Steve Borden (born March 20, 1959) better known by his
ring nameA ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer.-Wrestling:Ring names were developed as a defense mechanism to keep kayfabe and allow wrestling performers to hide their true identities from the wrestling fanbase, or because their real name is considered...
Sting, is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional wrestlerProfessional wrestling, or pro wrestling, is an athletic performing art where matches are prearranged by the promotion's booking staff. It is a non-competitive sport which contains strong elements of theatre, mock combat, and catch wrestling. Wrestling's origins date to 19th-century carnival...
, perhaps best known for his tenure with
World Championship WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and his...
(WCW). He is currently under contract with
Total Nonstop Action WrestlingTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling , a privately controlled integrated-media and sports entertainment company, deals primarily in professional wrestling. It uses television, the Internet, and live events, with additional major revenue sources from product licensing and direct product sales...
(TNA).
As a singles wrestler, Sting has held thirteen world heavyweight championships. He is a
six-time WCW World Heavyweight ChampionThe World Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the top title contested for in World Championship Wrestling...
,
two-time NWA World Heavyweight ChampionThe National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first "World Heavyweight Championship," which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title...
,
two-time WCW International World Heavyweight ChampionThe World Championship Wrestling International World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship that took the place of the original NWA World Heavyweight Championship when World Championship Wrestling withdrew from the National Wrestling Alliance in 1993...
,
two-time TNA World Heavyweight ChampionThe TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division...
and former
WWA World Heavyweight ChampionThe World Wrestling All-Stars World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Wrestling All-Stars. It was the primary championship in the WWA. The title was sanctioned by WWA as their world title and defended in multiple countries, making it a...
. Often referred to as the "franchise" of WCW, he is perhaps the most well-known professional wrestler to have never signed with
World Wrestling EntertainmentWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is a publicly-traded, privately-controlled integrated media and sports entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
. Sting is the only wrestler to win PWI's most popular wrestler four times.
Professional wrestling career
Borden was hired to help recruit a fourth member of
Powerteam USAPowerteam USA were a short lived group of four bodybuilders turned wrestlers in the California wrestling territories in late 1985.-History:Powerteam USA made their professional wrestling debut in 1985 after being trained by Red Bastien and Rick Bassman and consisted of Steve Borden , Jim Hellwig,...
, a professional wrestling stable headed by Red Bastien and Rick Bassman containing three other former bodybuilders while at his
Gold's GymGold's Gym International, Inc. is an international chain of co-ed fitness centers originally started in California by Joe Gold. Each gym features a wide array of exercise equipment and personal trainers to assist clients....
in
San Fernando ValleyThe San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in Southern California, United States. More than half of the city of Los Angeles' land area lies within the San Fernando Valley...
. After many failed to be recruited, Borden was given an offer to be the fourth member. At the time, Borden had little interest in wrestling, but Bassman constantly tried to recruit him in which Steve finally agreed. Borden trained under Red Bastien, Bill Anderson and Rick Bassman for ten weeks and debuted in November 1985 as Flash Borden.
Universal Wrestling Federation (1985–1987)
Power Team USA disbanded in 1986, and two of the members, Borden and
Jim "Justice" HellwigWarrior is a retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s as the Ultimate Warrior, during which time he won the WWF Championship and pinned Hulk Hogan in the main event of WrestleMania VI...
(later The Ultimate Warrior), formed a
tag teamIn professional wrestling, a tag team consists of two wrestlers who are working together as a team . Often, they are close partners and backstage friends who team with each other almost exclusively, while other times they are singles competitors who are booked together for just one match...
known as the
Blade RunnersThe Blade Runners were a professional wrestling tag team consisting of future superstars, Steve Borden and Jim Hellwig, that existed in 1985 and 1986. Their name may have been derived from the 1982 neo-noir science fiction film, Blade Runner...
. Borden changed his name initially from Flash to Sting, while Hellwig became Rock. The Blade Runners wrestled in the Universal Wrestling Federation based in
Shreveport, LouisianaShreveport is the third-largest city and the principal city of the third largest metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Louisiana, as well as being the 99th-largest city in the United States....
until Rock left the promotion in mid-1986. Left without a partner, Borden joined Hotstuff and Hyatt International, a stable headed by Eddie Gilbert and
Missy HyattMelissa Ann Hiatt is an American professional wrestler and valet, better known by her ring name, Missy Hyatt. She gained the majority of her fame while working for World Championship Wrestling and Extreme Championship Wrestling...
. He won the UWF World Tag Team Championship twice with Gilbert in 1986 and a third time with
Rick SteinerRobert Rechsteiner better known by his ring name Rick Steiner, is an American professional wrestler.Steiner is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, both as a singles...
in 1987. Initially a heel wrestler, Sting turned
faceIn professional wrestling, a face or babyface is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains. Not everything a face wrestler does must be heroic: faces need only to be cheered by the audience to be effective characters...
following a match against
Terry TaylorTerry Taylor , is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his time in the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
in mid-1987, where former manager Gilbert interfered on Taylor's behalf, costing Sting the match. Following a two-on-one gangup, Gentleman Chris Adams cleared the ring and became instrumental in Sting's face turn when Adams asked if Sting was with him or against him in his feud with Taylor and Gilbert. It was during this period of working for Bill Watts that Eddie Gilbert publicly endorsed Borden by stating to a 'dirt sheet' that Sting would be a megastar in the future. Later that year, Sting was tabbed to win Gilbert's UWF Television title until
Jim CrockettJames Allen Crockett was a professional wrestling promoter sometimes known as Jim Crockett, Sr. or to people within the business simply as "Big Jim".-Early life:...
bought the company from
Bill WattsBill Watts is a former American professional wrestler and promoter. Watts was famous under his "Cowboy" gimmick in his wrestling career, and then as a tough, no-nonsense promoter in the Mid-South area of the United States, which grew to become the UWF.In 1992, he was the Executive Vice President...
. Booker
Dusty RhodesVirgil Riley Runnels, Jr. , better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler currently working for World Wrestling Entertainment...
decided to put the belt on Terry Taylor to set up a feud with
Nikita KoloffNelson Scott Simpson is a former American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Nikita S. Koloff, and legally changed his name to this in 1988...
to unify the NWA and UWF Television titles. The decision was made to use unknown
Shane DouglasTroy Shane Martin is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name Shane Douglas. In the course of his career, which has spanned two decades, Douglas has wrestled in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling and briefly in the World Wrestling...
as the transitional champion by Rhodes, who did not want to diminish Sting's growing stardom with a brief title run.
1987–1989
Rhodes decided to use the opening bout of Jim Crockett's first foray into
pay-per-viewPay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast of that event to their homes. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
,
Starrcade '87Starrcade '87 was the fifth annual Starrcade professional wrestling event produced by Jim Crockett Promotions under the National Wrestling Alliance banner. It took place on November 26, 1987 from the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois...
, to showcase the young superstar, partnering Sting with
Michael P.S. HayesMichael Seitz is a retired American professional wrestler and former musician. Seitz is best known for leading The Fabulous Freebirds under the ring name Michael "P.S." Hayes and for his role as the announcer Dok Hendrix in the World Wrestling Federation...
and
Jimmy GarvinJames Williams is a retired American professional wrestler. He is best known by his ring name Jimmy "Jam" Garvin and as a member of the legendary Fabulous Freebirds....
in a time-limit draw battle against Eddie Gilbert, Rick Steiner, and
Larry ZbyszkoLawrence "Larry" Whistler is a professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Larry Zbyszko. Zbyszko is perhaps best known for his feud with his mentor, wrestling legend Bruno Sammartino during the early 1980s....
. Having established himself as a rising star, Sting was one of the few UWF alumni to be pushed through the NWA. At the inaugural Clash of the Champions, Sting challenged
Ric FlairRichard Morgan Fliehr better known by his ring name, Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Also known as "The Nature Boy," Flair is one of the most well known professional wrestlers in the world....
for the
NWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first "World Heavyweight Championship," which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title...
. The match itself was booked as a 45-minute time-limit draw. Sting lost to Flair in several non-televised rematches following the Clash and later that year continued to battle against other members of the
Four HorsemenThe Four Horsemen were a popular professional wrestling stable in the National Wrestling Alliance and later World Championship Wrestling that was disbanded in 1999. The original group featured Ric Flair, Arn and Ole Anderson, and Tully Blanchard...
. Sting teamed with Nikita Koloff at the The Great American Bash challenging
Tully BlanchardTully Arthur Blanchard is a retired second generation American professional wrestler. He is best known as an original member of the Four Horsemen....
and
Arn AndersonMartin Anthony Lunde better known by his ring name Arn Anderson, is a former American professional wrestler. His career has been highlighted by his alliances with Ric Flair and various members of the wrestling stable, The Four Horsemen...
for the
NWA World Tag Team ChampionshipThe National Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Championship is the professional wrestling world tag team championship within the NWA framework.-History:...
; the match ended in a 20-minute time-limit draw. Rhodes continued to book Sting in title matches throughout the year against both
NWA United States ChampionThe World Wrestling Entertainment United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw...
Barry WindhamBarry Clinton Windham is a professional wrestler and the son of wrestler Blackjack Mulligan. He is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling...
and
NWA Television ChampionThe World Championship Wrestling World Television Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Championship Wrestling....
Mike RotundoLawrence Michael Rotunda is a former American professional wrestler, perhaps best known under the name Irwin R. Schyster or I.R.S. for short. He is currently signed with World Wrestling Entertainment working as a road agent and making occasional appearances on WWE shows as Irwin R...
. In the fall of '88, Sting was attacked by
The Road WarriorsThe Road Warriors were a professional wrestling tag team originally composed of Michael "Hawk" Hegstrand and Joseph "Animal" Laurinaitis, though other members were added later...
after a televised match. Sting was chosen as the most over face with the fans by Rhodes, who knew turning
HawkMichael James Hegstrand was an American professional wrestler. He is best remembered as Road Warrior Hawk, one half of the tag team known as the Road Warriors or The Legion of Doom , with Road Warrior Animal.-Early career:Hegstrand attended Patrick Henry High School where he graduated in 1976...
and
AnimalJoseph Aaron "Joe" Laurinaitis is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Road Warrior Animal. Along with Road Warrior Hawk, Laurinaitis was one-half of the tag team known as the Road Warriors.-Career:...
heel would be no easy task.
