What if Sting joined the Original NWO?

[CenaSux4Life78]

Last night I was watching old WCW clips on you tube. I got to thinking, what if Sting had joined the NWO, and not gone on to be the "savior"? If that had happened, it would drastically changed everything. Most importantly, who would have stepped up to the plate to "save" the company. The list is short, but here are a few that could have.

1. Lex Luger - Lex was still overall a healthy man during this time. Im not sure of what his personal issues may have been backstage, but he was always one of WCWs go to guys for things. This would have been a great move, and would have kept him valid a little longer.

2. Ric Flair - Do I really need to explain this one?

3. Scott Steiner - If he kept his badass gimick, but remained face he would have been a formidable for to the NWO.

4. Booker T. - I dont exactly remember when Booker busted out, and became one of the legends of WCW. But Im sure we can agree, he would have been a guy you could put your trust in to do a GREAT run against Hogan and the rest of the gang.

Those are the only guys I could think of, that would be a good fit in the replacing of Sting. Now my thoughts on how it would could have altered Stings future.

Sting joins the NWO, becoming just another croony. He is still given his respect, and credit but has to play second fiddle to Hogan, and always make sure Hogan has the belt. Sting my vi for the US title, just so the NWO can hold all the belts at the time. With that in mind, that may have been a career ender for Sting. To be buried like that, he may not still be valid today.

What do you think?

 

[Shakin' Abe]

Other than Goldberg at the time, Sting was the ONLY choice the company had.

Booker T was a tag team mainstay. Yes , he came on later in WCW years but do you really think he would fill seats?

Scott Stiner was injury prone and not a very good ring worker, not to mention his terrible mic skills. Rick was the reason Scott went anywhere in my opinion.

Flair was having his own battles with the company, so there was no way they would give him that kind of push at that stage of his career.

From what I remember about Luger, he was already having his demons come to life at that time, and again, look at his mic skills. He would fumble over the alphabet.

Sting was the one true man of the company. Remember, even the Nature Boy had defected to WWF at one time, and Sting was always there, good bad or ugly.

 

[undisputedchamp56]

yeah i agree that goldberg would look to be the only other choice. he had the size and presence to take on the NWO. but he wasn't mainstream enough, in fact not sure, but dont think he even had debuted before the NWO was going strong for a while. so that would have changed his whole career if he just came into the scene fighting the NWO. there would be no streak, and his character probably wouldnt have done much against the NWO, cause he isn't a get on the mic and tell a story kinda character. i agree also that sting would have been just a shadow to hogan and not grown as a character. but they still messed up.

i was a big WCW fan and seeing sting join the wolfpac kinda pissed me off. he was supposed to be the WCW guy. they had DDP and Goldberg and other faces to replace him. but from then to now i have never again liked stings character. the crow gimmick was perfect for the time, but ran its course. and the crow and joker gimmicks have been lame. and it seems like its more of a how would sting go back to who he was and still get over. i would have liked him going back to colorful paint and his old personality and lose the trench coat. but to finalize where im going with this, i think if sting would have joined it would have been a disaster. he was the only one that could have pulled off facing the entire NWO. and it made him bigger than anyone at the time.

i would have like to see DDP take on the black and white. he could have played the cena, "never give up, never back down" type gimmick against them.

 

[justinept]

First off, Sting did eventually join the NWO - as did EVERYBODY else in WCW

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVBDUZArpSY

Second, there's no way WCW was going to book Hogan and Sting on the same side during the early phases of the NWO. One was always going to lead the NWO and the other was going to lead WCW. So if Sting had joined Hall and Nash at Bash at the Beach '96 - as was originally planned... - then Hogan would have been the WCW savior.

 

[HorsemenNo4]

Goldberg, Flair or DDP would have been the savior.

Goldberg - Clear choice given his major push.

Flair - A clear choice given his battles with Hogan. I'm glad it didn't happen though. There was enough Flair vs Hogan matches before. Though TNA still does it in 2011 *sigh*

DDP - Mark Madden's choice for savior of WCW (haha). I never saw him as a big deal but WCW pushed him to be a major talent. The crowd certainly was behind him and loved it when he turned down the NWO. He could have filled that role.

 

[dahvoo]

Interesting question, but do you mean what if Sting had joined the nWo that was already established by Hall, Nash and Hogan? Or what if Sting had joined the nWo as the original "third man" instead of Hogan?

Sting was in fact the back-up plan for the third man of the nWo in case Hogan changed his mind. If that had happened, the "savior" of the company would probably have been a returning Hogan.

