Sting

[klunderbunker]

In the same vein as the Undertaker and Jeff Jarrett threads, this is askign what will Sting's legacy be when he finally hangs up the boots? Sting is a very unique case in wrestling history, as he would have been welcomed into the arms of WWE, yet he never took the offer. He would have been a big star there as he fit the prototype of the muscle guy with the charisma and the ability to back it up. He can wrestle any style you wish and the feuds he could have had make my mouth water. Instead he just disappeared for a few years before heading to the underdog company and becoming their big star and now champion. His time in WCW is legendary, as he was the only star with the power to stand up to Hogan and come close to his level. Their feud is easily the peak of WCW, and the failure of it is minimally, if at all on Sting. Sting has done it all in this business, and you rarely hear anything bad at all about him.

In the grand scheme of things, he has one knock against him and that is never going to the biggest stage of them all. At this point, he more than likely never will, and I think that's good. Sting is famous for not doing it, and at this point it would be like ending Taker's streak. The question would simply be, why bother? Sting will go down in history as one of the all time greats, but wil likely be underrated because of Vince pushing his legacy down.

 

[HBK-aholic]

I think your last sentence explains everything there is to be said about it really. The only show I watch properly is the WWE, and I never watched WCW. I am therefore maybe slightly ignorant to what Sting has done. All I've seen is things recently, and videos of matches - which I've enjoyed - but can you really use random matches to assess how good someone is as a wrestler?

Up until I started using Wrestlezone, Sting was never a character that popped into my mind. If you didnt watch WCW, he means nothing to you, is basically what I'm trying to say. And with WWE being the company, and Mr. McMahon being the most important man in sports entertainment, I don't think Sting will remembered as well as he should be.

It comes down to many fans of the moment only caring about WWE and their superstars. The old generation of wrestling fans are slowly fading away, and you're left with people who have only been watching the business a few years, who haven't even heard of the Monday Night Wars. Who will hear Sting is in TNA, and will brush him aside. He'll be known as great by many people such as yourself KB, but with how the business has moved on so fast, and with him never being with the biggest company, I think that will limit his legacy.

 

[Dragonslayer]

Yeah Sting... as has been pointed out, much light, but much shadow as well. Personally, I love the guy. When I was getting into WCW, which was at the time when Hall & Nash first appeared in WCW of course - I mean, I had watched the program occasionally before, but really only knew Ric Flair there - but then the nWo took off, the return of Sting was really made into one of the biggest things ever. The way they teased it for almost a year(!) - think about something like this happening in WWE these days? Today, everything is rushed and wasted... but WCW really teased his return for a very long time, no one really knew with the white face paint and the dark attitude whether he would be with WCW or the nWo... now the culmination in the match with Hogan at Starrcade of course wasn't great, as the match sucked... but the buildup alone made it great. Just like Warrior vs Hogan at MW6 was a "bad" match and still great at the same time for different reasons, so Sting vs Hogan was great.

In the ring, I really did not enjoy the "Crow" Sting. I mean, he had a great new finished with the reverse DDT (especially the way he would pull the opponent's hair back and look into their face before delivering it - just priceless!), but he was waaayyy sloppy when applying the Scorpion Death Lock, and he was just really a lot better as the more "high flying" bleach-blonde Sting.

Nonetheless, he was the only legit "Franchise player" WCW ever had, and really the only WCW "creation" that could hold his ground once the influx of abandoned WWF-stars had started. Now I think him finishing his career in TNA with never having gone to WWE is a good move for him. Of course he could've headed to New York, but as a non-WWE creation, Vinnie Mac would just have put him down like he did with EVERYONE ELSE who had come from WCW and who had not been a WWE product in the first place. So even though Sting could have had some tremendous feuds in WWE, ultimately it would have tarnished his legacy more than added to it, simply because VKM would have made sure of it.

