In Monday Night War era World Championship Wrestling, the company’s defining storyline was the New World Order’s invasion of WCW, with the feud between Hollywood Hogan and Sting being the big draw. The former Hulk Hogan shockingly turned heel and the former vanilla babyface Sting became a dark vigilante, resulting in an 18-month buildup to a controversial conclusion at Starrcade ‘97.
But the two men have a long history dating back to Sting’s pre-wrestling days and extending all the way to their shared time in Impact Wrestling (formerly known as TNA), so let’s take a look at aspects of their rivalry that fans might not be aware of.
10 Crossing Paths At The Gym
Before becoming a pro wrestler, Sting co-owned a Gold’s Gym in California in the 1980s where Hulk Hogan would occasionally come in to work out. While many of the other attendees were excited to see Hogan, Sting, not knowing much about pro wrestling, kind of recognized him as the guy from Rocky III but otherwise had no idea who he was. However, Sting would later attend a WWE house show where Hogan performed, which made him decide to pursue wrestling as a career.
9 They Tagged Together First
Hogan would jump ship from WWE to WCW in 1994, making his debut at Bash at the Beach two years prior to his heel turn at the same PPV. But before they were rivals, Hogan and Sting actually partnered up on several occasions. The two would team with Dave Sullivan against the Three Faces of Fear at Clash of Champions 29 but more famously take part in WarGames at Fall Brawl ‘95 against the Dungeon of Doom alongside Lex Luger and Randy savage.
8 Their First Ever Team-Up Was on WCW Worldwide
Neither of the above mentioned matches would be the first Hogan/Sting team-up. Strangely, their first match together would happen in November of 1994, on the minor WCW show Worldwide, which was taped at Disney’s MGM Studios in Orlando.
Their opponents in this 23-second squash would be The Bruise Brothers, a.k.a. Journeymen twins Don and Ron Harris who would actually go on to become members of the nWo in a much later incarnation of the group.
7 Their First Match Was On Nitro In 1995
As part of the ratings war with WWE, WCW Monday Nitro was determined to win any given week by promising at least one big PPV-quality matchup, and the 11/20/1995 episode offered a first-time-ever bout between Hogan and Sting about a year before their infamous feud kicked off. This huge encounter would only last about 10 minutes, climaxing with Sting locking in the Scorpion Deathlock before the Dungeon of Doom staged an attack, drawing a disappointing but somewhat expected No Contest finish.
6 Sting Barely Wrestled In 1997
The Starrcade ‘97 showdown between Sting and Hollywood Hogan was, as previously stated, the result of an 18-month lead-up that built up tension and anticipation among fans. But that feud and its regrettable result makes it easy to forget that most fans didn’t actually see Sting wrestle for most of 1997. However, Sting did wrestle a couple of times before Starrcade, taking on The Giant in a couple house show matches in January. And as far as regular TV is concerned, Sting wrestled only one television match -- a rematch with Hogan the night after Starrcade that ended in a No Contest.
5 They Couldn’t Agree On The Starrcade ‘97 Finish
The Hogan/Sting feud helped to make WCW a ratings juggernaut against the struggling WWE, with Starrcade ‘97 being a highly anticipated show with a huge live crowd and a gigantic PPV buyrate. But the main event that ensued is one of the most infamously botched endings of all time thanks to a botched three-count and some strange overbooking that tainted Sting’s win. Reportedly, the disaster was the result of politicking and disagreements among Sting, Hogan, and WCW boss Eric Bischoff. Everyone agreed that Sting would win, but nobody could agree HOW -- and the match suffered for it.
4 They Only Had Eight House Show Matches
Pay-per-view isn’t the only way to see rivals collide -- in anticipation of the televised climax, it’s not uncommon for feuding wrestlers to repeatedly meet in house show matches in the weeks leading up to the big show. Despite their rivalry kicking off in 1996, Hogan and Sting didn’t actually meet in any singles house show matches until 1998.
The number of house matches between the two is surprisingly small, too, adding up to only eight bouts. These eight matches were all steel cage affairs, and Sting would win each one.
3 Their Last WCW Match
Halloween Havoc ‘99 is the first PPV of the Vince Russo era, a tumultuous period defined by the former WWE writer’s tendency for chaotic booking, frequent plot twists, intentional kayfabe breaking, and little resembling quality wrestling matches. The match between Sting and Hogan at this show is emblematic of this era, as Hogan came out in street clothes to lay down for Sting (a heel for some reason) in what amounted to a three-second match. For 12 years, this ludicrous display would be the last Sting/Hogan match.
2 Their Final Match Was Hogan’s Last Televised Match
After WCW’s somewhat expected demise, Sting debuted for Impact Wrestling in 2003, with Hogan following in 2009. While Sting regularly wrestled for the company, Hogan’s body of work as a performer amounted to a couple of tag bouts with one notable exception. At Bound For Glory 2011, Hogan took on Sting in a singles match, with the Stinger getting the win after a 10-minute affair that would prove to be Hogan’s final televised match -- appropriately, against one of his biggest rivals.
1 Hogan Has Never Defeated Sting
Of course, Sting’s win over Hogan at Bound For Glory was no fluke. It may surprise fans to learn that, despite how much Hulk Hogan has been criticized for refusing to lose to anybody ever, the Hulkster has never actually scored a win over Sting -- tainted or otherwise. Out of the duo’s nine televised matches, Sting has won five times, while the remaining four were No Contest finishes. It seems like the closest Hogan ever got was that botched fast count at Starrcade ‘97.