Interesting Facts about Sting

Interesting Facts about Sting

March 21, 2024

By Ryan Porzl

Whether you love him or hate him, it's hard not to respect the man called Sting. For 39 years, Sting has entertained wrestling fans and created an amazing and enduring legacy. Few are as loved and respected as him. He was able to reinvent himself at times when it looked like he was getting stale and enjoyed comebacks when it looked like his career was down for the count. With his 65th birthday coming this month and with his recent retirement, I figured it be a nice time to look at some interesting facts you may or may not have known about The Stinger.

Note: I don't own the pictures. I found them on Google. Credit to WWE, AEW, or whoever owns them. I apologize for not knowing the exact owners.

Is A 15 Time World Champion- Usually, when one thinks of dominant world champions or wrestlers who held many world championship, they usually go to Ric Flair or Hulk Hogan or John Cena to name some who have each held a dozen world championships. Another wrestler with a vast trophy case of world championships is Sting. From 1990-2011, Sting would go to capture fifteen world championships in three different promotions including NWA/WCW, WWA, and TNA. In WCW, Sting won nine world championships including the WCW World Heavyweight Championship six times, the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship twice, and his first NWA World Championship. In World Wrestling All-Stars, Sting would go on to win the WWA World Championship once in 2002. From 2006-2011, Sting won five more world championships in TNA. In 2006, he won his second NWA World Championship and from there, won the TNA World Championship four times with his last reign being in 2011. With these wins, one can say Sting is one of the most dominant world champions in wrestling history.

His First and Last Title Reigns Have A Lot In Common- You may not think it or know it but Sting's first and final championships in his legendary career have quite a lot in common and were a fascinating way to sandwich his trophy case. Both reigns were tag team title reigns as Sting's first reign was the Universal Wrestling Federation Tag Team Championships while his last reign was with the All Elite Wrestling World Tag Team Championships. Both reigns also had a "mentor/protege" dynamic as well as Sting held the UWF Tag Titles with his mentor "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert while his role was reversed and he was the mentor to Darby Allin during their AEW World Tag Team Title reign. Both reigns would also end in vacancies as Sting and Gilbert lost the UWF belts after they were held up following a match against The Fantastics while he and Darby lost the AEW belts due to vacancy after Sting retired. 

Was The Final Opponent of Rick Rude- This one is probably one of the more well known facts. During Sting's career, he had his share of legendary rivalries and opponents with guys like Ric Flair and The Four Horsemen, Hulk Hogan and The nWo, and Vader being some of his most well known examples. Another man he had his shares of wars with was "Ravishing" Rick Rude. Sting and Rude first feuded from 1991-1992 when Rude defeated Sting for the WCW United States Championship. From there, the feud grew to feature Sting leading a group called Sting' Squadron against Paul Heyman's Dangerous Alliance which Rude was a member of. After Sting beat Rude to advance in the King of Cable tournament in November 1992 (which he ended up winning), the feud petered out until resuming in 1994 over Rude's International World Championship. Sting would win the belt at Spring Stampede 1994 thanks to botched interference from Harley Race. With that, the two rematched at New Japan's Wrestling Dontaku 1994 show. Unfortunately, the match would turn out to be Rude's final match as Rude suffered a bad back injury after Sting dove out of the ring, landed on Rude, and Rude's back was crushed on the edge of the platform the ring was on. Despite this, Rude would finish the match and regain the title. Following the match, Rude never wrestled again for the remainder of his life as he would decide to collect on his Lloyd's of London disability which legally prevented him from wrestling again unless it was bought out. In the end, Rude would plan a comeback to the ring at the time of his death in 1999 but still hadn't been able to get out of his deal.

Wrestled Kane In His Only WCW Match- This one has become more well known in recent year but it must be pointed out. One of WWE's top stars during the Attitude Era and the Ruthless Aggression was Kane. From the late 1990s to late 2010s, he was a mainstay in the WWE and enjoyed his share of success including runs as WWE, World Heavyweight, and ECW Champion. However, before he was The Big Red Machine and for that matter, before he was cosplaying as Kevin Nash and portraying an evil dentist, Kane made an appearance for WCW. On the March 6, 1993 edition of WCW Saturday Night, Sting faced Kane who competed under the name "Bruiser Mastino" and scored the win in a short match at 2:56. The match proved to be one and done for Kane as he did time in the indie circuit, Puerto Rico, and SMW before joining the WWF in 1995 and the rest is history.