Dusty RhodesVirgil Riley Runnels, Jr. , better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler currently working for World Wrestling Entertainment...
teamed with Sting to challenge for the tag team belts at
Starrcade '88Starrcade '88 was the sixth annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced under the National Wrestling Alliance banner. It was the first Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling , and it took place on December 26, 1988 from the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, Virginia...
, defeating The Road Warriors by disqualification.
Sting then returned to singles matches in 1989, starting the year off on New Year's Day wrestling Ric Flair to a one hour draw in Atlanta's
OmniThe Omni Coliseum, usually called The Omni, from the Latin for "all," or "every," was an indoor arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. Completed in 1972, the arena seated 16,378 for basketball and 15,278 for ice hockey. It was part of the Omni Complex, now known as the CNN Center...
. After a long push, he finally won his first title in the NWA when he defeated
Mike RotundoLawrence Michael Rotunda is a former American professional wrestler, perhaps best known under the name Irwin R. Schyster or I.R.S. for short. He is currently signed with World Wrestling Entertainment working as a road agent and making occasional appearances on WWE shows as Irwin R...
for the NWA Television Championship. He defended the TV Championship actively but tended to face sub-par challengers such as the Iron Sheik. In mid 1989,
The Great Mutais a Japanese professional wrestler who first gained international fame in the National Wrestling Alliance. He is mostly known for his work as The Great Muta in New Japan Pro Wrestling during the 1990s, but he has also competed in America, Puerto Rico, and Taiwan. He is the current President of All...
was booked to challenge Sting on July 23 at The Great American Bash. The match was a classic Dusty Finish even though the "American Dream" had been fired months before. Sting got the three-count and was announced as the winner. A replay showed Muta's shoulder was up at the count of two and the NWA decided to declare the title vacant. Sting and Muta battled in many rematches, but they always ended in disqualification, giving neither man the championship. Eventually, Muta won a no disqualification match against Sting to win the title after using a blackjack to get the win. In the main event of The Great American Bash, Ric Flair faced
Terry FunkTerrence "Terry" Funk is an American professional wrestler and actor known chiefly for the hardcore wrestling style he adopted in the later part of his career that inspired many later wrestlers, including Mick Foley...
. After Flair got the victory, he was attacked by Muta, who was a part of the
J-Tex CorporationJ-Tex Corporation, also known as Gary Hart International, was a heel professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling. The group was managed by Gary Hart and consisted of several popular wrestlers including Terry Funk, Dick Slater, The Great Muta, The Dragonmaster, and Buzz Sawyer...
, only to have Sting come to his rescue. Sting and Flair feuded with Muta and Funk for the rest of summer and fall, culminating in a Thunderdome Cage match between the two teams at Halloween Havoc '89, which Flair and Sting won. The alliance with Flair resulted in Sting joining the Four Horsemen along with the Andersons,
ArnMartin Anthony Lunde better known by his ring name Arn Anderson, is a former American professional wrestler. His career has been highlighted by his alliances with Ric Flair and various members of the wrestling stable, The Four Horsemen...
and
OleAlan Robert Rogowski , better known by his ring name of Ole Anderson, is a retired professional wrestler and a promoter. He held numerous NWA World Tag Team Championships with Gene Anderson, who was portrayed as his brother...
.
Sting finished out the year winning the four-man round robin Ironman tournament at
Starrcade '89Starrcade '89 was the seventh annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced under the National Wrestling Alliance banner. It was the second Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling , and it took place on December 13, 1989 at The Omni in Atlanta, Georgia.The...
. The night ended when he defeated Flair in the final match to accumulate the necessary amount of points needed to win. It also made Sting the number one contender for Flair's NWA World Title, which was the catalyst for the events that immediately followed.
1990–1991
Sting was summarily dismissed from the Horsemen on February 6, 1990 at Clash of the Champions X: Texas Shootout after refusing to relinquish an upcoming title shot at Flair, thus restarting their rivalry. Later that evening, Borden suffered a legitimate knee injury while interfering in a Steel Cage match featuring the Four Horsemen. Borden's injury forced WCW bookers to find a new opponent for Flair for the forthcoming WrestleWar
pay-per-viewPay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast of that event to their homes. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
. Sting also resumed his on-screen friendship with
Lex LugerLawrence Wendell Pfohl best known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player. He is best known for his work with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
, about this time. Luger unsuccessfully challenged Flair for the title in a series of matches while Sting recuperated. Sting played a part in the finish of the match at WrestleWar, as Luger relinquished his chance to win the title in favor of helping Sting at ringside, who was in great peril at the hands of the other Horsemen. WCW officials wanted Flair to drop the title to Luger at WrestleWar, but he refused. Flair said that he had promised Sting that he would be waiting for him to get better, and would hold the belt until then. Flair felt that Sting, as the top face in the company, deserved the belt more than Luger, a man he held little regard for offscreen. At the
Capital CombatCapital Combat: Return of RoboCop was a one time professional wrestling pay-per-view from the National Wrestling Alliance held under the World Championship Wrestling name. It took place on May 19, 1990 from the D.C. Armory in Washington, D.C....
event in May, Sting was accosted by the Four Horsemen and thrown into a metal cage at ringside and rescued by
RoboCopRoboCop is a fictional cyborg Detroit police officer from the feature film of the same name. The character begins as a human police officer Alex J. Murphy, who is killed in the line of duty by a vicious crime gang. Subsequently, Murphy is transformed into the cyborg entity by the megacorporation...
.
After Borden's recovery, Sting finally defeated Flair for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on July 7, 1990, at the Great American Bash. He went on to feud with title contenders Flair and
Sid ViciousSidney Raymond "Sid" Eudy is an American professional wrestler, better known as Sid Vicious in World Championship Wrestling, and as Sid Justice and Sycho Sid in the World Wrestling Federation. He is a four time world champion, having won the WWF Championship and WCW World Heavyweight Championship...
. Vicious appeared to defeat Sting in a title match at Halloween Havoc, but the "Sting" who he pinned was revealed to be an impostor, played by Horseman
Barry WindhamBarry Clinton Windham is a professional wrestler and the son of wrestler Blackjack Mulligan. He is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling...
. The real Sting appeared soon after and pinned Vicious to retain his title when the match was restarted. During this time, Sting became distracted by a masked man known as "The Black Scorpion" who taunted and attacked Sting on many occasions. This feud culminated in a final showdown between Sting and The Black Scorpion at
Starrcade: Collision CourseStarrcade '90 was the eighth annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced under the National Wrestling Alliance banner. It was the third Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling, and the last pay-per-view event held by the NWA. It took place on December 16,...
. The Cage match ended with Sting pinning and unmasking the Scorpion, who turned out to be Ric Flair.
1991–1995
Sting's championship reign ended on January 11, 1991, when he was defeated by Flair in a rematch from Starrcade. In the same month, WCW seceded from the National Wrestling Alliance, in the process recognizing a
WCW World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe World Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the top title contested for in World Championship Wrestling...
and a
WCW World Tag Team ChampionshipThe World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...
. Sting then feuded with
Nikita KoloffNelson Scott Simpson is a former American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Nikita S. Koloff, and legally changed his name to this in 1988...
in the summer of 1991. He also took part in what many consider to be one of the best matches of 1991, teaming with Lex Luger to face
the Steiner BrothersThe Steiner Brothers are the professional wrestling tag team of American brothers Robert "Rick Steiner" Rechsteiner and Scott "Scott Steiner" Rechsteiner...
at the first SuperBrawl pay-per-view. That match had also triggered the feud with Koloff when he took a chain-shot intended for his partner Luger (who had been feuding with Koloff at the time). In August 1991, Sting defeated
Steve AustinSteve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
to win a tournament for the WCW U.S. title. At
Starrcade '91Starrcade '91: Battlebowl/The Lethal Lottery was the ninth annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event. It was the fourth Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling, and it took place on December 29 1991 from the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, Virginia. The event solely...
Sting went on to win the first ever Battlebowl in which he received a Battlebowl championship ring. At the end of 1991, Sting became embroiled in a feud with the
Dangerous AllianceThe Dangerous Alliance was a heel professional wrestling stable that made a name for itself in World Championship Wrestling in the early '90s and the American Wrestling Association in 1987, with Adrian Adonis, Randy Rose, and Dennis Condrey making up the AWA incarnation of the group.-History:At...
, headed by manager
Paul E. DangerouslyPaul Heyman is an American entertainment producer, best-known for his career in professional wrestling as a promoter, manager, and commentator. He is also an occasional actor in film....
. The stable targeted Sting because he was the so-called "franchise" of WCW, and vowed to destroy both him and the promotion that he was the face of, although he was also being targeted by Luger, who had once again turned heel and as WCW Champion viewed Sting as a threat. Sting engaged in many matches with Dangerous Alliance members, especially "Ravishing" Rick Rude, who was the group's main star. It was during this feud that he won the first of his six WCW World Heavyweight titles, defeating Lex Luger at SuperBrawl II on February 29, 1992. The feud ended when Sting and his allies, named Sting's Squadron (consisting of himself,
Ricky SteamboatRichard Henry Blood , better known by his ring name Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, is an American professional wrestler who became one of the most well-known professional wrestlers of the late 1980s and early 1990s. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment working as a road agent...
, Dustin Rhodes,
Barry WindhamBarry Clinton Windham is a professional wrestler and the son of wrestler Blackjack Mulligan. He is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling...
, and Nikita Koloff) defeated the Alliance (Rude, Austin,
Arn AndersonMartin Anthony Lunde better known by his ring name Arn Anderson, is a former American professional wrestler. His career has been highlighted by his alliances with Ric Flair and various members of the wrestling stable, The Four Horsemen...
,
Larry ZbyszkoLawrence "Larry" Whistler is a professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Larry Zbyszko. Zbyszko is perhaps best known for his feud with his mentor, wrestling legend Bruno Sammartino during the early 1980s....
