December 27, 2018 marks the 20th anniversary of Bill Goldberg’s first loss in pro wrestling. The match in question took place at WCW Starrcade on December 27, 1998. Goldberg was the WCW champion and was on top of the industry at that time, but the company had other plans for him.
Those plans included booking his first defeat in the squared circle. Kevin Nash was the man that broke Goldberg’s streak that night, ending the record at 173-0. While those numbers were likely inflated by WCW in an effort to build the aura around Goldberg, the loss to Nash was indeed a landmark moment.
Kevin was red-hot at that time and his victory that night did get him over with fans. But to this day, many pro wrestling analysts question the thought process behind booking the biggest star on the roster to lose in such a controversial fashion.
That’s especially true because Nash dropped the title just seven days later to Hulk Hogan following the infamous “finger poke of doom.” That moment seemed to invalidate Nash’s win against Goldberg. It also caused many fans to once again shake their heads over the insanity that often prevailed in WCW.