Razor Ramon on Sting/HHH

[Osmosis]

“I was there and obviously involved in his match at WrestleMania last year,” said Hall. “We’re rehearsing the match in Cali last year at Levi Stadium, and it’s the Kliq and the New Age Outlaws out there, and we all know each other. And then there’s Sting, who doesn’t know anybody. He’s an outsider. I just think he never felt comfortable there. Being hurt was answered prayer for him–just let it end.

“You need to remember that Vince is never going to go with something he didn’t create. But we didn’t get anything done at the rehearsal the night before, so WrestleMania day, there were tents in the parking lot set up with rings for rehearsal. So we’re all in there again, and I’m next to Hulk on the ring apron and Triple H is going over the match and then he goes, ‘OK, he’ll break the sledgehammer, then I’ll hit him with the sledgehammer, and cover him, 1-2-3.’ I looked at Hulk, and Hulk looked at me, and I was thinking, ‘Sting, what kind of lawyer do you have, bro? You’re coming in the door doing a job? You weren’t even guaranteed to go over?’ That’s Vince just reminding you who won, even if he’s going to make money the other way.”

Sting came in, did two jobs and then got injured.. and he didn't even wrestle Taker

 

[Vinny Lupton]

Maybe Sting's not a mark and did what they asked for the paycheck

 

[Silkk]

I remember 85% of the coli thinking sting was going to go over too

 

[AquaCityBoy]

No shyt. Vince was not gonna waste one last opportunity to say, "fukk you, WCW."

Even if the storyline they had set up six months prior went nowhere as a result.

 

[Osmosis]

Maybe Sting's not a mark and did what they asked for the paycheck

He avoided the paycheck for fifteen years in fear of exactly what ended up happening to him

 

[Killer Instinct]

Vince is one of the most egotistical and vindictive men on planet earth.
There was only one way that feud could end.

 

[Hope]

Haven't heard about Sting in a while. How badly is he injured?

Couldn't he still do a slow match with Taker at Mania. Just mad poses and signature moves, and call it a day.

 

[Vinny Lupton]

He avoided the paycheck for fifteen years in fear of exactly what ended up happening to him

Wasn't he caking in TNA for a decade? I woulda milked that cow, especially with the light schedule, and then came to WWE when the TNA money dried up, too.

 

[Vinny Lupton]

Vince is one of the most egotistical and vindictive men on planet earth.
There was only one way that feud could end.

Story from this week's Observer, basically Vince trying to cockblock NWA/Crockett lead to Sting's star-making night



Sting is scheduled to be inducted at this point by Ric Flair, his career rival, who put Sting on the map as a star in their March 27, 1988, main event at the first Clash of the Champions in Greensboro. Sting at the time was a mid-card babyface who got a world title shot, which ended up as a 45 minute draw that won match of the year honors on what was the biggest day for wrestling that year.

The promotional war with Jim Crockett Promotions and WWF was at a peak. Crockett was reeling badly after McMahon sabotaged his first two PPV shows. After a deal for national clearance for Starrcade 1987, McMahon, coming off the success of WrestleMania III, pulled off a power play, by inventing the Survivor Series and scheduled it for Thanksgiving night. Crockett worked a deal with the cable companies to move his show to the afternoon, which was considered very bad on Thanksgiving with it being the time of family dinners.

But McMahon came back and said that any company that carries Crockett’s show would not only lose the right to carry his show, but would also not be able to carry WrestleMania IV. With McMahon having the established record and Crockett never having done a PPV, all but five major systems in the U.S. canceled carrying the Crockett show. Of those systems, four were in the Carolinas, where the Crockett show would have been expected to do more business. The other was in San Jose, where the local company actually didn’t back down to WWF based on a moral stand. Of course it was a bluff since all five companies carried the next WrestleMania. In January, when Crockett scheduled his second PPV, McMahon put on a free special, the first Royal Rumble, on the USA Network, which did an 8.2 rating head-to-head and killed the PPV business.

