For years, Sting was seen as easily the greatest star of his time who never worked for WWE. After time in the Mid-South area as part of the Blade Runners (with the future Ultimate Warrior), Sting was given more of a push under Jim Crockett. The man was bursting with fire from the start with a fantastic look and style. Kids loved to spike their hair and paint their faces like their hero and his Scorpion Deathlock predated Bret Hart’s Sharpshooter. Sting was the icon of WCW, shifting to a darker “Crow” look but always loyal to the company all the way to the end.
After years in retirement, Sting returned in TNA and soon once more reigning as a champion. Whether it’s his classic “Surfer” look, the “Crow” or some of the other wilder touches, Sting always had a way of winning over fans. While his WWE run was forgettable, it was a capper to a fantastic career. He’s faced scores of enemies yet a few dominate over others. Some he battled with for years on end, trading titles and having classic matches. A few were shorter in length but memorable all the same. Here is how the 10 best Sting rivalries rank to show how fans will never forget him.
10 Sid
In 1990, Sting was NWA champion but facing a low selection of challengers. Sid was introduced and while still a rookie, had the imposing look needed to be a believable foe. He and Sting had some battles which included the wild Halloween Havoc match where the Horsemen tried to have Barry Windham impersonate Sting to let Sid win the title.
They revived their rivalry in 1993 with Sting facing Sid and Vader in some tag team matches. A couple more fights occurred in 1999 and 2000 as Sid would have some of the best matches of his career with the Stinger.
9 Rick Rude
“The Ravishing One” had a way of creating great feuds with just about anyone. It’s thus no shock he and Sting had an amazing one when they faced off in WCW. Thanks to an attack by Lex Luger, Sting lost the U.S. title to Rude in late 1991. They had several rematches with some great fighting between them.
They continued it for several years but it had a bittersweet end, as it was in a match with Sting that Rude suffered his career-ending back injury. However, Rude never blamed Sting for it and always counted him as one of his best opponents. When the two clashed, it was always a fantastic event.
8 Great Muta
In 1989, the Great Muta was unlike anyone United States wrestling fans had seen. He was pulling off stunning moves of high-flying and technical work and his face paint won folks over too. Sting and Muta were set in a top-notch feud, trading the TV title and each handling the other well.
Muta brought out some of the best in Sting in his work and helped push the Stinger more as a star. The feud didn’t last too long as Muta would leave the NWA right before Sting won the NWA title. But when they were in the ring, the two were amazing.
7 Mick Foley
In 1991, Mick Foley was still raw in wrestling when he joined WCW as Cactus Jack. He and Sting were soon having some fantastic knock-down brawls which included an epic Clash of the Champions match that helped put Foley on the map. Cactus also led guys like Abdullah the Butcher to attack Sting.
In 2009, they revived their feud in TNA with more battles including a Lockdown cage match that many cited as surprisingly great given their ages. They get along in real life but in the ring, these two had a great feud going.
6 Jeff Jarrett
In 1999, WCW was having some serious issues as Jeff Jarrett was given a huge push with multiple runs as World champion. He and Sting had a few clashes but it was rather low then. When TNA began, Sting had a brief appearance teaming with Jarrett in 2003. Much bigger was when Sting joined the company full-on in 2006.
He and Jarrett were soon clashing constantly, including for the NWA and later TNA World titles. They had some partnership with the Main Event Mafia but even as late as 2010, the two were going at it in the ring to highlight one of TNA’s more notable feuds of the time.
5 Lex Luger
Sting and Lex Luger always had an odd love-hate relationship in wrestling. They had teamed up as popular stars to win the Crockett Cup in 1988 but then became rivals when Luger turned heel in 1989. They feuded more with Sting beating Luger for the WCW title in 1992.
When Luger returned, the duo would hold the tag team titles but also end up feuding as well. The two did have great chemistry in the ring so as either partners or opponents, they worked out wonderfully as an in-ring pairing.
4 Kurt Angle
When Kurt Angle joined TNA in 2006, they had to put him in the long-dreamed-of feud with Samoa Joe. Once that was handled, Angle and Sting soon began matching up more in feuding. They did hold the tag titles together in 2007 but then Angle turned heel on Sting.
This set up their epic Bound For Glory match where Sting beat Angle for the TNA title in one of his best bouts in years. They revived it in 2009 and 2011 for control of the Main Event Mafia as the Stinger and the Olympian clicked great in the ring.
3 Hulk Hogan
In 1996, Sting felt let down when fans believed an NWO imposter was him. This led to him transforming into his “Crow” look and soon stalking Hulk Hogan. Even when they didn’t match up in the ring, Hogan and Sting had a huge rivalry going that led to major ratings wins for WCW.
It culminated at Starrcade when Sting beat Hogan for the belt although it was hampered by the bad match. They had numerous rematches over the years with the two matching up well. They continued it in TNA as Sting and Hogan just made natural rivals.
2 Vader
Vader broke out huge in the United States thanks to his massive size but able to take off the ropes with ease. He was set against Sting at the 1992 Great American Bash and to the shock of the crowd, Vader crushed Sting cleanly to win the title.
They would have terrific matches in 1993 from tag bouts to a strap match and would continue to feud in 1994 as well. The two gelled well in the ring with their fine chemistry and Sting selling for the brutal Vader. It ended when Vader left WCW in 1995 but for a time, he and Sting were a hot rivalry.
1 Ric Flair
This is an obvious pick, but it’s still the best. At the very first Clash of the Champions, Sting and Ric Flair faced off in a 45-minute draw that instantly made Sting a main event star. They feuded once more in 1990, as Sting won the NWA title from Flair. This led to the convoluted storyline of the Black Scorpion and Flair regaining the title.
Over the years, the two would clash numerous times and swapping belts back and forth. Fittingly, the final match of the last “Nitro” was Flair and Sting going at it one last time as their rivalry helped forge WCW.