Eighteen Years Ago Today, Goldberg Defeated Hollywood Hogan For The WCW Championship

As a wrestling fan growing up in Atlanta, there have been a few moments that took place in my hometown that helped define me as a fan. This was one of them.

This match means different things to different people. History says that this was one of the turning points for the then WWF to gain advantage as WCW gave away this dream match for free. Fans have another story all together. Listening to the fans in one of the hypest crowds anybody can remember, they didn't care. This was the match, and subsequent loss they were waiting for. The hometown hero Goldberg, undefeated at that time in WCW, had worked his way to the top of the food chain in the company, and Jackhammered Hogan to become the heir apparent to Ted Turner's wrestling company and the biggest rival the WWE has still ever known.

Goldberg, a relative unknown a year eariler, was the hottest commodity in the wrestling world at the time, outside of one, Stone Cold Steve Austin. Goldberg stood in the ring with a persona that had transcended wrestling itself and was not only a professional wrestling icon, but a pop culture staple. Who didn't know who Hulk Hogan was? In that moment though, Goldberg's popularity towered Hogan's and the three-count caused the hot Atlanta crowd to erupt with cheers as their champion stood upon the WCW empire carrying both the United States and World Heavyweight Championships in his hands.

Fans remember growing up remember where they were when Goldberg conquered the seemingly invincible Immortal One. Mind you, this Goldberg hadn't even given one single promo or interview. He had barely spoken and to make somebody with his mystique not even a year in the company, was nothing short of ballsy.

Goldberg's first reign as world champion was a takedown of who's who of the WCW roster, including "Diamond" Dallas Page at Halloween Havoc '98, which is considered as one of the best matches in WCW history. He eventually lost his title at Starrcade that year to Kevin Nash, which led to the Fingerpoke of Doom and the beginning of the end of the once mighty rival company.

When the ratings were in, the cheers and back-patting in the WCW offices had to be thunderous. The quarter hour drew an colossal 6.91 TV rating. That's about three times what Monday Night Raw has been drawing in for the past few years. Here's the problem though, if even half of those people had paid for a pay per view, it would have made the company exponentially more money. They won the battle that night, but eventually lost the war.