Exposing The Myth: Pre-nWo WCW Was Trash

Yes, Sting in his Crow gimmick was great, his rivalry with Hulk Hogan was expertly crafted, and yes, Crow Sting is Steve Borden's most famous persona. But seriously, Surfer Sting was all kinds of fantastic.

While there's a fair argument to be made that Sting's act needed a bit of a refresh by the mid '90s, that doesn't take away from just how hot the Stinger had been for the early days of Jim Crockett Promotions' transition to World Championship Wrestling.

At that point in time in the late '80s and beginning of the '90s, Hulk Hogan was the proud rooster parading around as the WWF's perma-tanned poster boy. Over in WCW though, Sting was just as popular with the WCW audience as the skullet-adorned Hulkster was with WWF masses - only WCW went out to an admittedly smaller audience than Vince McMahon's powerhouse promotion.

Still, that didn't stop Sting from becoming a true megastar, and his babyface shtick was still shining strong even when WWF fans were starting to get tired of the 'Hogan must pose, brother' days of Hulk's reign atop the WWF. While Hogan's act had become stale by the early '90s, the Stinger's fan base was only expanding.

Classic rivalries played out against Ric Flair, against Cactus Jack, against Rick Rude, and against Big Van Vader, as Sting so often displayed something that Hogan did not: vulnerability.

Sure, Sting had his own variation of 'Hulking Up', yet Borden was a great seller who would make his opponents look like genuine threats. Added to that, the man behind the paint was never afraid to lose when the time called for it.

Crow Sting is rightfully revered, but Surfer Sting deserves so much praise for how to present a company's top babyface act.