the guy and I looked up to him. The fact that we never got to collide in the ring was a travesty if you ask me. With his neck surgery and stuff like that I certainly wouldn’t want the guy to get hurt. It’s a shame we never met in the ring but I learned a lot from him in a short amount of time. He is a good guy in the business and that says a lot.”
The interview is available in full at this link.
