Who should have been the top babyface to carry WCW in 1998?

[bmfjules]

So many options here, as so many guys were red hot at different times, with most if not all of them being either cooled down or totally ruined somewhere along the way.

[fw91]

Goldberg

[Celexa Bliss 54]

It was Sting's time. Goldberg should have been being groomed to be the face who would eventually unseat heel Champion Bret Hart during summer 1999.

[corndog]

I think Goldberg was the right choice, he was over and could draw proven by 40,000 going to the Georgia Dome on a short notice to see him win the belt. At the time it seemed like Sting, but knowing what we do now about his personal issues, it's better he wasn't the top guy.

I would say DDP was another good choice, people loved him and his rise felt very organic. The problem with WCW is they could get people over, create storylines, but never knew the endgame and how to finish them. The way Goldberg dropped the belt was stupid, the way DDP won the championship in '99(which should have been a huge moment in WCW) was even worse.

[David-Arquette was in WCW 2000]

Sting should have won at Starrcade 97, helped to disband the nWo throughout 98 and then dropped the belt to Goldberg at 98's Starrcade.

[wrestlingrecap]

Sting had his run from 90 through 97. Goldberg should have been the dominating character ala Hogan, from 98 onward.

[Jedi-El of Tomorrow]

Oct 29, 2018 20:37:06 GMT -5 corndog said:

I think Goldberg was the right choice, he was over and could draw proven by 40,000 going to the Georgia Dome on a short notice to see him win the belt. At the time it seemed like Sting, but knowing what we do now about his personal issues, it's better he wasn't the top guy.

I would say DDP was another good choice, people loved him and his rise felt very organic. The problem with WCW is they could get people over, create storylines, but never knew the endgame and how to finish them. The way Goldberg dropped the belt was stupid, the way DDP won the championship in '99(which should have been a huge moment in WCW) was even worse.

DDP should have won it at Halloween Havoc. Just have the Jackhammer into the Diamond Cutter be the end. After that you build a storyline where Goldberg is working to make sure it doesn't happen again in their rematch.

[Deleted]

Goldberg

[chazraps]

Goldberg in 1998 was as over as anyone in wrestling has ever been over. He should have been the undisputed face going forward.

Oct 29, 2018 23:43:30 GMT -5 Jedi-El of Tomorrow said:

Oct 29, 2018 20:37:06 GMT -5 corndog said:

I think Goldberg was the right choice, he was over and could draw proven by 40,000 going to the Georgia Dome on a short notice to see him win the belt. At the time it seemed like Sting, but knowing what we do now about his personal issues, it's better he wasn't the top guy.

I would say DDP was another good choice, people loved him and his rise felt very organic. The problem with WCW is they could get people over, create storylines, but never knew the endgame and how to finish them. The way Goldberg dropped the belt was stupid, the way DDP won the championship in '99(which should have been a huge moment in WCW) was even worse.

DDP should have won it at Halloween Havoc. Just have the Jackhammer into the Diamond Cutter be the end. After that you build a storyline where Goldberg is working to make sure it doesn't happen again in their rematch.

Then have Goldberg vs DDP at Starrcade 98 for the belt and win it back. It writes itself.

[BRAINFADE]

Goldberg. The undefeated streak should have lasted well in to 99.

[sfvega]

After they botched Sting's long push at Starrcade, 98 was Goldberg's time 100%. I was never a fan, but you gotta give it to him. He was the guy the fans wanted. DDP was up there, Nash was red hot the 2nd half of the year, Bret could have been booked way better, but Goldberg is the clear choice.

[bmfjules]

If the whole deal with the slow fast count at Starrcade did not happen (and especially if they had gotten one of the Hebners like planned) then Bret's first feud and match in 98 should be with Hogan - and not with Flair, who is another overlooked hot babyface in 98 after crusading against Bischoff.

Sting at some point needs to get screwed out of the title in epic fashion to get the belt back on Hogan. This puts Sting on the shelf for a bit, and opens up the main event for Golberg who should beat Hogan at Starrcade 98 for the belt.

In the interim, slowly turn Bret heel after the match with Hogan but DO NOT put him in the NWO - let him reform a WCW version of the Hart Foundation with Bulldog, Anvil as goons and Jericho and Benoit as the workers (Have Benoit turn on the Horsemen for the Flair vs. Bret feud, and then re-build the Horsemen all new guys (I'd make Fit Finlay the new Arn Anderson, and Barry Windham can rejoin with his brother Kendall--Dean Malenko goes his own way and goes back to the cruiserweights, and Mongo goes back to announcing duties.)

Sometime in the Summer, give DDP a quick cup of coffee with the belt like they did with Luger in 1997. Just a feelgood moment for Page and then of course, Hogan steals it back, and Page is taken out, setting up Goldberg as the saving grace of WCW. (In this scenario, the NWO wolf pac is absolutely not a thing...)

When Sting returns, he isn't the Franchise, but more in the Undertaker role. Heel Bret can have a program with him and DDP at some point while Goldberg spends 99 running through and dismantling the NWO piece by piece, which should cease to exist by Starrcade 99.

[thegame415]

Goldberg always.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Sting, the Starrcade match should've gone differently and the nWo should've died that night.

My problem with Goldberg was that if he needed to go long, he was exposed.

[Nosnorb]

Super Calo.

[efarns]

Goldberg

Sting was already established and should have stayed in an Undertaker kind of special attraction slot.

[bmfjules]

Oct 30, 2018 12:36:34 GMT -5 OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 said:

Sting, the Starrcade match should've gone differently and the nWo should've died that night.

My problem with Goldberg was that if he needed to go long, he was exposed.

I agree with you, but the simple solution to this is to just not go long, unless you have him in there with somebody that he has proven ability to work a good match with based on house show evidence.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Oct 31, 2018 13:23:38 GMT -5 bmfjules said:

Oct 30, 2018 12:36:34 GMT -5 OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 said:

Sting, the Starrcade match should've gone differently and the nWo should've died that night.

My problem with Goldberg was that if he needed to go long, he was exposed.

I agree with you, but the simple solution to this is to just not go long, unless you have him in there with somebody that he has proven ability to work a good match with based on house show evidence.

That’s the problem. Can you main event several ppvs with squashes? In the era before part timers?

Bruce Prichard said that Vince refused to do squash matches when Goldberg signed with them the first time. He said that Bill would love the business and the professional environment of the wwe where they had real agents. Then after two weeks, Vince finally understood why Goldberg could only squash people for up to three minutes, because if it went longer it killed the show.

Bill Goldberg was barely trained on probably the worst wrestling school of all time, the wcw power plant. Sarge Parker was such a joke of a trainer that he didn’t even bothered on teaching psychology, that’s why the f***ing Natural Born Thrillers we’re shipped to OVW so they could be trained again.

In the marquee it still says wrestling. I can’t see Goldberg squashing people every month and the people buying it. The only reason his second wwe run worked, was because he barely appeared on tv and it was a short term program. That would’ve never worked in wcw where they needed him on a weekly basis.

[Hit Girl]

Goldberg's streak should only have been broken by another Goldberg. A second fully home grown star who could have benefitted from the rub gained by ending it.

[Deleted]

Ring work aside, they had lightning in a bottle with Goldberg.

A strong, believable badass babyface. He should have run with that ball well into 99. Yes, the undefeated streak had to end eventually, but there were much better ways to do it. Countout, DQ, whatever, but getting Tasered by Scott Hall was... not the way to do it.