Main Evented Bound For Glory More Than Anyone In A Row- Since 2005, TNA's biggest show of the year has been Bound For Glory. Held mostly in October (except in 2017), the event is to TNA/Impact what Wrestlemania is the WWE or Wrestle Kingdom is to New Japan or Final Battle is to Ring of Honor. Many big moments and matches have occurred at Bound For Glory while many all time greats participated. One man who made a huge mark on the event is Sting as many of the early BFGs featured Sting in the main event and usually ended with him walking out as the new world champion. Sting would make history as he main evented the premiere event four times in a row from 2006-2009. In 2006, he defeated Jeff Jarrett for the NWA World Championship. In 2007, he defeated Kurt Angle for the TNA World Championship. In 2008, he defeated Samoa Joe for the TNA Championship, Finally in 2009, he lost to TNA World Champion AJ Styles. As of 2024, Sting still holds the record for most consecutive BFG main events though that could change if Josh Alexander headlines the 2024 edition.

Is The Third And Most Recent To Have Held The Big Gold Belt And The Ten Pounds Of Gold Belt As NWA World Heavyweight Champion- Before I begin with this one, I'm not counting Jeff Jarrett and Christian Cage who held both belts but the Big Gold Belt was a different belt, not the NWA World Championship. From it's creation in 1948 till the mid 1980s, the top prize in professional wrestling was the NWA World Championship. During it's long history, several belts have represented it with the two famous incarnations. The first was the "Domed Globe" or "Ten Pounds of Gold" belt that was used from 1973-1986 and again from 1994-present day while the second was the Big Gold Belt which was used from 1986-1993 and would later represent the WCW World Championship and the World Heavyweight Championship in WWE. Only three men have had the honor of holding both belts as the NWA World Championship. Sting would become the third and most recent as he held the Big Gold Belt during his first NWA Championship reign from July 1990 to January 1991 while holding the Ten Pounds of Gold during his second run from October to November 2006. The only other men to have held both as the NWA World Champion were Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes.

Has The Longest Gap Between NWA World Title Reigns- For nearly eighty years, one of wrestling's biggest honors was the NWA World Championship. From 1948-1984, the NWA World Championship was the most prestigious honor in wrestling. Even though it's value has diminished over the decades, it's still a good achievement to have. Many all time great have held it and many have made history with it and Sting would be one of them. Sting would hold the NWA World Championship on two occasions during his career with his first reign beginning on July 7, 1990 when he defeated Ric Flair before losing the belt back to Flair on January 11, 1991. He wouldn't hold the title again until October 22, 2006 when he defeated Jeff Jarrett before losing it to Abyss on November 19, 2006. With these reigns, Sting holds the record for longest gaps as from the time his first reign ended to when his second reign began would go nearly sixteen years.

Wrestled The Final Match In WCW History- Two of the biggest names in the history of Jim Crockett Promotions/World Championship Wrestling were Ric Flair and Sting. Both achieved their biggest breaks there and became legends there. Flair was the face during the early 80s to early 90s while Sting became the Franchise during the 90s while also being the one major WCW star to never defect to the WWF during that time. Flair and Sting have so much history against each other as the two headlined the first Clash of the Champions which put Sting on the map, Sting won his first world title from Flair at Great American Bash 1990, and they faced each other on the first Monday Nitro in 1995. Having said all that, it's probably no surprise that when WCW knew the end was near, there was only one match that can close the promotion and that was Sting vs. Ric Flair for potentially the final time. The match took place on the final Monday Nitro on March 26, 2001 with Sting pulling out the win with the scorpion deathlock in 7:19. While the match won't go down as one of their best, it could perhaps go down as one of the most emotional as they were two men who were JCP/WCW more than anyone and it was only fitting they close the book on the promotion. Then there is the fact that if you talked to both men, they probably tell you they went into that match thinking it would be their last. While this wouldn't be the case, there was a good possibility both legends could've rode off into the sunset along with the promotion.

