During a recent episode of his “Everybody’s Got A Pod” podcast, Ted DiBiase Sr., who is an inductee in the WWE Hall of Fame, touched upon several interesting topics. He spoke about the wrestling journey of Bill Goldberg, the magnetic charisma he emanates, and his prowesses inside the ring.
Below are a few key takeaways from the podcast:
As per his opinion about Goldberg, DiBiase Sr. said with apparent fondness: “Goldberg was — I found him endearing. Yes, I did. He was not necessarily — again, an exceptional wrestler as such. But he oozed charisma.”
When addressing why charisma is often what makes a performer resonate with fans, DiBiase Sr. explained: “Put simply, you can have a flawless match. Yet, you could come across as dull. It’s somewhat akin to okay, the moves are impressive, but why do some film stars outshine others? It’s because they exude charisma.”
Drawing a comparison between Goldberg’s appeal to the audience and that of Junkyard Dog, DiBiase Sr. said: “Junkyard Dog, oh my gosh. It wasn’t about showcasing pure ‘wrestling’ wrestling on the mat with him. The expectation was to have a brawl.
“I would pull out all stops to get him riled up. When it was time for him to step up, I could almost envisage him pulling his head back and kind of growling, somewhat like, ‘Watch out, here he comes.’ And the audience relished that. They fell for him because of his charisma. In my opinion, without charisma, you are pretty much irrelevant.”