Background: Earlier in the night, WCW United States champion and the rightful number one contender to the WCW World Heavyweight champion Hollywood Hogan, Goldberg earned his inevitable title match for later in the show by defeating Scott Hall.
Monday Nitro
Atlanta, GA
July 6, 1998
Hollywood Hogan vs. Goldberg
Some sloppy grappling kicked this one off as Hogan tried to dominate his challenger, but Goldberg didn’t care that he was getting his head grabbed as he simply muscled him around the ring. Making a big mistake was testing the strength of Goldberg as Hogan was brought to his knees as the fans cheered in approval. Opting to brawl after making it to the ropes, Hogan illegally whipped Goldberg with that weight belt he started wearing during his New World Order days. As the referee reprimanded Hogan, Goldberg grabbed the belt. Instead of giving the champion a taste of his own medicine, the United States champion pitched it to the side with the intent of beating Hogan like a man. But Hollywood had other thoughts in mind as he low blowed Goldberg in hopes of turning this match around. Goldberg quickly recovered while avoiding elbow drops before landing a clothesline that allowed Hogan to leave the ring and regain his belt. They locked up after Hogan caught his breath. Goldberg didn’t expect Hogan to knee him and pitch him to the floor for two chair shots. The referee was being incredibly lenient as Hogan used those chair shots to hit not one, but three leg drops … for a near fall!
Karl Malone and Diamond Dallas Page came out to stop the impending interference of Curt Hennig, distracting Hogan long enough for Goldberg to recover. When Hollywood turned around, Goldberg ran through him with the Spear. Motioning to the crowd was the challenger as he hooked Hogan for the Jackhammer. The fans were roaring as Goldberg drove Hogan into the canvas … for the three count! New champion!
Winner: Goldberg (8:11)
Is It A Classic: Was this a stereotypical classic match? No way. Was it a memorable moment in front of an explosive crowd? Very much so. This was a true paradigm-shifting moment that felt like the wrestling world changed then and even, to a certain extent, now.
