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The following match is scheduled for one fall. The match is held in Indianapolis, Indiana and is a Sweet 16 matchup. All seeds represent overall tournament seeding.
https://steelcageforums.com/tourney/pics/brethart.jpg https://steelcageforums.com/tourney/pics/goldberg.jpg #7 Bret Hart vs. #10 Goldberg
The discussion period will last for two days, followed by two days for voting. You may vote for whomever you feel deserves to win this match. Please post your reasons below if you wish.
Kinda hard to call Goldberg a flash in the pan when he repeated his success not too long ago, eh?
The funny thing here is I'm willing to bet there are more people out there who don't watch wrestling who know Goldberg and not Bret Hart. He left a lasting impact at a time wrestling was at its most impactful. He really gets sold short among the "smart fans" who just know Bret Hart is a better wrestler. Well in this instance I happen to agree with them here. Many performers attribute their interest in wrestling to Bret Hart. He may not have invented technical wrestling or anything, but he definitely made it a popular showcase in recent memory. That on top of Goldberg's greatest weakness being a crafty heel and that was what Bret Hart could be. Steel plate, my dudes.
Goldberg had an ass-kicking career, but people that imitate Hart don't get jeered for it.
Vote Bret.
Here's that age old problem that we always face in these tournaments. Do we vote for the guy who had the lasting impact and the better legacy or the guy who we know kayfabe wise would probably win?
Hart's legacy is among the all time greats. The guy was as smooth as silk in the ring. He really did earn the nickname the Excellence of Execution. He wasn't one of the best on the stick but I think everyone will agree that he was better than his opponent here. The only things that I can see hurting him in this match up are the kayfabe argument and the ones that will bring up his drawing ability. Hart wasn't a particularly strong draw. As once WWE started putting him at the helm as the face of the New Generation, they started to lose business. Goldberg, on the other hand, could arguably be called the best draw or second best draw in one of pro wrestling's most profitable years which was 1998.
Goldberg was as over as anyone has ever been in the business and he put asses in seats. He recently just came back and once again showed that he could still put asses in seats. Then there's the kayfabe of it all, which actually can go Hart's way and not because he'd have to be the smart heel either, but because of his history. Hart actually has a relatively good record when going up against monster types. He's taken WWF titles off the likes of Yokozuna(Monster) and Diesel(Monster). I'm not going to weigh their encounters with one another in WCW because, IMO, when they finally got to one another each were out of their primes.
I'd have to go with Hart here. He's just good enough and smart enough inside the ring to take down the invincible Goldberg.
Goldberg ended Bret Hart's career and he will do so again in this tournament. Let's be real. Bret wasn't as big of a deal as people make him out to be. One of the greatest in ring workers of all time? Definitely yes. Maybe even the best. But he wasn't that big of a draw. Bret started his main event run in 1992. He didn't really break out until he got his big WM win and match at WM 10. That's when Bret became a true main eventer. A real superstar. But Vince was already looking for replacements. Bret didn't headline WM 11. Bret wasn't the focus of WM 12 nor the focus of WM 13. Bret was never really the guy and Vince never viewed Bret as the guy. Bret became an actual draw after he turned heel in 1997. But that didn't last long and then Bret was a shell of his former self in WCW. And by the time he retired he already was 42. So it's not like he was going to do anything more after that.
Goldberg on the other hand managed to rise at the top in a company that at the time had the biggest egos and some of the biggest superstars of all time in the locker room. He became the guy in WCW. He then became the guy on RAW, even though he was there for a year and when he returned in 2016, against everyone's expectations, he became the hottest act WWE had heading into WM 33. Goldberg won the WCW Championship in 1998. Adding Goldberg's years (1998-2001, 2003-2004, 2016-2017) we get 4,5 years on top. Well, from 1992 to 1997 which was Bret's time on top, it's also around 5 years. Goldberg definately drew more money in that period than what Bret did.
I think Goldberg lost something like 9 matches in his entire career. Three of which were against Bret Hart. Sometimes people just 'have your number' and for Goldberg, that was Bret Hart. Hart had longevity, more accolades and a lot more of a lasting impact. Not to mention the fact he was a much better in ring worker. The only streak that's of any relevance here is the one that says Bret Hart is 3-0 against Goldberg.