20 WWE Superstars And Their 80s Counterparts

8. Finn Balor/Sting

Luke Harper and Bruiser Brody
WWE.com/WCW Magazine

Forget the Crow version of Sting that’s currently taking part in apparent vigilantism on WWE programming, back in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s we were given what has since become known as ‘Surfer Sting.’

A high energy, face-painted babyface who was ridiculously popular with any and all demographics, The Stinger of that time is instantly relatable to NXT’s Finn Balor.

Balor may not have gotten anywhere near to the success of Sting just yet - who by the late ‘80s was challenging the likes of Ric Flair and The Great Muta for the NWA’s biggest prizes - but he’s certainly got the potential to do huge things now that he’s on the cusp of being called up to the WWE main roster and seemingly has the backing of the company’s big cheeses.

With Balor’s high octane offense, elaborate body paint and his unique ability to appeal to mass demographics, if handled correctly then the former Prince Devitt will be one of the biggest stars on the WWE roster for years to come. 

Just keep him away from RoboCop…

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.