Wrestler Sting’s Greatest Professional Matches of All Time

Sting the wrestler

While he may not be as well-known among mainstream pop culture as Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin, or The Rock, wrestler Sting has accrued a formidable reputation among diehard wrestling fans the world over. One of the most accomplished performers of his generation, Sting has competed in almost every major promotion the world over, from NWA, WCW, and New Japan to WWE, TNA, and AEW.

With wrestler Sting set to retire in 2024, have a look back at some of the greatest matches in the Icon’s career, ranking them from best to worst.

Sting vs. Ric Flair (Clash of the Champions I)

Ric Flair and Sting at inaugural Clash of the Champions
Image Credit: National Wrestling Alliance.

The match that made wrestler Sting an overnight sensation, the Icon’s first match against Ric Flair proved nothing less than pure wrestling artistry. Competing to a somewhat disappointing 45-minute time-limit draw, Sting may not have captured Flair’s coveted World Heavyweight Championship. However, this 1988 title match demonstrated Sting’s clear ability to hold his own against WCW’s franchise player, foreshadowing the numerous clashes between Flair and Sting over the next two decades.

Sting, Brian Pillman, and the Steiner Brothers vs. The Four Horsemen (Wrestlewar ‘91)

The Four Horsemen vs. Sting, Brian Pillman, and The Steiner Brothers (WrestleWar ‘91)
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

Perhaps the greatest match in WarGames’ history, wrestler Sting called on all his various allies for aid in his 1991 feud against Ric Flair and his villainous Four Horsemen stable. As a result, WCW booked the Horsemen and Sting’s group into a violent WarGames match at WrestleWar ‘91. More so than most other vintage WarGames bouts, the match featured intense physical violence and edgier spots, culminating in a young Brian Pillman taking two botched powerbombs, landing straight onto his head and neck.

Sting vs. Ric Flair (Great American Bash 1990)

Ric Flair vs. Sting (The Great American Bash 1990)
Image Credit: World Wrestling Entertainment.

If Sting’s match against Ric Flair at Clash of the Champion demonstrated his potential star power, their later rematch at Great American Bash 1990 hammered home that point with stunning clarity. Winning his first World Heavyweight Championship in the pay-per-view’s main event, Sting rose to the very top of WCW programming, mirroring Flair’s own underdog victory over Harley Race seven years prior. An emotional victory for the Stinger, it established the Icon as the company’s most notable mainstay attraction–a position he held until WCW shuttered its doors 11 years later.

Sting vs. Cactus Jack (Beach Blast 1992)

Cactus Jack vs. Sting (Beach Blast 1992)
Image Credit: World Wrestling Entertainment.

Perhaps the most violent match of Sting’s career, his 1992 bout against Cactus Jack remains the stuff of legend among members of the wrestling community. Competing in a Falls Count Anywhere match, Sting and Jack brawled throughout the Beach Blast arena, playing to Jack’s infamous reputation as a wrestling specialist. The dramatic change of pace paved the way for a unique clash in wrestler Sting’s career, allowing the Icon to utilize more extreme offensive maneuvers against one of his most notorious WCW opponents.

Sting vs. Big Van Vader (Starrcade 1992)

Sting at Starcade 92
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

Arriving to WCW in 1990, Big Van Vader had already made a name for himself as a sizable behemoth in New Japan Pro Wrestling. Debuting for WCW, Vader went to work on WCW’s most famous faces, capturing the World Heavyweight Championship from Sting at the 1992 Great American Bash. With Sting seeking to redeem his previous loss to Vader, Sting pulled out all the stops against the Mastodon at Starrcade 1992. Drawing on more innovative maneuvers like a top rope DDT, wrestler Sting persevered through Vader’s unforgiving offensive onslaught, scoring a momentous pin-fall victory over Harley Race’s vicious protege.

Sting’s Squadron vs. The Dangerous Alliance (Wrestlewar ‘92)

Sting’s Squadron vs. The Dangerous Alliance (Wrestlewar ‘92)
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

The second greatest WarGames match Sting ever competed in, the main event of WrestleWar ‘92 featured an all-star lineup of wrestlers like Sting, Ricky Steamboat, Nikita Koloff, Rick Rude, Steve Austin, Arn Anderson, and Larry Zbyszko. With everyone getting their chance to shine, the match drew on the clear star power of every man involved, culminating in Sting himself securing the win for his team with an armbar on a battered and exhausted Bobby Eaton.