TBS, which carried Crockett, then gave them the revenge by booking a show called Clash of Champions head-to-head with WrestleMania. The result was a huge decrease in WrestleMania while the free Crockett show delivered a 5.8 rating. The idea in those days was since it was television, you didn’t give away a major arena bout. So booker Dusty Rhodes went with Sting as the challenger for Flair. Because Sting was a good athlete and Flair was at his prime of being able to carry people far worse to good matches, the match was a huge success. Some felt a 45 minute match was a risk on television, thinking the average viewer would be bored. The match itself averaged a 7.1 rating, and peaked in the final 15 minutes at a 7.8, even opposing WrestleMania. Those types of numbers were never reached again for wrestling until the Monday Night Wars.

Sting suddenly became the hot young star of the business, and very shortly was considered the heir apparent to Flair and Dusty Rhodes as the top star of the company.

 

[R=G]

Sounds good....Hall and his blunt analysis.

 

[Art Barr]

Story from this week's Observer, basically Vince trying to cockblock NWA/Crockett lead to Sting's star-making night



Sting is scheduled to be inducted at this point by Ric Flair, his career rival, who put Sting on the map as a star in their March 27, 1988, main event at the first Clash of the Champions in Greensboro. Sting at the time was a mid-card babyface who got a world title shot, which ended up as a 45 minute draw that won match of the year honors on what was the biggest day for wrestling that year.

The promotional war with Jim Crockett Promotions and WWF was at a peak. Crockett was reeling badly after McMahon sabotaged his first two PPV shows. After a deal for national clearance for Starrcade 1987, McMahon, coming off the success of WrestleMania III, pulled off a power play, by inventing the Survivor Series and scheduled it for Thanksgiving night. Crockett worked a deal with the cable companies to move his show to the afternoon, which was considered very bad on Thanksgiving with it being the time of family dinners.

But McMahon came back and said that any company that carries Crockett’s show would not only lose the right to carry his show, but would also not be able to carry WrestleMania IV. With McMahon having the established record and Crockett never having done a PPV, all but five major systems in the U.S. canceled carrying the Crockett show. Of those systems, four were in the Carolinas, where the Crockett show would have been expected to do more business. The other was in San Jose, where the local company actually didn’t back down to WWF based on a moral stand. Of course it was a bluff since all five companies carried the next WrestleMania. In January, when Crockett scheduled his second PPV, McMahon put on a free special, the first Royal Rumble, on the USA Network, which did an 8.2 rating head-to-head and killed the PPV business.

TBS, which carried Crockett, then gave them the revenge by booking a show called Clash of Champions head-to-head with WrestleMania. The result was a huge decrease in WrestleMania while the free Crockett show delivered a 5.8 rating. The idea in those days was since it was television, you didn’t give away a major arena bout. So booker Dusty Rhodes went with Sting as the challenger for Flair. Because Sting was a good athlete and Flair was at his prime of being able to carry people far worse to good matches, the match was a huge success. Some felt a 45 minute match was a risk on television, thinking the average viewer would be bored. The match itself averaged a 7.1 rating, and peaked in the final 15 minutes at a 7.8, even opposing WrestleMania. Those types of numbers were never reached again for wrestling until the Monday Night Wars.

Sting suddenly became the hot young star of the business, and very shortly was considered the heir apparent to Flair and Dusty Rhodes as the top star of the company.

It was a great day in wrasslin history.
when the clash dropped on the same day as the garbage that is typically wrestlemania.


Art Barr

 

[Silkk]

Wasn't he caking in TNA for a decade? I woulda milked that cow, especially with the light schedule, and then came to WWE when the TNA money dried up, too.

He didn't go to TNA til late 05, so he was just doing sporadic stuff during the 4 years post wcw

 

[mrken12]

Vince is one of the most egotistical and vindictive men on planet earth.
There was only one way that feud could end.

Isn't that quote in the gif from when he talked about being abused as a kid and surviving it?

 

[Alfred0Santana]

I mean I was shocked for about .5 seconds when Sting lost and then I remembered who pinned him

Sting was probably going to get a W at this years WM if he didn't get hurt but yeah...coming in to job to HHH killed the hype for me. The paycheck must have been real nice so he ain't tripping

 

[NOSaintsFan02]

I looked at Hulk , and Hulk looked at me , and I was thinking, ‘Sting, what kind of lawyer do you have, bro ? You’re coming in the door doing a job? You weren’t even guaranteed to go over?’