Goldberg Accused of Faking WWE Retirement Drama to Set Up AEW Debut

Goldberg recently went off on how WWE handled his retirement match and now it appears some believe Goldberg’s complaints could be a work for Goldberg to debut in AEW.

While speaking on Busted Open Radio, Ariel Helwani admitted he was surprised by Goldberg’s negative attitude, especially just days after his big retirement match. Helwani said he had expected the conversation to go in a more positive direction.

Helwani explained that he thought Goldberg might have been slightly annoyed that his post-match interview got cut off, but didn’t expect that frustration to affect the whole interview. He did Goldberg’s farewell presentation, especially the entrance with past figures like Doug Dellinger and Josh Barnett, calling it a “great touch.”

“I will be 1,000% honest with you. I was not expecting that,” Helwani said. “I got the sense maybe that because the post-match interview got cut off, that maybe he was a little perturbed. But I didn’t think that that would cloud the entire thing, because I do agree with you, it’s very rare… to get an opportunity like that.” Helwani praised the presentation of Goldberg’s sendoff, citing the walkout with figures from his past like Doug Dellinger and Josh Barnett as an “amazing touch.”

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Despite how things looked from the outside, Helwani stood up for Goldberg’s right to feel however he does. He shared a personal story about how he also felt let down at his dream job with ESPN, saying sometimes people just have different expectations. Helwani also mentioned that Goldberg had recently lost his father-in-law, which could be affecting his emotions.

“I sort of, I get it,” Helwani explained, comparing it to his own “awful experience” at his dream job with ESPN. “To us, we could sit around and be like, ‘you know why you got it? Go shut up’… And he’s like, ‘No, I had other plans.’… I have a hard time telling someone how he should feel. He mentioned his father-in-law passed away a week ago,” he said. “Maybe he’s still dealing with that… he’s going through some stuff and I have a hard time faulting him for feeling that way.”

Helwani then wondered if Goldberg’s attitude could even be part of a storyline. He said it crossed his mind that maybe Goldberg was working the audience and might show up somewhere like AEW soon, using the negative comments as part of a larger story.

“I will say at one point I was like, ‘Is he working me right now? Is this like, part of the story that he’s upset?’” Helwani wondered aloud. “Maybe he does pop up in two weeks on AEW and say ‘these guys screwed me’ and all that stuff, you know, where workers work, so who knows? I’m not putting that one past them either.”

Goldberg also previously considered going to AEW only for Sting’s retirement match. Whether Goldberg is truly frustrated or simply trying to make his way into AEW somehow, he definitely got fans talking so we’ll have to see what Goldberg does next.

Do you think Goldberg’s comments are a shoot or part of a work for a major AEW surprise? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!