, and
Bobby EatonRobert Lee "Beautiful Bobby" Eaton , is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, who made his debut in 1976. Eaton is most famous for his work in tag teams, especially his days as one-half of the team the Midnight Express. Under the management of Jim Cornette, Eaton originally teamed with...
) in a
WarGames matchThe WarGames match was a gimmick match used originally in the National Wrestling Alliance and later held annually in World Championship Wrestling , usually at their Fall Brawl pay-per-view event in September.-History:...
at WrestleWar in May 1992; the match would get a 5-star rating from
Dave MeltzerDave Meltzer is the editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Sports Illustrated senior writer Frank Deford has praised Meltzer's work, saying that "Meltzer, I believe, is the most accomplished reporter in sports journalism." Meltzer has written for the Oakland Tribune, the Los Angeles Times,...
.
Near the end of Sting's battles with the Dangerous Alliance, the seeds were sown for what arguably became one of the most famous feuds of his career. In April 1992, he defended his WCW World title at
The OmniThe Omni Coliseum, usually called The Omni, from the Latin for "all," or "every," was an indoor arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. Completed in 1972, the arena seated 16,378 for basketball and 15,278 for ice hockey. It was part of the Omni Complex, now known as the CNN Center...
in Atlanta against the 450-pound Big Van Vader. During the match, Vader splashed Sting, cracking three of his ribs and rupturing his spleen. Sting recovered and defended his title against Vader at The Great American Bash in July, dropping the belt to him after missing a Stinger Splash (hitting his head on the ringpost in the process), and receiving a powerbomb. After beating
Cactus JackMichael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American actor, author, comedian, voice over, and professional wrestler, currently signed with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is the storyline "Executive Shareholder"...
in a Falls Count Anywhere match at Beach Blast and WCW newcomer
Jake RobertsAurelian Smith, Jr. , is a second-generation American professional wrestler and the son of former wrestler Aurelian "Grizzly" Smith...
in a "Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal" match at Halloween Havoc, Sting again faced Vader in the "King of Cable" tournament final at Starrcade, where Sting was victorious. The Sting-Vader feud continued into 1993, with Vader defeating Sting in a bloody Strap match at SuperBrawl III. Sting exacted revenge by beating Vader for the World title on March 11 in
London, England[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
, but lost it back to him six days later in
Dublin, IrelandDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
. Sting then teamed with WCW newcomer
Davey Boy SmithDavid Boy Smith was a British professional wrestler, better known as The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith, who was born in Golborne, Wigan. Smith is best known for his appearances in the United States of America with the World Wrestling Federation...
to beat the team of Vader and
Sid ViciousSidney Raymond "Sid" Eudy is an American professional wrestler, better known as Sid Vicious in World Championship Wrestling, and as Sid Justice and Sycho Sid in the World Wrestling Federation. He is a four time world champion, having won the WWF Championship and WCW World Heavyweight Championship...
at Beach Blast, in a match that was set up by a mini-movie that saw an evil midget blow up Sting's boat. At the end of the year, Sting was one of the first people to congratulate the newly-returned Ric Flair after his title victory over Vader at
StarrcadeStarrcade '93: 10th Anniversary was the eleventh annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event. It was the sixth Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling , and it took place on December 27 1993 from the Independence Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina...
. Sting feuded with Vader and Rude through the first half of 1994, defeating Vader in a match for the vacant WCW International World title at Slamboree after Rude was forced to vacate due to his suffering a career-ending injury against Sting in
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Soon afterward, Flair turned heel and defeated Sting in a title unification match at
Clash of the Champions XXVII. Sting spent the second half of '94 and most of 1995 teaming with new arrival
Hulk HoganTerry Gene Bollea better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American actor and retired professional wrestler....
in his battles against the
Three Faces of FearThe 3 Faces of Fear was a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling led by Kevin Sullivan and included The Butcher and Avalanche...
and later against the
Dungeon of DoomThe Dungeon of Doom was the name of a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling that existed from 1995 to 1997.-History:...
.
In October 1995, Flair convinced Sting to team with him in a tag match against Arn Anderson and
Brian PillmanBrian William Pillman was an American football player and professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling....
at Halloween Havoc, as Anderson and Pillman had attacked Flair earlier in the night. Flair was unable to come out for the first part of the match and Sting fended off both Anderson and Pillman alone. Finally, Flair came out, but eventually turned on Sting and reformed the Four Horsemen with Anderson, Pillman, and later
Chris BenoitChristopher Michael Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler who was found by investigators and authorities to have murdered his wife and son before committing suicide...
. Sting closed out 1995 by feuding with the Horsemen. His alliances with Hogan and
Randy SavageRandall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, is a former American professional wrestler and actor who is best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling . Savage is a six-time world champion...
led the Horsemen to attack them as well.
1996–1998
The first part of 1996 had Sting teaming with Lex Luger (who had returned to WCW in September 1995) to win the WCW World Tag Team title from
Harlem HeatHarlem Heat was a professional wrestling tag team made up of two real-life brothers, Booker and Lane Huffman. Booker Huffman took the ring name of Booker T, and Lane Huffman took the ring name of Stevie Ray...
. The reign was highlighted by the
faceIn professional wrestling, a face or babyface is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains. Not everything a face wrestler does must be heroic: faces need only to be cheered by the audience to be effective characters...
Sting usually oblivious to the cheating tactics of Luger (a tweener) which became the means by which they usually retained the title. When Luger became temporarily unavailable in March 1996, Harlem Heat member
Booker TBooker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently wrestling for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
teamed up with Sting on one occasion to successfully prevent the title from changing hands. A rematch between Harlem Heat and the team of Luger and Sting then came the following night, in which a mutual respect was displayed between Sting and Booker T. Harlem Heat eventually won the title back on the June 24, 1996 edition of
WCW Monday NitroWCW Monday Nitro was a weekly professional wrestling telecast produced by World Championship Wrestling. The show aired Monday nights on TNT, going head-to-head with the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001. Production ceased after WCW was purchased...
. Sting also received a World title shot against
The GiantPaul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand where he is one half of the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions with Chris Jericho.In professional wrestling, Show is a...
at Slamboree, but lost after accidental interference from Luger.
In the summer of 1996, Sting was the first to stand up to "The Outsiders" (
Kevin NashKevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. Nash has wrestled under various ring names, but most notably by his own name, for World Championship Wrestling and wrestled by his own name and as Diesel in World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment...
and
Scott HallScott Oliver Hall is an American professional wrestler. In the course of his career, which has spanned three decades, Hall has wrestled for the American Wrestling Association , the National Wrestling Alliance , Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , World Class Championship Wrestling , World...
). They had a match at
Bash at the BeachBash at the Beach was the third annual Bash at the Beach professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Championship Wrestling . It took place on July 7, 1996 from the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida...
with Sting being joined by Randy Savage and Lex Luger. The Outsiders announced they would have a 3rd man in their corner as well. In the opening minutes of the bout, Hall and Nash's partner was nowhere to be seen, but the WCW contingent's 2 on 3 advantage was short lived as Luger had to leave the match early due to an injury. Sting and Savage fought against Nash and Hall until the arrival of Hulk Hogan, who was apparently about to back up the WCW wrestlers until he attacked Savage with his
Leg dropA leg drop or legdrop refers to an attack used in professional wrestling in which an attacking wrestler will jump and land his leg across a fallen opponent's chest, throat, face or head or in some cases, the groin/lower-abdominal area.-Discus leg drop:...
finisher in a swerve. The three subsequently formed the
New World OrderThe New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling...
(nWo) at the end of the match, which was ruled a no-contest. The nWo introduced an impostor Sting (played by
Jeff FarmerJeff Farmer is a professional wrestler best known as The nWo Sting, Stink, or Imposter Sting. A mainstay of World Championship Wrestling during the 1990s, he also led a Japanese faction of the heel stable New World Order in New Japan Pro Wrestling competing in the promotion until the WCW's close...
), which led the crowd to believe that Sting had turned his back on WCW during a WarGames match at Fall Brawl. When the real Sting returned he was upset by the fact that many wrestlers believed that he had in fact betrayed WCW despite his denials, that he himself felt betrayed, and so he left WCW by declaring himself a "free agent." He began appearing in the rafters at WCW events; his new silent persona, complete with
corpse paintCorpse paint is a style of black-and-white, or just white makeup, used extensively by black metal bands during live concerts and photo shoots. The makeup is used to intensify the bands' imagery of evil, inhumanity, and corpse-like decay. It is most commonly used just on the face, but also on arms...
, a
trench coatA trench coat or trenchcoat is a raincoat made of waterproof heavy-duty cotton drill or poplin, wool gabardine, or in some cases leather: it generally has a removable insulated lining; and it is usually knee-length or longer.-History:...
, and longer hair replacing his spiked haircut, was quite obviously inspired by
The Crow. He was joined in the rafters on a few occasions by
Randy SavageRandall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, is a former American professional wrestler and actor who is best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling . Savage is a six-time world champion...
. He also began using a
baseball batA baseball bat is a smooth wooden or metal club used in the game of baseball to hit the ball after the ball is thrown by the pitcher. It is no more than 2.75 inches in diameter at the thickest part and no more than 42 inches in length. It typically weighs no more than 33 ounces...
as his signature weapon. The nWo, in turn, began to paint Farmer's face in the same fashion to try to continue the confusion, becoming known as nWo Sting. While appearing on a WCW/nWo merchandise special on
QVCQVC is a West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA, multinational corporation, specializing in televised home shopping. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel, QVC broadcasts in four major countries to 141 million consumers. The name is an initialism—standing for Quality, Value, Convenience, the three pillars...
Sports in late 1999, Sting admitted that Scott Hall initially suggested the idea of painting his face like the character from
The Crow. Sting continues to use this type of face paint, occasionally with different designs and the use of color. In an unusual loyalty test, Sting confronted WCW wrestlers in the ring and shoved them a few times with his bat until they were provoked enough to advance on him, at which point he drew the weapon back into a more threatening stance, causing them to stop. He would then hand the bat to the offended wrestler and turn his back, offering them a chance at retaliation. When the wrestler declined, Sting would nod, retrieve the bat, and leave the ring. Following the eventual revelation of his loyalty to WCW, he began coming to the aid of many of these wrestlers (often at the end of a television taping) during group battles with the nWo.