Oldest TNA World Champion In History- Since it's creation in 2007, the TNA World Championship has been one of wrestling's most prestigious world championships. The title has been held by a who's who in professional wrestling from legends like Kurt Angle, AJ Styles, Bobby Lashley, John Morrison, Rob Van Dam, and Christian Cage to TNA legends like Bobby Roode and Eric Young to current wrestling stars like Kenny Omega, EC3, Brian Cage, and LA Knight (then Eli Drake). Among those who would make their mark with the title is Sting. From 2007-2011, The Icon captured the championship on four occasions making him tied with Lashley for second most behind Angle's six reigns. In July 2011, Sting would win the title for a fourth and final time from Mr. Anderson which would make him the oldest world champion in TNA history at 52 years old. As of 2024, Sting still holds the record and outside of perhaps PCO, it seems unlikely TNA will book someone older than 52 to win the belt.

Wrestled Hulk Hogan In Hogan's Final PPV and Televised Match- Whenever you think of Sting's greatest rivals, many legends come about. Ric Flair is probably the first but another big one was another legend in Hulk Hogan. Sting and Hogan would feud on and off for fifteen years beginning in 1996 when Sting began defending WCW against Hogan and the nWo. The two would headline several WCW events while their infamous match at Starrcade 1997 can be considered the biggest match in WCW's history. After more than a decade apart, Hogan and Sting reignited their feud upon Hogan's arrival to TNA in 2010 and after he took control of the promotion with Eric Bischoff, Sting would become one of TNA's big defenders to an attempt to reclaim the promotion for president Dixie Carter. This eventual culminated at Bound For Glory 2011 on October 16, 2011 for control of TNA. As was the case with their WCW encounters, Sting would get the upper hand on the Hulkster by defeating him with the scorpion deathlock in 10:43. After the match, Hogan would see the error of his ways and turned face by helping Sting take out his stable Immortal. The match would make history as it marked the final PPV and televised match Hogan would have in his legendary career. Ultimately, Hogan would only compete in two matches during non televised events for TNA's 2012 UK tour in January 2012 before retiring due to age and injuries and closing a 35 year career. As a result, to many fans worldwide, Sting would be the final opponent for the man considered "The Babe Ruth of Professional Wrestling".

Won Both His WCW United States Championships In Tournaments- For nearly 50 years, one of wrestling's most prestigious championship is the United States Championship. Originally starting out as the version used by Jim Crockett Promotions, it eventually found it's way to both WCW and WWE with many all time greats holding it and many legendary matches seeing the belt on the line. Sting would be one of many to hold the gold but what's interesting is that Sting would hold the belt twice and both times, he won it by winning tournaments. Sting would first win the title on 1991 by winning an eight man tournament. In the first round, he defeated Arn Anderson. In the semifinals, he defeated The Diamond Studd (Scott Hall). In the finals, he defeated Steve Austin. Sting would then win the title a second time in 1995 in a sixteen man tournament. In the first round, he defeated Arn Anderson once again. In the quarterfinals, he defeated Paul Orndorff. In the semifinals, he defeated Meng to win the title after the semifinal match between Ric Flair and Randy Savage went a no contest which eliminated both.

Ric Flair as The Black Scorpion

The Only Wrestler To Successfully Defend A World Title Against Ric Flair At Starrcade- If Shawn Michaels is considered "Mr. Wrestlemania" then Ric Flair can be considered "Mr. Starrcade". Since the first event in 1983, Flair would make his mark on the year supercard with some of his most famous matches and moments taking place at that event. Flair also main evented the first ten straight and had many famous title defenses and wins. One of his more infamous appearances would be 1990 but not as himself but as The Black Scorpion, a mysterious masked man who had been stalking Sting since Sting's title win over Flair at Great American Bash 1990 and had claimed to have been a figure from Sting's past. The storyline would culminate at Starrcade 1990 with Sting defending the NWA World Title against The Scorpion who would put up his mask if he lost in a steel cage match. In the end, Sting would retain in 18:31. After the match, chaos would erupt involving The Four Horsemen and Sting allies such as The Steiner Brothers with Sting eventually unmasking The Scorpion to reveal Flair. With the win, Sting became the first and ultimately the only wrestler to successfully defend a world title against The Nature Boy at NWA/WCW's premiere event. Prior to 1990, Flair won the NWA World Title from Harley Race in 1983 and Ron Garvin in 1987 (ironically, both of those were also steel cage matches). In the years after, he then won the WCW World Title from Vader in 1993 and Randy Savage in 1995.