This way, he may not be remembered as well as he could be if he had been a WWE star all along... but as Tina pointed out, the mere fact that he never was kind of also adds to his legacy and the myth of Sting. So this is definitely the right path for him, and if one thing can be said - he was one of the guys who never sold out to anyone. I mean, his career is not officially over, so things could still happen, but I doubt he'll jump ship... He is just a tad too old imho. So him finishing in TNA is great, especially as a "heel" for the first time in his career ever...

I for one will fondly remember Sting, and I hope more will remember him too than one might guess in light of the supremacy that is WWE.

 

[DC24]

Sting not going to the WWF might of have been the best thing he's ever done. I've been watching Wrestling probaly since 86-87 and I'm only 25. From NWA,Smokey Mountain Wrestling, ECW, WCW, WWF I've watched it all. Ofcourse WCW and WWF are my personal favorites. Sting is top ten all-time in my book he could do every thing you want a wrestler to do. He's a mile better than Flair to me honestly and if he went to the WWF he would be beat by Kung Fu Naki and Santino every week sorta like Flair at the end of his career. Even though I don't watch TNA I'm glad he's there instead of getting his legacy shitted every week in the WWF.

 

[hahahaha]

I think Sting's legacy is intact. I think if TNA every grows to WWE levels then Sting will be hailed as one of the guys that built that bridge. He'll be known as the guy from WCW that had classic feuds with Hogan, Flair and Vader.

I think once he is retired I don't think Vince will push him down. I think they'll finally sign that deal ala Bret Hart (to put out a best of Sting career DVD) and though he'll have never wrestled in WWE he'll be in the Hall of Fame on day and Ric Flair will induct him.

 

[Psylocke_X]

I don't think a wrestler has to be in the WWE to be eligible to enter the HoF, which is sort of what you seem to be implying. The WWE is, and always will be, bigger than TNA but that doesn't mean any of the TNA guys can't make a huge impact on wrestling in general. Sting has evolved over he years and proved time and time again that he has talent and can last longer than other wrestlers. He's up there in age and is still in great shape and can put on a great match that will draw in viewers.

If he ever did make it into the WWE, I actually think he wouldn't last. He just doesn't seem like a WWE type of guy. He'd probably be wasted, anyways. The WWE would rather push guys like Triple H.

 

[Slyfox696]

First of all, KB, saying that Sting has never performed on the biggest stage of them all is just downright false. Sting was the headline name at arguably the biggest PPV in wrestling history. WCW kicked the WWE's ass for nearly 2 years. So, Sting HAS performed on the biggest stage of them all.

I think your last sentence explains everything there is to be said about it really. The only show I watch properly is the WWE, and I never watched WCW. I am therefore maybe slightly ignorant to what Sting has done. All I've seen is things recently, and videos of matches - which I've enjoyed - but can you really use random matches to assess how good someone is as a wrestler?

Up until I started using Wrestlezone, Sting was never a character that popped into my mind. If you didnt watch WCW, he means nothing to you, is basically what I'm trying to say. And with WWE being the company, and Mr. McMahon being the most important man in sports entertainment, I don't think Sting will remembered as well as he should be.

It comes down to many fans of the moment only caring about WWE and their superstars. The old generation of wrestling fans are slowly fading away, and you're left with people who have only been watching the business a few years, who haven't even heard of the Monday Night Wars. Who will hear Sting is in TNA, and will brush him aside. He'll be known as great by many people such as yourself KB, but with how the business has moved on so fast, and with him never being with the biggest company, I think that will limit his legacy.

You make a solid point, although I wish to use it differently.

The biggest problem with Sting's legacy is NOT the fact that he didn't work for the WWE. Rather, it's that wrestling fans today don't have the first damn clue about the workers of yesterday. I mean, let's stop and think for a second. How sad is it that one of the greatest American workers of all time will be nearly forgotten, simply because wrestling fans are too lazy to learn about him? Hell, the same thing is happening to Randy Savage and he DID work in the WWF/E. But, because he isn't shoved down our throats like Ric Flair was, the inclination of wrestling fans today is, as you said, to forget about them. And, I think that speaks more to the quality of wrestling fans today, than it does to the quality of someone of Sting's caliber.