Sting vs. Big Van Vader (Superbrawl III)

Sting vs. Big Van Vader (Superbrawl III)
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

From 1992 to 1994, wrestler Sting faced off against his larger-than-life nemesis, Big Van Vader, in a series of brutal matches. Trading victories over one another throughout 1992, Sting and Vader faced off in a grueling strap match at Superbrawl III. A physical and gory encounter, Sting did all he could to survive against Vader’s unending assault, right down to carrying Vader’s unconscious body from each corner of the ring. Despite his valiant efforts, Vader ended the night as the World Heavyweight Champion–even if Sting got the last laugh, whipping Vader with the leather strap after the match’s conclusion.

Sting and Lex Luger vs. The Steiner Brothers (Superbrawl I)

Lex Luger and Sting enter Superbrawl I vs. The Steiner Brothers
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

The crowning achievement of Sting’s lengthy tag team partnership with Lex Luger came at 1991’s SuperBrawl I, which saw Luger and Sting challenge the Steiner Brothers for the WCW World Tag Team Championship. A rare match that pitted two heroic teams against one another, the back-and-forth nature of the bout allowed for plenty of hair-raising moments, with fans torn in their support of each team. While Luger and Sting came close to winning their first tag team titles, some fateful interference from Nikita Koloff allowed the Steiners to walk away the victors.

Sting vs. The Great Muta (Great American Bash 1989)

WWE Grand Muta v Sting
Image Credit: World Wrestling Entertainment.

In the summer of 1989, wrestler Sting squared off in the first of many matches against his eventual arch-nemesis, The Great Muta. Locking horns in an intense battle for Sting’s NWA World Television Championship, Muta and Sting kicked off an historic rivalry that lasted the remainder of the year. Though ending in a controversial no-contest, Sting and Muta’s initial match here illustrated both men's unparalleled chemistry in the ring.

Sting vs. “Diamond” Dallas Page (WCW Monday Nitro)

Sting vs. “Diamond” Dallas Page (WCW Monday Nitro)
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

In 1999, WCW began its inevitable decline, losing their ratings war against WWF and introducing increasingly disappointing storylines that failed to gage audience interest. As horrendous as WCW became by the end of the decade, a few great matches still managed to rise to the surface, such as Sting’s world title match against “Diamond” Dallas Page on the April 26 episode of Nitro. Though he lost the championship back to Page later that night, Sting enjoyed a barnburner of a match against DDP in the opening moments of Nitro, securing his fifth WCW title reign in the process.

Sting and Ric Flair vs. The Great Muta and Terry Funk (Halloween Havoc 1989)

Sting and Ric Flair vs. The Great Muta and Terry Funk (Halloween Havoc 1989)
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

In late 1989, wrestler Sting and his former rival Ric Flair put aside their differences to battle their mutual enemies, The Great Muta and Terry Funk. In the main event of Halloween Havoc 1989, the four men squared off in a Thunderdome Cage match–an environment that catered to the embittered nature of each man’s animosity towards one another. Impressed by Sting’s performance in the match and thankful for his critical defense against Funk’s J-Tex Corporation, the bout also played a major role in ensuring Sting’s invitation to the Four Horsemen, setting the foundation for Sting's feud with Flair in 1990.

Sting vs. A.J. Styles (Bound for Glory 2009)

WWE Wrestler sting crouches
Image Credit: World Wrestling Entertainment.

With shades of Sting versus Flair at 1990’s Great American Bash, Sting faced TNA original A.J. Styles in the Phenomenal One's first title defense at Bound for Glory 2009. Though a long-time fan-favorite, Styles set out to prove himself a capable world champion–and what better way than beating a legendary wrestler like Sting? A fantastic clash of styles (no pun intended), Sting helped Styles look like an absolute star in the main event of Bound for Glory, symbolically passing the torch down to TNA’s future star.

Sting and the Great Muta vs. The Steiner Brothers (WCW/Njpw Supershow II)

Sting and Grand Muta vs Steiner Brothers
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

Three years after their career-defining 1989 feud, Sting and The Great Muta reunited to deliver a stellar tag team bout against the Steiner Brothers to close out WCW/NJPW Supershow II. Like Sting and Luger’s match against the suplexing siblings one year earlier, Muta and the Icon withstood the Steiners’ technical onslaught to secure a sudden pinfall victory. Another exciting chapter in Muta and Sting’s on-again, off-again feud, their brief tag team partnership added a whole new dimension to their unique relationship.