After nearly six months of uncertainty and mystery, Sting finally showed his true colors as a face by single-handedly taking out the entire nWo at Uncensored in March 1997. The pay-per-view had drawn to a close and the nWo were celebrating with their new found partner,
NBAThe National Basketball Association is a professional basketball league, composed of thirty teams in North America . It is an active member of USA Basketball , which is recognized by the International Basketball Federation as the National Governing Body for basketball in the United States...
star
Dennis RodmanDennis Keith Rodman is an American retired professional basketball player of the National Basketball Association's Detroit Pistons, San Antonio Spurs, Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. Born in Trenton, New Jersey, he was nicknamed "Dennis the Menace" and "The Worm" and was...
, when Sting rappelled down over 70 feet from the roof of the arena via
zip-lineA zip-line consists of a pulley suspended on a cable mounted on an incline...
and began his historic battle against the nWo in which he ended up giving the Scorpion Death Drop to the principal members of the nWo: The Outsiders, Randy Savage, and WCW World Champion Hollywood Hogan. After this attack, he frequently rappelled from the rafters or even came up through the ring to attack unsuspecting nWo members and employ decoy Stings to play mind games during the closing segments of
WCW Monday Nitro. Sting's appearances to fight the nWo at the end of almost every
WCW Monday Nitro helped to keep and widen the ratings gap between WCW and the
WWFWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is a publicly-traded, privately-controlled integrated media and sports entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
throughout the summer. On-screen commissioner
James J. DillonJames J. "J.J." Dillon is a former professional wrestler and manager.He is best known for being the strategic leader of the original Four Horsemen that consisted of Nature Boy Ric Flair, Tully Blanchard, Arn and Ole Anderson. He is most remembered as a manager in pro wrestling. He guided many...
tried many times to get Sting to return to wrestling by making contracts to fight various nWo members, but Sting ended up tearing up the contracts because there was only one man he wanted: Hollywood Hogan.
Sting and Hogan finally met at
StarrcadeStarrcade was the fifteenth annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event. It was the tenth Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling , and it took place on December 28, 1997 from the MCI Center in Washington, D.C...
for the WCW World Championship, with Sting winning controversially due to a decision by special guest referee
Bret HartBret Sergeant Hart is a retired Canadian professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, author, and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling under the persona, "The Hitman". A son of wrestling patriarch Stu Hart, he was born into the Hart wrestling...
when he reversed the decision made by referee
Nick PatrickJoseph Nicholas Patrick Hamilton Jr. , better known by his ring name Nick Patrick, is a professional wrestling referee. He is a former referee for World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment, refereeing on its SmackDown brand...
after Hogan pinned Sting after what he believed to be a "fast count." The match was restarted and Sting made Hogan submit to the
Scorpion DeathlockThe Sharpshooter, originally named Sasori-gatame, Scorpion Hold in English, is a professional wrestling submission hold. The move is also known several other names: cloverleaf leg-lace Boston crab, standing inverted figure four leglock, and, the most commonly-known alternative, Scorpion Deathlock...
. It was heavily rumored that Sting was supposed to get a "clean" victory in the match, but in the days leading up to the match, Terry Bollea (Hogan), invoking his "creative control" clause in his contract, changed his stance on the outcome from a "clean" finish to a tainted finish that didn't weaken his character. The compromise ended up being the controversial ending of the match. The next night on
WCW Monday Nitro, Hogan protested the decision which led to a rematch. The rematch met with the same result and later in the week on the inaugural episode of
WCW ThunderWCW Thunder was a professional wrestling show produced by World Championship Wrestling which aired on TBS from January 8, 1998 until March 21, 2001. The rights to the show now belong to World Wrestling Entertainment .-Creation:...
, on-camera commissioner J.J. Dillon held the title up and forced Sting to surrender the belt. It was during this situation that Sting said his first words on camera in a year and a half. Upon handing over the belt, he told Dillon, "You've got no guts!" and then turned to Hogan and said, "And you....You're a dead man!" Sting eventually recaptured the title with help from "Macho Man" Randy Savage at SuperBrawl VIII. He went on to have successful title defenses against the likes of Scott Hall,
Diamond Dallas PagePage Joseph Falkinburg, Jr. better known by his ring name "Diamond" Dallas Page is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and actor...
, and Kevin Nash before losing the title to Savage at Spring Stampede in April 1998, due to interference from Nash.
In the end, Sting amassed three victories over Hulk Hogan, while Hulk Hogan has never been able to defeat Sting. Sting is one of only four wrestlers that have defeated Hulk Hogan without losing to him.
Brock LesnarBrock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist as well as a former professional and amateur wrestler...
,
GoldbergWilliam Scott "Bill" Goldberg better known by his ring name Bill Goldberg , is an American professional wrestler and actor best known for his time in both World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
, and The Rock are all undefeated against Hogan, although Hogan has pinned Sting in a tag team match on Nitro, and he pinned The Rock in a tag team match on
RawWWE Raw is a professional wrestling television program for World Wrestling Entertainment that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States. The show's name, which is sometimes stylized as RAW, is also used to refer to the Raw brand, in which WWE employees are assigned to work and perform...
. Sting has the highest amount of victories over him.
Later in 1998, nWo split up owing to differences between Hogan and Nash. Nash formed the tweener group known as the nWo Wolfpac. Months later, debate arose as to whether Sting would join one of the factions. Sting made an entrance, sporting the black and white shirt, only to reveal his true stance with the Wolfpac. Soon after, he changed his white face paint to red as well as his ring attire accordingly. Sting held the tag team titles as part of Nash's stable. He and the
GiantPaul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand where he is one half of the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions with Chris Jericho.In professional wrestling, Show is a...
won the titles at Slamboree. When the team split, Sting was allowed to choose Nash as a partner as a result of his victory at The Great American Bash in Baltimore. Throughout the summer, Sting, along with fellow nWo Wolfpac members Nash, Lex Luger, and Konnan feuded with Hogan's heel faction, nWo Hollywood. Soon after, Sting engaged in a feud with
Bret HartBret Sergeant Hart is a retired Canadian professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, author, and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling under the persona, "The Hitman". A son of wrestling patriarch Stu Hart, he was born into the Hart wrestling...
, as a result of Hart's (
kayfabeIn professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real." That is, the portrayal of professional wrestling as being genuine or not worked...
) betrayal after claiming to respect Sting as a result of their similar finishing holds, the Sharpshooter and the Scorpion Deathlock. After suffering (kayfabe) injuries as the result of a bat attack by Hart during a match at Halloween Havoc, Sting disappeared from WCW Television for several months. During this time, the nWo recombined and went fully heel again after The Fingerpoke of Doom incident in 1999. Afterward, Sting left the stable and went out on his own once more.
1999–2001
In the early spring of 1999 Sting made a return on Nitro and then, at Spring Stampede, fought against Hogan, Flair and DDP for the World Heavyweight Championship, with Page winning the belt. However, Sting defeated Page for the title several weeks later on Nitro, only to lose it to him a little over an hour and a half later in the Main Event in a four-way match set up by
Kevin NashKevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. Nash has wrestled under various ring names, but most notably by his own name, for World Championship Wrestling and wrestled by his own name and as Diesel in World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment...
(the fourth participant was
GoldbergWilliam Scott "Bill" Goldberg better known by his ring name Bill Goldberg , is an American professional wrestler and actor best known for his time in both World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
). Page pinned Nash, allowing him to win the title without beating the champion. This unsuccessful title defense ended the
shortest title reign in WCW history. Later Sting had a short feud with
GoldbergWilliam Scott "Bill" Goldberg better known by his ring name Bill Goldberg , is an American professional wrestler and actor best known for his time in both World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
which ended at Slamboree and followed to a feud with
Rick SteinerRobert Rechsteiner better known by his ring name Rick Steiner, is an American professional wrestler.Steiner is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, both as a singles...
. In June and July Sting teamed up with
Kevin NashKevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. Nash has wrestled under various ring names, but most notably by his own name, for World Championship Wrestling and wrestled by his own name and as Diesel in World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment...
in a battle against Team Madness. After
Hollywood HoganTerry Gene Bollea better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American actor and retired professional wrestler....
came back and Nash turned heel, Sting became part of an angle which featured himself, Hogan and Goldberg fighting Nash,
Sid ViciousSidney Raymond "Sid" Eudy is an American professional wrestler, better known as Sid Vicious in World Championship Wrestling, and as Sid Justice and Sycho Sid in the World Wrestling Federation. He is a four time world champion, having won the WWF Championship and WCW World Heavyweight Championship...
and Rick Steiner.
Sting teased turning
heelIn professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling storylines. They are typically opposed by a babyface or more simply, face . Some tweeners exhibit heel mannerisms...
by first attacking
Hulk HoganTerry Gene Bollea better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American actor and retired professional wrestler....
at Fall Brawl, hitting Hogan with his baseball bat several times en route to regaining the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Sting's heel turn and subsequent attitude change did not go over well with the fans. They still cheered him despite the fact that he was supposed to be the bad guy. He retained against Hogan at Halloween Havoc after Hogan arrived to the ring in street clothes and merely laid down for a 3-count, but promptly lost an unsanctioned defense to Goldberg at the end of the night. Sting was stripped shortly thereafter (due to an attack on referee
Charles RobinsonCharles Shane Robinson is an American professional wrestling referee currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment.- Beginnings and World Championship Wrestling :...
), and returned to being a face. He was given the opportunity to regain the title in a tournament, but lost to
Bret HartBret Sergeant Hart is a retired Canadian professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, author, and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling under the persona, "The Hitman". A son of wrestling patriarch Stu Hart, he was born into the Hart wrestling...
in the semi-finals. He then began a feud with former partner Luger.