If Sting had joined the already established nWo, the hero would have been someone like Luger or Savage who were already established top faces, or possibly The Giant or even DDP. Guys like Booker T and Scott Steiner really didn't come into their own until a couple of years into the nWo story line.

 

[rokuma]

Here's my list...remember some of these guys didn't join the NWO initially:

- Macho Man Randy Savage - Still super over, had history with Hogan (to a lesser extent Hall and Nash as well as the WWF...could've even played up the storyline that McMahon forced him out)
- Ric Flair - obviously...(The Horsemen in general)
- The Giant - Big man...could be the guy to take down the NWO
- Roddy Piper - Had just come in with some fanfare and could've been "the guy"
- Lex Luger - Super over at the time...remember WW3 when he racked the Giant? Man the crowd went NUTS
- DDP - Again, got super over, feuded with the NWO, and could easily work the matches. DDP could've have EASILY been that guy that had the big match with Hogan after a year and a half buildup

And if WCW had a crystal ball or some foresight:

- Goldberg - Obviously the biggest star in WCW by its demise. The Hogan-Goldberg match alone on Nitro was so huge it beat WWF in the ratings! WWE even put it on the Monday Night Wars DVD only second to Benoit/Booker T (WWE stars at the time). That's how big that match and that win was. Goldberg was the MAN for WCW in 1998, but the NWO started in 1996. Goldberg wasn't even that big until early 1998.

- Bret Hart - Playing off Montreal...he could be the hero that everyone wanted him to be. We finally get the dream Hogan/Hitman confrontation (maybe at Starrcade 1998) and even more dream matches with the NWO (Hitman vs Savage, Hennig, Hall, Nash, Sting, etc and eventually Hogan). This would've been fantastic and a better use for Bret Hart than he was in WCW

 

[Rowdy Robby Piper]

So if Sting had joined Hall and Nash at Bash at the Beach '96 - as was originally planned...

Wasn't Sting originally supposed to be the third guy until Hogan stuck his nose into things/played his creative control card?

- then Hogan would have been the WCW savior.

No. No. No no no no no no no no no! A thousand times no! While it made sense that Hogan was the third guy and knew "how that organization up north ran" (or however it was phrased), Hogan should not have played WCW's Savior. It should have been somebody who was brought up through WCW's ranks and not someone who had previously been in/had tenure in the WWF. But then that eliminates about 95% of the roster.

Who would I pick? Here's some options:

1. GOLDBERG - Obvious choice. Extend the streak by running roughshod through the nWo with Sting being the final victim.

2. DDP - Has a past managing Kevin Nash (and didn't he also manage Scott Hall at one time? Maybe someone can confirm/deny this...). Was one of the more vocal/outspoken supporters of WCW during the nWo storyline, and was over with the crowd.

3. STEVE AUSTIN - Hear me out on this one. Had Austin not been released/future endeavored/fired via Fed-Ex/whatever in 1995 (or was it 1994), he was on his way to stardom after a run with the late/great Brian Pillman in the Hollywood Blonds tag-team (two time tag-team champs, or was it only one?), and also had a run with the US Title. Had he not been held down by the backstage politics (Hogan), Austin could have/should have been the next breakout superstar for WCW. But then this also leads to the question of would we have ever seen Goldberg in WCW or would he have gone to WWF instead?


Interesting/thought provoking topic here....

 

[teezy813]

Sting was the original choice for the nwo hogan was the back up plan when sting didnt want to do it hogan stepped up said he would do it!!!!

 

[relentless1]

i always thought it wouldve been a good idea for sting to have joined the hollywood led wolfpac in 1999, it couldve been the twist they needed to elevate the mid carders into main event status: have all the older guys in the nWo wolfpac and have the younger guys against them. this would have worked soo much better than the new blood/ millionaires club story and would be so much smoother of a transition

nWo wolfpac (veteran talent):
Hogan
Hall
Nash
Luger
Sting
Big Poppa Pump
Macho Man
Sid Vicious

vs

WCW (young guys):
Goldberg
DDP
Benoit
Booker T
The Giant
Konnan
Rey jr
Eddie Gurrerro

 

[willross]

If Sting joined the original nwo then WCW would of lost out on their biggest and best singles feud during the Monday Night War....Sting vs Hogan. They defined what it is to make a feud mean something with their 15 month build before Sting got his shot let alone said a single word.....it wouldn't have made the nWo angle seem as important as it was cause it was really fuelled by Sting wanting Hogan so bad.