Team Angle vs. Team Cage (Lockdown 2007)

Team Angle vs Team Cage featuring Sting
Image Credit: TNA Wrestling.

Like WCW’s WarGames match at WrestleWar ‘92, the main event to Lockdown 2007 made use of some of TNA's brightest talents at the time. With Christian Cage dominating the TNA landscape with his villainous Team Cage, the ragtag TNA roster came together to battle Cage's faction in a fateful Lethal Lockdown match. In a contest that included wrestler Sting, A.J. Styles, Kurt Angle, Scott Steiner, Samoa Joe, and Jeff Jarrett, the bout served as the single best Lethal Lockdown match in TNA’s history.

Sting vs. Samoa Joe (Bound for Glory IV)

Sting vs. Samoa Joe
Image Credit: Impact Wrestling.

In late 2008, Sting found himself in the middle of a feud between Samoa Joe and his WCW contemporary Booker T. Siding with the Master of the Spinarooni and turning heel for the first time in almost 10 years, Sting challenged the Samoan Submission Machine to a world title match at Bound for Glory IV. While Joe dominated a majority of the match, the shocking heel turn of Kevin Nash allowed Sting to capture the TNA World Heavyweight Championship (as well as laying the groundwork for the Main Event Mafia stable a short time later).

Sting vs. Rick Rude (Clash of the Champions XXI)

720 sting vs ric rude
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

While wrestler Sting fought against “Ravishing” Rick Rude time and time again from 1991 to 1994, the standout match in their feud came at Clash of the Champions XXI. Competing for Sting’s United States Heavyweight Championship, Rude exploited Sting’s injured leg long enough to roll the Icon up, cheating his way into his first major championship reign in WCW. Given the above-par quality of their dynamic in the ring, fans can only wonder how many other phenomenal matches Rude might have had with Sting if he hadn't retired in 1994.

Sting vs. Lord Steven Regal (Great American Bash 1996)

Sting vs. Lord Steven Regal (Great American Bash 1996)
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

An underrated match on an otherwise forgettable pay-per-view, The Great American Bash 1996 found Sting up against the up-and-coming aristocratic heel, Lord Steven Regal. The best match of Regal’s WCW career, wrestler Sting beat Regal at his own game, utilizing a more technical-based offensive style filled with thunderous suplexes and rigid submission holds–including a Scorpion Deathlock that forced Regal to tap out in defeat.

Sting and Ric Flair vs. The Great Muta and Slater (Clash of the Champions VIII: Fall Brawl)

Ric Flair and Sting spar at Clash of the Champions VIII
Image Credit: National Wrestling Alliance.

A little-known gem that deserves more recognition from fans, Sting competed in what might very well be his best tag team with Ric Flair at Clash of the Champions VIII. A pivotal moment in Sting and Flair’s relationship, the two held their own against the joint forces of Muta and Slater in a slobberknocker of a match, even if it ended with an inconclusive DQ finish.

Sting vs. Kurt Angle (Bound for Glory 2007)

720 Kurt Angle Sting
Image Credit: TNA Wrestling.

In the early 2000s, the idea of seeing wrestler Sting clash with Kurt Angle seemed a mere pipe dream. Yet in the main event of Bound for Glory 2007, that dream became a reality. Overcoming the odds (and constant inference from Angle’s allies like Kevin Nash), Sting won his first TNA World Heavyweight Championship from the Olympic Gold Medallist in an intense back-and-forth contest. 

Sting vs. Goldberg (WCW Monday Nitro)

Goldberg vs. Sting
Image Credit: World Championship Wrestling.

Ranking among the best matches in Bill Goldberg’s career, Goldberg managed to put on a legitimate wrestling showcase in his 1999 bout against Sting. Rather than the formulaic squash matches he specialized in, Goldberg broke out some innovative offense against the Wolfpac-era Sting, forcing audiences to the edge of their seat. All said and done, not even the unnecessary interference of Hollywood Hogan could take anything away from the superior quality of this underrated Nitro masterpiece.

Author: Richard Chachowski

Title: Journalist

Expertise: Classic Film, Contemporary Film and TV, Video Games, Comic Books

Bio:

Richard Chachowski is an entertainment and travel writer who has written for such publications as Wealth of Geeks, Fangoria, Looper, Screen Rant, and MSN. He received a BA in Communication Studies and a BA in Journalism and Professional Writing from The College of New Jersey in 2021. He has been a professional writer since 2020. His geeky areas of interest include Star Wars, travel writing, horror, video games, comic books, literature, and animation.