In 2000, Sting had an intense feud with the newcomer
VampiroIan Richard Hodgkinson is a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name Vampiro. He currently works for Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, but had his greatest success in the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre promotion during the early 1990s...
. Vampiro set him alight in a "Human Torch Match" (at the heel of the match switched with stuntman, who was set on fire and thrown of the balcony), but came back to even the score with Vampiro. He was "injured" by
Scott SteinerScott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...
in 2000, leaving WCW TV for good. However, he returned for the last episode of
Monday Nitro, on March 26, 2001 and defeated his longtime rival
Ric FlairRichard Morgan Fliehr better known by his ring name, Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Also known as "The Nature Boy," Flair is one of the most well known professional wrestlers in the world....
, embracing in a sportsmanlike fashion at the end of the contest. Fittingly, this was the last WCW match ever, and the final match between Sting and Flair, ending a 13-year, on-again/off-again feud.
World Wrestling All-Stars (2002–2003)
Sting returned to professional wrestling in late-2002, touring
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
with the
World Wrestling All-StarsThe World Wrestling All-Stars was a professional wrestling promotion founded by Australian concert promoter Andrew McManus in 2001. The promotion was operated by McManus' International Touring Company. WWA was one of several promotions to come into existence shortly after the closings of Extreme...
(WWA) throughout November and December. His first match with the WWA was on November 28, 2002 in
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
, and saw Sting team with
Lex LugerLawrence Wendell Pfohl best known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player. He is best known for his work with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
to defeat
Buff BagwellMarcus Alexander Bagwell is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name, Buff Bagwell...
and
MaliceJerry Tuite was an American professional wrestler best known by his ring names, The Wall in World Championship Wrestling and Malice while performing for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.-Career:...
. On December 6 in
Glasgow, ScotlandGlasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Luger defeated Sting in a match for the vacant
WWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe World Wrestling All-Stars World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Wrestling All-Stars. It was the primary championship in the WWA. The title was sanctioned by WWA as their world title and defended in multiple countries, making it a...
following interference from
Jeff JarrettJeffrey Leonard "Jeff" Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and promoter currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is also Vice President of Creative Writing. He is well known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
. On December 13, 2002 in
Zürich, SwitzerlandZürich or Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. The city is Switzerland's main commercial and cultural centre and sometimes called the Cultural Capital of Switzerland, the political capital of Switzerland being Berne...
, Sting defeated Luger to become the WWA World Heavyweight Champion.
Sting toured
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
with the WWA in May 2003. On May 21, he successfully defended the WWA World Heavyweight Championship against
Rick SteinerRobert Rechsteiner better known by his ring name Rick Steiner, is an American professional wrestler.Steiner is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, both as a singles...
and
Shane DouglasTroy Shane Martin is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name Shane Douglas. In the course of his career, which has spanned two decades, Douglas has wrestled in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling and briefly in the World Wrestling...
in
SydneySydney is the largest city in Australia, and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney has a metropolitan area population of approximately 4.34 million and an area of approximately 12,000 square kilometres. Its inhabitants are called Sydneysiders, and Sydney is often called "the Harbour City"...
. On May 23 in
MelbourneMelbourne is the capital city and most populous city of the State of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne city centre is the anchor of the larger geographical area and statistical division known as the Greater Melbourne metropolitan area – of which Melbourne is...
, he retained the title in a match with
Disco InfernoGlenn Gilbertti is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling as Disco Inferno. He is also a former road agent for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
, despite interference from
Chris SabinJoshua Harter is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Sabin. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , and also makes appearances for the Japan based Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX promotion, and in the New Japan Pro Wrestling promotion...
and
KonnanCharles Ashenoff , better known by his ring name, Konnan, is a semi-retired professional wrestler and rapper of Cuban Puerto Rican descent...
. On the last ever WWA show, on May 25 in
Auckland, New ZealandThe Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with a population approaching 1.4 million residents, percent of the country's population. Demographic trends indicate that it will continue to grow faster than the rest...
, Sting lost the WWA World Heavyweight Championship to
NWA World Heavyweight ChampionThe National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first "World Heavyweight Championship," which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title...
Jeff Jarrett in a
championship unificationChampionship unification or championship consolidation is the act of combining two or more separate championships into a single title.-Boxing:...
bout following interference on Jarrett's behalf by Rick Steiner. This last show aired on
pay-per-viewPay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast of that event to their homes. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on June 8, 2003.
2003–2005
In 2003, Sting signed a contract committing him to four appearances with the
Total Nonstop Action WrestlingTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling , a privately controlled integrated-media and sports entertainment company, deals primarily in professional wrestling. It uses television, the Internet, and live events, with additional major revenue sources from product licensing and direct product sales...
(TNA) promotion. He debuted in TNA on the June 18 one year anniversary show, teaming with
Jeff JarrettJeffrey Leonard "Jeff" Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and promoter currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is also Vice President of Creative Writing. He is well known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
to defeat
A.J. StylesAllen Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles , is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is the current TNA World Heavyweight Champion...
and
Syxx PacSean Michael Waltman is an American professional wrestler. Waltman is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring names 1-2-3 Kid and X-Pac, World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Syxx and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name...
. Following this, Borden engaged in a comprehensive series of sitdown interviews with
Mike TenayMike Tenay is a professional wrestling play-by-play announcer. He is best known for his time working with World Championship Wrestling and currently for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, discussing his career and his
faithFaith is the confident belief or trust in the truth or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing. The word "faith" can refer to a religion itself or to religion in general....
. Sting returned to TNA on November 5, 2003, defeating Jarrett by disqualification in a match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. On November 12, Sting teamed with A.J. Styles to defeat Jarrett and Lex Luger. He made his final TNA appearance of 2003 on December 17, defeating Jarrett in a non-title match.
On March 24, 2004, Borden was interviewed once again by Mike Tenay as part of the
promotionPromotion involves disseminating information about a product, product line, brand, or company. It is one of the five key aspects of the marketing mix....
for his
direct-to-videoA film that is released direct-to-video is one which has been released to the public on home video formats before or without being released in movie theaters or broadcast on television...
biographical filmA biographical motion picture—often shortened to biopic—is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or people. They differ from films “based on a true story” or “historical films” in that they attempt to comprehensively tell a person’s life story or at least the most...
, Sting: Moment of Truth, and on March 31, he returned to the company one night only as the special guest enforcer for the main-event, a 4 Way match between
AbyssChristopher J. "Chris" Parks , better known by his ring name "The Monster" Abyss, is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is a former NWA World Heavyweight Champion....
, A.J. Styles,
RavenScott Anthony Levy , better known by his ring name Raven, is an American professional wrestler, actor, writer, and producer, best known for his time in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling and most recently returning to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling along with Shane Douglas...
, and
Ron KillingsRonald "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment, performing on its SmackDown brand under the ring name R-Truth...
, which Raven won.
On December 11, 2005, at Turning Point, as Jeff Jarrett stood in the ring celebrating his victory, the lights in the arena went out, images of a
scorpionScorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. There are about 2,000 species of scorpions, found widely distributed south of about 49° N, except New Zealand and Antarctica...
—Sting's symbol—then appeared on the arena screens, along with the date "January 15, 2006." Spotlights then illuminated the ring, revealing that a chair bearing Sting's signature
trench coatA trench coat or trenchcoat is a raincoat made of waterproof heavy-duty cotton drill or poplin, wool gabardine, or in some cases leather: it generally has a removable insulated lining; and it is usually knee-length or longer.-History:...
, boots, and black baseball bat had been placed in the center of the ring. His return to TNA was officially announced one minute after midnight on the January 1, 2006 episode of Impact!.
2006–2008
At Final Resolution, Sting and
Christian CageWilliam Jason Reso is a Canadian professional wrestler and actor, currently signed with World Wrestling Entertainment wrestling on its ECW brand as Christian, where he is the reigning ECW Champion. Reso has also worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as Christian Cage, where he was notable for...
defeated NWA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett and
Monty BrownMontaque Nasir "Monty" Brown is an American professional wrestler and former National Football League linebacker. He is best known for his time with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled on its ECW brand under the ring name Marcus Cor Von...
after Sting pinned Jeff Jarrett following the Scorpion Death Drop. His heavily promoted return was greeted with chants of "welcome back" and "you've still got it" by the
Orlando, FloridaOrlando is a major city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan region...
audience. TNA later revealed that Final Resolution was "by far the most-purchased TNA pay-per-view event in company history, breaking all previous numbers". On the January 28, 2006 episode of Impact!, Sting made his Spike TV debut and first appearance on national television in almost five years, coming to the ring at the end of the show to make a "major announcement." Sting noted that he had never had a chance to properly say goodbye to his fans. He then announced that Final Resolution had been "his goodbye", before thanking the TNA management and the fans. Sting then dropped his bat, with a spotlight appearing over it, and left the ring, shaking hands with various TNA wrestlers on his way up the ramp.
With Sting gone, the storyline continued with Jeff Jarrett and
Eric YoungJeremy Fritz is a Canadian professional wrestler, best known under his ring name Eric Young. He currently performs for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling where he is the current Legends Champion.-Career:...
worrying that Sting had not actually retired and sending
Alex ShelleyPatrick Martin , better known by the ring name Alex Shelley, is an American professional wrestler currently wrestling for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling where he is a former TNA X Division Champion. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for Ring of Honor, as...
to California to videotape Sting at home. Sting discovered Shelley filming, then walked up to Shelley's car and told him that he was going to show up at Destination X and confront Jeff Jarrett as "Steve Borden." Clad in "street clothes" and without facepaint Borden returned at Destination X, saving Christian Cage and Rhino as they were attacked by
Jarrett's ArmyPlanet Jarrett was a professional wrestling stable in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, led by the eponymous Jeff Jarrett and containing many of the main event heels in the promotion...
. He placed Jarrett in the Scorpion Deathlock, but was attacked by the debuting
Scott SteinerScott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...
shortly thereafter. In his first cable television match in five years, Sting defeated Eric Young on the April 13, 2006 episode of Impact!. After being attacked by Jarrett, Steiner, and
America's Most WantedAmerica's Most Wanted was a professional wrestling tag team consisting of "Wildcat" Chris Harris and "Tennessee Cowboy" James Storm, who competed in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
. Sting was saved by A.J. Styles,
Ron KillingsRonald "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment, performing on its SmackDown brand under the ring name R-Truth...
