15 Times WCW Was Better Than Literally EVERYTHING
11. Sting Beats Ric Flair With A Bad Knee
"Sting's got him - inside cradle. Could this be all?! YEEEEEE-EEEEES! A new heavyweight champion of the world has been crowned!". That classic call from iconic announcer Jim Ross on play-by-play summed up the atmosphere surrounding WCW heading into the Great American Bash 1990. People were ready to see Sting become champ at the expense of Ric Flair.
Oh boy, were they ever ready.
JR's commentary was outstanding, but the seamless transition from Figure Four submission attempt into small package pinning combo from the Stinger was even better. The story going in was that Flair would target an injured knee on the babyface and cause maximum damage. Before trying his finisher, Ric watched his rival crash into the corner knee-first, then screamed with joy that he was about to retain his belt.
What a moment when the ref's hand slapped the mat a third time and Sting became World Champion. Sure, the WWF's "Ultimate Challenge" between Hulk Hogan and Warrior at WrestleMania VI was larger than life and well worked, but it couldn't match up with the stunning ring work between these WCW'ers down south.
It's just a pity that WCW followed up on this with the crummy Starrcade '90 cage match and all of that Black Scorpion tripe, but the Bash was timeless and acted as a reminder of Sting's popularity. WCW's main event scene had an unmatched authenticity to it around this time period, and guys like Flair were a large reason why.
His credibility as champion, Sting's credibility as challenger and the matches they worked? Phenomenal, and technically better than anything Warrior was doing in the WWF as kingpin.