Now, what do I think Sting's legacy should be? Wasted talent. Not wasted by Sting (although, he really hurt himself in '96 and '97), but wasted by the NWA. Sting, and Lex Luger for that matter, SHOULD have been the next Hulk Hogan. They SHOULD have been the NWA's answer to the WWF and Hulkamania. But, instead of pushing these guys to the moon, the NWA was worried more about their bureaucracy and paying dues. I remember being a little kid, and Sting was THE big thing in NWA/WCW. And, just like I did for Hogan, I marked out hardcore. My Sting wrestling figure was the greatest (I wish I still had it too) and I would play with it all the time. But, unlike Hogan, Sting didn't always beat the bad guys. Sting didn't always come out on top. And so, if Sting is not as good as these other guys, and is constantly fighting for the United States title and not the World title, how can he be as good as Hogan?

It was stupidity. Sting's charisma was simply unmatched in the ring. He may not have been as polished as someone like Arn Anderson or Barry Windham, but the man knew how to work, and he knew how to connect with the crowd. And damn it, the NWA/WCW should have put ALL their eggs in Sting's basket, and rode him like a fucking horse. Because Sting had IT. He was fresh, he was energetic, he was athletic, and he just had something special. But, instead of jumping behind Sting, the NWA fucked themselves over. It's for things like that which always make me shake my head at their foolishness.

So, when it is all said and done, I will say THAT is what Sting's legacy will be, in my mind. A guy who SHOULD have been the saving grace for NWA/WCW, but who kept getting pushed down for reasons still unknown.

 

[RVDgurl]

So far it appears as though people are assuming Sting will not have the legacy he deserves because he never wrestled for the WWE. I don't know if I can buy into that.

First of all, anyone who is truly a fan of wrestling will make themselves knowledgeable on the history of the game. Sting was one of the top 5 guys from the early days of WCW right up until the end of the promotion. He won world titles and fueded with the some of the best names in wrestling history (Flair and Hogan to name a few). His name is solified in history as one of the most successful players in NWA/WCW.

Secondly, let's not assume that just because the WWE is the #1 company now, that is has always been that way. Everyone who considers themself a wrestling fan is familiar with the Monday Night Wars, whether they were watching during that time or not. There were many, many months that WCW was blowing WWE out of the water. The height of the Monday Night wars belonged to WCW (and the NWO, which Sting will forever be linked to). There were millions of rabid WCW fans- All who watched Sting at argueably the pinnacle of his career.

Sting is one of the greatest wrestlers to ever lace up his boots. He is still a major player in the wrestling business as he currently holds the TNA world title. How can anyone possibly think that Sting will not leave behind a gloried and historic legacy? Whether or not one has worked for Vince McMahon has nothing whatsoever to do with how good of a worker one is. And it certainly has nothing to do with what kind of legacy one will leave.

There have been other successful companies over the years in the wrestling business besides the WWE. In fact, WCW was more successful for a time. Sting has been a main event star everywhere he has gone. And we need to remember, he has chosen to steer clear of McMahonland. Sting is a man of morals who honors his beliefs. It has been widely publicized that he has never had any interest in working for the WWE and he has stuck to that. I think this in itself lends more credibility to the legacy that Sting will leave.

 

[OIL]

Sting will be remembered as a guy who could become an icon of this business while never under the guidence of Vince McMahon. Sting has been able to become a household name while never working for the biggest company there is. Watching WCW when I was little, Sting was THE guy I wanted to see. I'd watch everyone else but I didn't care, I just waited for Sting to come out and kick ass. His character amazed me, and I loved it. His in-ring performances are more than solid to say the least, and he had a great array of moves. However, unless he has a run in the WWE, he will never be as big as he could be. Move to the WWE now Sting, have one run, it will do a lot for your legacy.