, and
RhinoTerry Gerin is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Rhino and Rhyno. He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment...
, who he announced as his teammates in his Lethal Lockdown match with Jarrett's Army. At
LockdownLockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on April 23, 2006 from the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida. It was the second annual event under the Lockdown chronology. Eight professional wrestling matches were featured...
, Sting, A.J. Styles, Ron Killings, and Rhino (billed as "Sting's Warriors") defeated Jarrett, Steiner, and America's Most Wanted after
Chris HarrisChris Harris is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he was formerly one-half of the tag team America's Most Wanted along with partner James Storm....
tapped out to the Scorpion Death Lock. Following Lockdown, Sting proceeded to seek out partners to help him defeat Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner for good. After bringing out
Lex LugerLawrence Wendell Pfohl best known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player. He is best known for his work with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
,
Buff BagwellMarcus Alexander Bagwell is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name, Buff Bagwell...
, and
Rick SteinerRobert Rechsteiner better known by his ring name Rick Steiner, is an American professional wrestler.Steiner is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, both as a singles...
as options, he settled on
Samoa JoeNuufolau Joel Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
. At Sacrifice, Sting and Samoa Joe defeated Jarrett and Steiner when Joe pinned Jarrett with a Muscle Buster.
Still having proven unsuccessful at putting Jarrett away, Sting defeated Scott Steiner by disqualification to earn as spot in the
King of the Mountain matchThe King of the Mountain match is a professional wrestling match exclusive to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . It consists of five or seven competitors competing for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship or the TNA X Division Championship as of Slammiversary 2009. The match is a staple of the...
at Slammiversary. Due to a confrontation with Christian Cage during the match, Sting was distracted, allowing crooked referee
Earl HebnerEarl William Hebner is a professional wrestling referee currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and the twin brother of Dave Hebner...
to knock over the ladder both were on, sending both to the floor and allowing Jarrett to win. At Victory Road in July, a four-man Number One Contender match was held for a shot at Jeff Jarrett for the
NWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first "World Heavyweight Championship," which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title...
. During the match, Jeff Jarrett, disguised as a cameraman came into the ring with a bottle of gasoline and squirt it into Sting's eyes. Sting was taken by security into the back and as a result, taken out of the running for the number one contender match. As it continued as a 3-man contest, Sting returned to the ring with his head wrapped in bandages. After performing the Scorpion Death Drop on Scott Steiner, Sting pinned Steiner and won the number one contendership. After a confrontation with Christian Cage in the ring right after the match, they both shook hands, and Cage showed his respect for Sting. On August 13, 2006 at Hard Justice, however, Sting failed to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship losing to Jeff Jarrett after Christian Cage turned heel and hit Sting with Jarrett's guitar. On the August 17, 2006 edition of Impact!
, Sting stated that he wanted a rematch with Jeff Jarrett at Bound for Glory, TNA's biggest pay-per view of the year. Jarrett accepted the match, with the implication that Sting put his career on the line, a stipulation Sting accepted. Sting then retreated to train for what could have been his final match. Meanwhile Impact!
began showing videos of Sting going through a so-called transformation with many biblicalThe Bible contains the central religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. Modern Judaism generally recognizes a single set of canonical books known as the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible, as it is written almost entirely in the Hebrew language, with some small portions in Aramaic...
references.
On October 22, 2006, in a Title vs. Career match at the Bound for Glory PPV, Sting returned debuting his new look, a hybrid of his surfer,
crow,
and nWo Wolfpac styles, looking much leaner physically. He went on to claim his second NWA World Heavyweight title when Jarrett submitted to the Scorpion Deathlock marking the first major championship title Sting had won since 1999. With that victory, Sting became the oldest NWA World Heavyweight Champion of the TNA era, as well as the only person to ever win the title both before and after the inception of TNA. He lost the title to "The Monster" Abyss at Genesis by disqualification after pushing aside the referee and pushing Abyss into a stack of tables covered in barbed wire. In the weeks following Genesis, Sting's feud with Abyss continued as he tried to get in Abyss' head by telling him he was being used by his
satanicSatanism comprises a number of related beliefs and social phenomena. They share the feature of symbolism, veneration or admiration of Satan . Satan first appeared in the Hebrew Bible and was an Angel who challenged the religious faith of humans. In the Book of Job he is called "the Satan" and...
manager James Mitchell. Abyss was visibly affected by this, but remained by Mitchell's side. Sting's former friend Christian Cage and his bodyguard
TomkoTravis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko. He is best known for his time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his time in...
were also thrown in the mix, with Cage claiming he knew a dark secret in Abyss' past. The three finally met in a Three Way match for the NWA World Heavyweight title at Turning Point, with Abyss retaining the title. After Turning Point, Sting continued to try to convince Abyss he was nothing but a machine for Mitchell, and he got so far into Abyss that Abyss grabbed Mitchell by the throat, almost
chokeslamA chokeslam, or in Japanese, a "nodowa otoshi", refers to a type of body slam in professional wrestling in which the wrestler grasps their opponent's neck, lifts them up, and slams them to the mat. It is common in televised wrestling because it is simple and relatively safe, yet looks powerful on...
ming him on an edition of Impact!, but ultimately convinced himself not to.
As 2007 came along, Sting continued his feud with Abyss while trying to recapture the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. At Final Resolution, Sting faced off against Abyss and Christian Cage for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship but failed to win back the championship. On the January 24, 2007 edition of Impact!
, Sting revealed after going through public recordsPublic records is information that has been filed or recorded by local, state, federal or other government agencies, such as corporate and property records...
that Abyss shot his own father three times in the back, sending him into a comaIn medicine, a coma is a profound state of unconsciousness. A comatose person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to pain or light, does not have sleep-wake cycles, and does not take voluntary actions....
. During the ensuing brawl throughout the Impact! Zone between Sting and Abyss, James Mitchell burned Sting's face with a fireball, sending Sting to the hospital. Sting, however, returned to defeat Abyss at Against All Odds in a "Prison Yard" match, and also would once again defeat Abyss at Destination X in a "Last Rites" match. On the March 22 edition of Impact!
, Sting teamed with his enemy Abyss to face Christian Cage and A.J. Styles. During the match, Mitchell returned with a woman who Abyss recognized. Abyss then left with Mitchell and the woman, leaving Sting alone to fight Cage and Styles. The following week on Impact!, during a meeting between Sting and James Mitchell, it was revealed that the woman was Abyss' mother, and that she was the one who had actually shot Abyss' father, but Abyss took the blame to protect his mother. Later in the night, it was announced Abyss was added to the Lethal Lockdown match at
LockdownLockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, which took place on April 15, 2007 at the Family Arena in Saint Charles, Missouri. This was the second monthly pay-per-view, after Bound for Glory 2006, to be held outside Orlando, Florida. It was...
as part of Team Cage while Sting ended up joining Team Angle. At Lockdown, Sting (with the help of Jeff Jarrett) pinned Abyss to win the match and in the process end their bitter rivalry.
Due to his win, he was supposed to be facing Christian Cage for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at Sacrifice, but the next week on Impact!,
Kurt AngleKurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, actor and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, as recognized by promotion.Angle was involved in amateur wrestling...
challenged Sting for his number one contendership. After Team Cage interfered in the match, it was revealed that at Sacrifice there would be a three way match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship between Sting, Kurt Angle, and Christian Cage. In the match, Sting tapped out to the Ankle Lock while pinning Cage (technically making him the first superstar to pin or force Cage to submit in TNA), so the title was vacated. After
Christopher DanielsDaniel Christopher Covell is an American professional wrestler, best known in the United States by his ring name "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling wrestling as Daniels. He has also wrestled as Curry Man and Suicide...
attacked Sting near the end his
King of the MountainThe King of the Mountain match is a professional wrestling match exclusive to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . It consists of five or seven competitors competing for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship or the TNA X Division Championship as of Slammiversary 2009. The match is a staple of the...
qualifying match with
Samoa JoeNuufolau Joel Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
costing him the match, he began a short feud with "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. At
SlammiversarySlammiversary was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, which took place on June 17, 2007 at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. It was the third event under the Slammiversary chronology and marked the fifth anniversary of...
, Sting defeated Christopher Daniels with the Scorpion Death Drop.
After his feud with Daniels, Sting began teaming up with his former enemy, Abyss (who had recently turned face). Together at Victory Road, they defeated A.J. Styles and Tomko. While trying to help Abyss to win a match against A.J. Styles, Sting and Abyss were attacked by
Christian's CoalitionChristian's Coalition / Team Cage was a villainous professional wrestling faction in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling led by Christian Cage...
. Abyss was pulled under the ring and Sting was slammed into broken glass by Tomko, before Abyss emerged bleeding badly and was slammed into the broken glass and thumbtacks. The next week, Sting and Abyss got revenge by defeating Christian and A.J. Styles in a
ladder matchA ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling that is most commonly used to describe a match where an item is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item...
, in the process earning a contract that allowed them to pick the type of match between Abyss and Christian at Hard Justice. It was announced via TNA mobile that Abyss had selected "Doomsday Chamber of Blood" match. Sting's team won, with his partner Abyss pinning A.J. Styles to become the number one contender for the
TNA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division...
. On the August 30 edition of Impact!, Sting defeated Samoa Joe, A.J. Styles, and Christian Cage in a Four-Way match to become the co-holder of the
TNA World Tag Team ChampionshipThe TNA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested within TNA's tag team division. It was created and debuted on May 14, 2007 at the taping of TNA's primary television program,...
with Kurt Angle. Yet after only thirteen days, Sting and Angle lost the titles to
Adam "Pacman" JonesAdam Bernard "Pacman" Jones , is a professional American cornerback and return specialist free agent. He was drafted in the first round with the sixth-overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans. He played college football at West Virginia.Jones has also played for the Dallas Cowboys...
and
Ron "The Truth" KillingsRonald "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment, performing on its SmackDown brand under the ring name R-Truth...
at No Surrender. During the match,
Karen AngleKaren Angle is an American former professional wrestling valet and personality. She is most famous for her stint in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling from 2007 - 2008...
claimed that Sting had slapped her. This led to a falling out between Sting and Kurt Angle and on the first two hour edition of Impact!, Kurt Angle was shown via satellite (
kayfabeIn professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real." That is, the portrayal of professional wrestling as being genuine or not worked...
