Goldberg Names Former WWE Star Haku As His ‘Idol’ And ‘One Of His Biggest Mentors’: ‘I Just Greatly Appreciated Everything That He Did’

WWE

Goldberg has opened up about his idol and mentor, Meng, known to WWE and NJPW fans as Haku, commenting on the star’s fearsome reputation.

Despite a tough guy persona, Haku was described as “the nicest guy in the world” when Drew McIntyre was putting together a list of stars he would want in a bar fight.

It was a sentiment shared by Goldberg during an interview with Going Ringside, revealing that Haku was a mentor to him, as well as an idol, saying:

“Meng was an idol of mine, and Meng was one of my biggest mentors.”

Asked to elaborate on the mentor status of Meng, Goldberg would confirm it was indeed the case, stating:

“Thousand percent, absolutely. How could you not look at a guy like Meng both in and outside of the ring and not think that he could be an unbelievable person to follow in their footsteps.”

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The fearsome reputation of the star known to WWE fans as Haku would see Goldberg somewhat burst that bubble, explaining:

“You know who I am, right? And you know what I’ve done. No one on the planet scares me. I hate to break it to you.

“No, Meng never scared me. I just greatly appreciated everything that he did, most of all the person that he was, the human being that he was outside of the ring.

“Inside the ring, I mean, it’s like you hear a whistle in a football game. I put my helmet on, when I hit that last strap, it’s all going. So, it didn’t matter who I was in there against. But it was awesome because he was up here (raises hand to head) as far as physicality is concerned, and that’s what I wanted to do.” 

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Physicality would also play into Goldberg naming Brock Lesnar as the “best opponent” of his wrestling career, describing the star as his mirror image.

The Bloodline Runs Deep

Whether remembered as Meng or Haku, the star was an imposing presence in the ring wherever he went.

A former WWF Tag Team Champion (with Andre the Giant), Haku also held the WCW Hardcore Championship, among the many titles across his storied career.

Wrestling flows in his blood, with the star’s children including Tonga Loa, Tama Tonga, and Talla Tonga, the latter two currently signed to WWE as members of the MFTs. Tonga Loa’s time with the company came to an end in May of this year.

A member of The Bloodline family tree, the 67-year-old star is yet to see inclusion in the WWE Hall of Fame, although it’s likely only a matter of time before that day arrives.

Haku was present at this year’s WWE Hall of Fame, inducting Demolition alongside Arn Anderson and Warlord, having previously appeared at WrestleMania 41 to celebrate Jacob Fatu becoming United States Champion, and being in attendance for John Cena’s retirement match at December’s Saturday Night’s Main Event.

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• Meng
• wwe
• Goldberg
• WCW
• HAKU

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