Goldberg: I Couldn’t Have Done My Retirement Match Without Triple H. That’s The Truth

Goldberg stepped into the ring one final time at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event on July 12, taking on Gunther for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

Goldberg’s retirement bout was announced in November 2024, and he previously stated that it was a phone call from Triple H that got the ball rolling on the match.

“I couldn’t have done any of that on Saturday night without [Triple H],” said Goldberg in an interview with Justin Barrasso of the Boston Herald. “That’s the truth, one thousand percent.”

Before his retirement match, the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion last wrestled at WWE Elimination Chamber 2022.  Goldberg was battling COVID and didn’t feel he was in the best condition for the match against Reigns, but agreed to do it if Vince McMahon gave him a retirement match, which Vince agreed to according to Goldberg.

“I never thought a Jewish boy from Tulsa, Oklahoma would ever hear his name chanted all over the world,” said Goldberg. “I didn’t do it alone – the help I got was immeasurable. It was a lot more than a one-man show. I had an idea of what was going to work, and I brought it to Eric Bischoff. He had the trust in me to see it through. I never imagined it would be anywhere close to as big as it was. I’m greatly appreciative that so many people were happy with what they saw,” said Goldberg. “It was a long road leading up to it and a lot of sacrifices were made. In some ways it was a success, in other ways it was a failure.”

Goldberg previously expressed his displeasure of how certain aspects of his retirement match played out, including the lack of build and being cut off during his speech. WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event aired on NBC and Peacock, meaning the show had to go off the air at 10 p.m. ET. Goldberg’s full speech was later posted online. You can find his full comments on the matter here.