) stalking and assaulting Sting's son Garrett. It was announced that Sting would face Kurt Angle for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship at
Bound for GloryBound for Glory was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on October 14, 2007 at the Gwinnett Center in the Atlanta suburb of Duluth, Georgia. It was the third event under the Bound for Glory chronology...
. The match was billed as return to his roots for Sting, who enjoyed enormous popularity and success in the Atlanta based World Championship Wrestling earlier in his career. At Bound for Glory, Sting overcame interference by both
Karen AngleKaren Angle is an American former professional wrestling valet and personality. She is most famous for her stint in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling from 2007 - 2008...
and
Kevin NashKevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. Nash has wrestled under various ring names, but most notably by his own name, for World Championship Wrestling and wrestled by his own name and as Diesel in World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment...
to pin Kurt Angle after a Scorpion Death Drop to win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Sting lost the championship back to Kurt Angle on the October 25 edition of Impact (taped October 16). Sting then challenged Angle to a rematch at Genesis in a tag team match. Angle chose Kevin Nash as his partner, while Sting's partner was a mystery until during the event where his partner was revealed to be
Booker TBooker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently wrestling for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
. In the match, whoever scored the pinfall would win the TNA World Championship. Kurt Angle retained the TNA World Championship by pinning Sting. This would be the final TNA appearance of Sting in 2007 as he would take some time off to be with his family.
On the March 20 edition of Impact!
, after a brawl between members of both Team Cage and Team Tomko, a promo aired at the end of the show indicating that Sting would return the next week on the first-ever live Impact! episode. Sting then made his official return on March 27, announcing that he would be a part of Team Cage for the Lethal Lockdown match at
LockdownLockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on April 13, 2008 at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts. It was the fourth annual event under the Lockdown chronology. Eight professional wrestling matches were featured...
. Later on the show, he teamed with members of Team Cage (Christian Cage, Kevin Nash,
RhinoTerry Gerin is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Rhino and Rhyno. He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment...
, and Matt Morgan) and defeated Team Tomko (
TomkoTravis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko. He is best known for his time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his time in...
,
A.J. StylesAllen Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles , is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is the current TNA World Heavyweight Champion...
,
James StormJames Allan Black is an American professional wrestler who competes under the ring name James Storm. He is currently contracted with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling where he is a former 10-time Tag Team champion having won the NWA World Tag Team Championship seven times and the TNA World Tag Team...
, and
Team 3DTeam 3D is a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
) in a 5-man tag team match. Morgan was added when James Storm attacked Sting with a glass bottle after the match. Sting, however, later gained revenge by defeating James Storm when Matt Morgan threw him his baseball bat. Morgan then ripped off his referee shirt and revealed a Team Cage shirt, thus becoming the fifth member. At Lockdown, Team Cage defeated Team Tomko when Rhino Gored Storm to get the pinfall.
2008-present
At
Victory RoadVictory Road was the fourth Victory Road professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by American promotion, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, Booker T faced Samoa Joe for the TNA World Title. During the match, Sting tried to talk sense into Joe, as he was brutally beating Booker T, potentially towards a disqualification. Joe rebuked him, and Sting struck him with his trademark black baseball bat. Over the coming weeks, the feud between Joe and Booker intensified, with episodes ending with Booker T or Sharmell striking Samoa Joe with Sting's trademark bat as Impact! went off the air, leading to a question of whether Sting had turned on Samoa Joe and became a heel (although receiving a
faceIn professional wrestling, a face or babyface is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains. Not everything a face wrestler does must be heroic: faces need only to be cheered by the audience to be effective characters...
reaction), Sting sided with Booker T. At
Hard JusticeHard Justice was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on August 10, 2008 at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton, New Jersey. It was the fourth annual event under the Hard Justice chronology...
, Sting attacked A.J Styles after he and Kurt Angle wrestled a Last Man Standing match.
Sting later admitted to why he attacked Joe and Styles by saying that the younger generation needed to learn about respecting veterans like Angle, Booker, and himself. He declared that he wouldn't retire until he had accomplished this mission. This led to mixed fan reactions, and sparked a feud between him and TNA World Heavyweight Champion Samoa Joe, as well as
Jeff JarrettJeffrey Leonard "Jeff" Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and promoter currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is also Vice President of Creative Writing. He is well known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
who arrived to aid Samoa Joe and A.J. Styles by giving them his guitar as Sting had done with his bat.
At
Bound for Glory IVBound for Glory IV was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on October 12, 2008 at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. It was the fourth annual Bound for Glory event and the first to be referred to in roman numerals...
, Sting challenged Samoa Joe for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship and was successful in claiming the title, after Kevin Nash returned and hit Joe with Sting's baseball bat. On October 23, Sting joined
The Main Event MafiaThe Main Event Mafia is a villainous alliance in the professional wrestling promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
(Kurt Angle, Booker T, Sharmell, Kevin Nash,
Scott SteinerScott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...
, and himself) and by doing so, he fully turned heel for the first time in years. At
Lockdown 2009Lockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion, which took place on April 19, 2009 at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was the fifth event under the Lockdown chronology...
, he lost the
TNA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division...
to
Mick FoleyMichael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American actor, author, comedian, voice over, and professional wrestler, currently signed with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is the storyline "Executive Shareholder"...
inside the Six Sides of Steel. At Sacrifice, he pinned Kurt Angle to become the new Godfather of the Main Event Mafia. However, on the episode of Impact! following
SlammiversarySlammiversary was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on June 21, 2009 at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It was the fifth event under the Slammiversary chronology and used to commemorate the seventh...
Sting was scripted to be attacked by his fellow Main Event Mafia members. The following week, he took his revenge upon the mafia, when he attacked every member of the group and stole Angle's world heavyweight championship belt turning him face in the process. At
Victory RoadVictory Road was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on July 19, 2009 at the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida...
, Sting faced Samoa Joe in a singles match. Later in the match, Taz made his TNA debut and helped Joe beat Sting. Sting then went on to challenge for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in a triple threat match with Matt Morgan and Kurt Angle at Hard Justice. At
No SurrenderNo Surrender was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion, which took place on September 20, 2009 at the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida...
, Sting lost in five-way match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship that also included Angle, Styles,
HernandezShawn Hernandez is an American professional wrestler of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring names, "Hotstuff Hernandez" and "Hernandez"....
, and Matt Morgan. Instead of pinning Angle, he opted to attack Morgan, to allow Styles to pin Angle and become the new World Heavyweight Champion. As a token of gratitude Styles offered to give him a title shot at the following month's PPV
Bound for GloryBound for Glory was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion, which took place on October 18, 2009 at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California...
in a match billed as possibly being Sting's retirement match. At the PPV Styles defeated Sting to retain his title. After the match he announced that he didn't know whether he would continue his career or not.
Other media
Borden appeared in the 1998 film The Real Reason (Men Commit Crimes)
, the 2000 made-for-TNT film Shutterspeed
, and the 2000 film Ready to RumbleReady to Rumble is a 2000 American comedy film directed by Brian Robbins and written by Steven Brill, which is based on Turner Broadcasting's now defunct professional wrestling promotion, World Championship Wrestling...
. He has also made guest appearances in several television seriesA television program , television programme , or television show is a segment of content broadcast on television...
, including Thunder in ParadiseThunder in Paradise is a one-hour action-adventure TV series from the creators of Baywatch, which stars Hulk Hogan, Chris Lemmon and Carol Alt. This first-run syndicated TV series originally premiered as a straight-to-video feature in September 1993, then ran for one season in 1994 before being...
, Walker, Texas RangerWalker, Texas Ranger is an American television police drama/Action, created by Lesie Grief and Paul Haggis. It aired on CBS with three pilot episodes followed by eight full seasons, from April 21, 1993 to May 19, 2001, was broadcast in over 100 countries, and has since spawned at least one...
, The Nightmare RoomThe Nightmare Room is an American children's anthology horror series that aired on Kids' WB!. The series was based on the short-lived book series The Nightmare Room children's books created by Goosebumps author, R.L. Stine. The Nightmare Room originally aired from August 31, 2001, to March 16,...
, The Nick Cannon ShowThe Nick Cannon Show is an American television comedy spin-off of All That. It aired on Nickelodeon's SNICK block 2002-2003 along with All That, The Amanda Show, and Taina...
, and MADtvMADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licenses the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise has no connection with the humor magazine outside of animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first TV...
. In 2004, a direct-to-videoA film that is released direct-to-video is one which has been released to the public on home video formats before or without being released in movie theaters or broadcast on television...
biographical filmA biographical motion picture—often shortened to biopic—is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or people. They differ from films “based on a true story” or “historical films” in that they attempt to comprehensively tell a person’s life story or at least the most...
entitled Sting: Moment of Truth
was released. The scripted film features numerous wrestling personalities, with Sting reprising his role as a seasoned wrestler, and Donnie Fallgatter playing the role of Sting as a rookie wrestler. Borden has also hosted the Trinity Broadcasting NetworkThe Trinity Broadcasting Network is the United States' largest Christian television network. Headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, it also has studio facilities located in Irving, Texas; Hendersonville, Tennessee; Decatur, Georgia; Miami, Florida; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Orlando, Florida; and New York...
's flagship program Praise the LordPraise The Lord is the flagship television program of the Trinity Broadcasting Network , based in southern California, USA.For most of its history the show was primarily hosted by Paul and Jan Crouch. In recent years, Paul and Jan host the show only during telethons such as Praise-a-thon and the...
on three separate occasions. On those programs Vince RussoVincent James "Vince" Russo is an American writer of Italian origin, known for working for American professional wrestling companies, most notably the World Wrestling Federation and later World Championship Wrestling, where he also had a stint as World Heavyweight Champion...
