Veteran WWE referee Charles Robinson has confirmed that the rib injury he sustained from a Goldberg spear was a work. The angle took place during Goldberg’s final WWE match against Gunther for the World Heavyweight Title at Saturday Night’s Main Event on July 12, 2025. Speaking on the INSIGHT podcast, Robinson revealed the injury story was fabricated to help “put over” the WWE Hall of Famer.
Robinson explained that the motivation was to make Goldberg “feel good” after the bout in Atlanta, Georgia. To sell the angle, he found an X-ray image of a broken rib online and posted it as if it were his own.
“My girlfriend and I were in the movie. I said, ‘What can I do to put this over to make Goldberg feel good?’ and I said, ‘Hmm, there’s an image of a broken rib online,’ so I just posted that,” Robinson said.
He added that he secured Goldberg’s approval before going public. “I called him to tell him what I was doing. And he goes, ‘That’s a great idea.’ So he didn’t mind.” While the cracked rib was a fabrication, Robinson admitted he was genuinely sore for about 10 days after taking the Spear.
The incident occurred during Goldberg’s retirement match, which ended in a loss to Gunther. Before Robinson’s revelation, Goldberg had addressed the spot on The Ariel Helwani Show, apologizing for what seemed like a legitimate injury.
“Here’s the deal. I asked for Charles to be there. Charles and I have a long history. Charles has taken that before and I might have broken a rib last time. Charles is indestructible. I don’t know how old he is, but he’s taken the spear a number of times. A lot of times, actually. More power to him. I love him to death. I do apologize for the rib. It’ll heal, like the other ones.”