WWE Hall of Famer Goldberg spoke to a student intern at the Memphis in May barbecue competition about various topics, including the biggest challenge he faced when transitioning from professional football to wrestling.
Goldberg said, “There were two very difficult things for me. First and foremost, it was not to hurt people, because you go from a sport that’s 100% full contact to more of a drama-filled kind of profession, right? And the second thing was kind of blending with the existing wrestlers because I’m coming in from a professional background trying to take the job of one of these guys who have aspired to do that their entire lives. For me, I was born in a football helmet and I’ve wanted to be a football player my entire life. And I transitioned to wrestling because I had to retire from football cuz I got hurt, right? And I had to figure out something first and foremost that I would be passionate about and that I could translate all the things I’ve been doing with my life and my body for the past 20 years prior. And it’s tough to enter a profession as an outsider and there was a lot of pressure on me. But the reality is I came from a sport where I got two guys that are 320 lbs trying to kill me at the same time. So for me, anything beyond the football field was easy.”
On Paul Wight being his biggest obstacle in pro wrestling:
“He was the biggest obstacle because he was literally the biggest obstacle. He was a 525 lb man who ultimately I had to beat in the ring, which meant that I had to pick him up and walk around the ring with 520-something pounds on me. That was tough, but I enjoyed it. And to give you a little behind-the-scenes info, he hated being upside down. Obviously, a man that size, it’s very rare that anybody could do that to him, but he had never been up in that move. I tried to hold him up in the air as long as possible to where he would squeal and I’d let him down. That was the only way that I could have any control over a guy that big. So he, no question, was my largest obstacle.”
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(H/T to 411Mania.com for transcribing the above quotes)