, Shawn MichaelsMichael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American professional wrestler. He performs for World Wrestling Entertainment , formerly the World Wrestling Federation, on its Raw brand...
, and Lex LugerLawrence Wendell Pfohl best known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player. He is best known for his work with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
were among his guests.
In addition, there are two books that detail his career, Chad Bonham's Wrestling With God
(2001) and a collaboration between Sting and George King entitled Sting: Moment of Truth
(2004). Moreover, he has several DVDs and VHSs, including Sting: Deadly Venom
, Sting: Unmasked
, Sting: Back in Black
, and Sting: Return of an Icon.
Personal life
He became a
born-again ChristianChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented by the revelations in the New Testament....
in August 1998. Borden is married to Sue and the couple have two sons, Garrett (born 1991) and Steven (born 1992), and a daughter, Grace (born January 2000). The family are Pentecostal Christians. The Borden family is actively involved with their church, called Church on the Rock, in
Santa Clarita, CaliforniaSanta Clarita is the fourth largest city in Los Angeles County, California, United States and the twenty-sixth largest city in the State of California. The California Department of Finance estimated the city population as of January 1, 2009 at 177,150. Including unincorporated areas of the Santa...
. Borden's brother, Jeff, is senior pastor. His son, Garrett, attends
Azusa Pacific UniversityAzusa Pacific University is a private, inter-denominational, evangelical Christian university located near Los Angeles in suburban Azusa, California. It was founded in 1899, with classes opening on March 3, 1900 in Whittier, California. It began offering degrees in 1939...
where he plays fullback on the football team, while Steven is playing QB for Waxahachie HS (Waxahachie, TX)
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Scorpion Death Drop (Reverse DDT)
- Scorpion Deathlock
The Sharpshooter, originally named Sasori-gatame, Scorpion Hold in English, is a professional wrestling submission hold. The move is also known several other names: cloverleaf leg-lace Boston crab, standing inverted figure four leglock, and, the most commonly-known alternative, Scorpion Deathlock...
- Signature moves
- Belly to back suplex
- Diving crossbody
- Diving DDT
- Diving knee drop
- Dropkick
A dropkick is an attacking maneuver in professional wrestling. It is defined as an attack where the wrestler jumps up and kicks the opponent with the soles of both feet, this sees the wrestler twist as they jump so that when the feet connect with the opponent one foot is raised higher than the...
- Flying clothesline
- Inverted atomic drop
- Kneeling belly to belly piledriver
- Military press slam
- One–handed bulldog
- Sleeper hold
- Spinebuster
- Splash
- Stinger Splash – innovated
- Vertical suplex
- Nickname
A nickname is a descriptive name given in place of or in addition to the official name of a person, place or thing. It can also be the familiar or truncated form of the proper name, which may sometimes be used simply for convenience A nickname (also spelled "nick name") is a descriptive name...
s
- "The Icon"
- "(The) Stinger"
- "The Franchise of WCW"
- Entrance themes
Music in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
- "Man Called Sting" by Jimmy Hart
Jimmy Ray Hart is a professional wrestling manager, executive, composer, and musician best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling. He has managed many professional wrestlers, including Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Ted DiBiase, and...
(WCW)
- "Crow Theme" (WCW)
- "Seek & Destroy" by Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1981. Founded when drummer Lars Ulrich posted an advertisement in a local newspaper, Metallica's line-up has primarily consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, and lead guitarist Kirk...
(WCW)
- "Slay Me" by Dale Oliver
Dale Oliver is an American music composer who works for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. Formerly a guitarist in BackHawk , Oliver serves mainly as a composer of theme music used in professional wrestling.-Music composer for TNA:Like his World Wrestling Entertainment counterpart Jim Johnston, and...
(TNA)
Championships and accomplishments
- Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. up until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
/ World Championship WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and his...
- NWA World Heavyweight Championship
The National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first "World Heavyweight Championship," which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title...
(1 time)1
- NWA World Television Championship
The World Championship Wrestling World Television Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Championship Wrestling....
(1 time)
- WCW International World Heavyweight Championship
The World Championship Wrestling International World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship that took the place of the original NWA World Heavyweight Championship when World Championship Wrestling withdrew from the National Wrestling Alliance in 1993...
(2 times)
- WCW United States Heavyweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw...
(2 times)
- WCW World Heavyweight Championship
The World Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the top title contested for in World Championship Wrestling...
(6 times)
- WCW World Tag Team Championship
The World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...
(3 times) – with Lex LugerLawrence Wendell Pfohl best known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player. He is best known for his work with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
(1), The GiantPaul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand where he is one half of the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions with Chris Jericho.In professional wrestling, Show is a...
(1), and Kevin NashKevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. Nash has wrestled under various ring names, but most notably by his own name, for World Championship Wrestling and wrestled by his own name and as Diesel in World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment...
(1)2
- Battlebowl Battle Royal (1991)
Starrcade '91: Battlebowl/The Lethal Lottery was the ninth annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event. It was the fourth Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling, and it took place on December 29 1991 from the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, Virginia. The event solely...
- European Cup (1994, 2000)
- Iron Man Tournament (1989)
Starrcade '89 was the seventh annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced under the National Wrestling Alliance banner. It was the second Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling , and it took place on December 13, 1989 at The Omni in Atlanta, Georgia.The...
- Jim Crockett, Sr. Memorial Cup
The Jim Crockett, Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament was a tag team professional wrestling tournament held annually in the month of April from 1986 through 1988. Jim Crockett Promotions , headed by Jim Crockett, Jr., hosted the Crockett Cup, held in honor of Crockett's father, JCP founder Jim...
(1988) – with Lex Luger
- King of Cable Tournament (1992)
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
Pro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
- PWI Comeback of the Year
The PWI Comeback of the Year Award, given yearly since 1992 by professional wrestling magazine Pro Wrestling Illustrated, recognizes the most impressive comeback by a professional wrestler during the year as voted by readers of the magazine. Hulk Hogan has won this award twice.-Award winners and...
(2006)
- PWI Match of the Year
The PWI Match of the Year Award, given yearly since 1972 by professional wrestling magazine Pro Wrestling Illustrated, recognizes the best match of the year as voted by readers of the magazine. Shawn Michaels has won the award a record 9 times; 4 in a row and has won the last five years in a...
(1991) with Lex Luger vs. the Steiner BrothersThe Steiner Brothers are the professional wrestling tag team of American brothers Robert "Rick Steiner" Rechsteiner and Scott "Scott Steiner" Rechsteiner...
at SuperBrawl
- PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year
The PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year Award, given yearly since 1978 by professional wrestling magazine Pro Wrestling Illustrated, recognizes the most improved professional wrestler of the year as voted by readers of the magazine....
(1988)
- PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year
The PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year Award, given yearly since 1972 by professional wrestling magazine Pro Wrestling Illustrated, recognizes the most inspirational professional wrestler of the year as voted by readers of the magazine. Bob Backlund, Hulk Hogan and Eddie Guerrero won this...
(1990)
- PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year
The PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year Award, given yearly since 1972 by professional wrestling magazine Pro Wrestling Illustrated, recognizes the best face professional wrestler of the year as voted by readers of the magazine. Sting has won this award a record 4 times.-Award winners and...
(1991, 1992, 1994, 1997)..
- PWI Wrestler of the Year
The PWI Wrestler of the Year Award, given yearly since 1972 by professional wrestling magazine Pro Wrestling Illustrated, recognizes the best professional wrestler of the year as voted by readers of the magazine. Ric Flair has been voted wrestler of the year a record 6 times.-Award winners and...
(1990)
- PWI ranked him #1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1992
- PWI ranked him #15 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003
- PWI ranked him #52 of the Top 100 Tag Teams of the "PWI Years" with Lex Luger in 2003
- Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , a privately controlled integrated-media and sports entertainment company, deals primarily in professional wrestling. It uses television, the Internet, and live events, with additional major revenue sources from product licensing and direct product sales...
- NWA World Heavyweight Championship
The National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first "World Heavyweight Championship," which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title...
(1 time)3
- TNA World Heavyweight Championship
The TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division...
(2 times)
- TNA World Tag Team Championship
The TNA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested within TNA's tag team division. It was created and debuted on May 14, 2007 at the taping of TNA's primary television program,...
(1 time) – with Kurt AngleKurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, actor and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, as recognized by promotion.Angle was involved in amateur wrestling...
- Universal Wrestling Federation
- UWF World Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Eddie Gilbert (2) and Rick Steiner
Robert Rechsteiner better known by his ring name Rick Steiner, is an American professional wrestler.Steiner is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, both as a singles...
(1)
- World Wrestling All-Stars
The World Wrestling All-Stars was a professional wrestling promotion founded by Australian concert promoter Andrew McManus in 2001. The promotion was operated by McManus' International Touring Company. WWA was one of several promotions to come into existence shortly after the closings of Extreme...
- WWA World Heavyweight Championship
The World Wrestling All-Stars World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Wrestling All-Stars. It was the primary championship in the WWA. The title was sanctioned by WWA as their world title and defended in multiple countries, making it a...
(1 time)
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
- Best Babyface (1992)
- Match of the Year (1988) vs. Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr better known by his ring name, Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Also known as "The Nature Boy," Flair is one of the most well known professional wrestlers in the world....
at Clash of the Champions I
- Most Charismatic (1988, 1992)
- Most Improved (1988)
- Worst Worked Match of the Year (1995) vs. Tony Palmore at Battle 7
1Won while the NWA World Heavyweight Title was defended in World Championship Wrestling when WCW was part of the National Wrestling Alliance. The same goes for any other NWA championship or honor won after November 1988.
2This tag-team title reign was actually one continuous reign, as Sting and Giant won the titles while Giant was aligned with nWo Hollywood. Sting defeated Giant for his half of the tag titles and named Nash his partner afterwards.
3Won while TNA obtained the sole rights to use the NWA World Heavyweight Championship through an agreement with the NWA.
External links