 

[xxxdaniel_ariesxxx]

As much as I dislike Hogan and what he represents in my eyes (the old guys who don't understand that their time has passed and still think that they are the only one who can "carry the ball" and thus refuse to put anyone over except their fellow old timers, who are in the same boat), Hogan was the ONLY person who made any sense to be the "third person", and anyone else, especially Sting, whould have ruined the entire nWo angle.

The nWo was booked as "Outsiders" (i.e. WWF guys) invading WCW. Having Sting join would have made zero sense. Plus, Hogan was getting booed at every arena to the point that they couldn't ignore it anymore, so it was time to turn him heel.

Sting was the only "top" guy that could truly represent being "pure" WCW.

Lex Luger - Had just returned less than a year earlier from "up north" where he had been for three years.
Ric Flair - had spent almost two years in WWF and was seen as a heel, WCW needed a top long term babyface to lead them against the nWo, and Flair couldn't pull off a long term face run.
Randy Savage - was a always seen as a WWF guy, just like Hogan.
Giant - He was still pretty new to the business, and WCW needed someone who "had been with WCW through thick and thin" to lead them.
Booker T - ...seriously? He was still just another member of a tag team and was about three or four years away from even starting to really break out as a singles star.
Goldberg - Didn't even start until the fall or '97 and then needed about six months to establish himself.
DDP - Was just starting to reach the midcard status and wasn't in the position to lead WCW.

 

[dansaun77]

Sting was the original choice for being the third guy, thus the change in his appearance from early 2006 throguh to July. It wasn't decided until literally the final moments that Hulk was going to take the third role. If Sting has been thrust into the spot, the angle would never have achieved the level of success that the nWo did. Once Hogan saw how successful the nWo became, he would have been booked to be the saviour of WCW and gone over Sting. Hogan joining made the most sense,.turning heel on a company that was already over the yellow and red and cartoon character of the Real American.

 

[Old School 4 Life]

Am I the only one that remembers that the 3rd man was originally supposed to be Bret Hart? It was only after he resigned with wwf that Hogan put his name in the running. Sting was never the first choice.

 

[brochester8]

If you read Eric Bischoff's book you will find that Hogan originally didn't want the NWO spot with Hall/Nash. Therefore, Sting was about to take the spot at that ppv until Hogan showed up and finally agreed to it at the last minute. With that said you can only say that if Sting would have turned heel and joined up with Hall and Nash then Hogan would have used his power within WCW to become the Savior.

 

[Monkey_Mania]

Like previously stated. Sting was penciled in to be the third man for quite some time. I always wondered how it would pan out. I think it would have been an even bigger shock than the Hogan turn. At the time Hogan was getting the Cena treatment. People were tired of seeing the same old shit, and they were vocal about it. Sting would have been an even bigger surprise than Hogan, and the franchise would have spurned many fans. It would've been the only legit way to turn Sting into a full heel too. Shit would have been interesting that's for sure.

 

[MFR0mack]

Sting was NOT the original choice for the third man and he was never "penciled in" for the spot. Bischoff wanted it to be WWF guys from the start and Hogan fit perfectly with Hall and Nash. The issue was just that Hogan was tentative to do the big heel turn, he didn't know how it'd turn out and he thought it would ruin him. Sting WAS heavily considered for the role of the third man, but in the end, he didn't want to do it, either. Because Sting never wants to be heel. And it wouldn't make sense for him to group with the Outsiders. So after a lot of talking (especially from Scott Hall, who convinced him of the advatanges of the turn), Hogan agreed to do it. But it definitely wasn't last-minute and Sting was never "supposed" to be the guy.

 

[donfryeismyhero]

I remember Bret Hart being rumored in magazines like Pro Wrestling Illustrated as being the 3rd guy but that's the extent of it. I've never heard nor read an interview from anyone involved during that time that The Hitman was tapped for the position though.

 

[QBall111]

Sting just doesn't fit to be that member of nWo, like everyone said, he was meant to be the savior to WCW, now maybe a curve ball later in the game could've done them some good and allow him to turn and become a member of nWo Hollywood. That came around the time Rey Mysterio was being referred to as the giant killer so it could've been a good push for him to be, not the next savior to WCW but someone to be part of that.

I may get some people disagreeing to the highest extent on this comment, but as much as I do not like the reincarnation of the nWo in TNA with Immortal, I wish that storyline would've been dropped before it even started. Allow Hogan to play the heel without a group other than Bischoff backing him, and then allow Sting to be in the rafters watching Hogan, warning Dixie what'd happen (like he did, only with Immortal in play), and then have a huge turn allowing Hogan, Sting and Bischoff to be the masterminds. I would've thought it'd be a better and more enjoyable storyline. I think it would've made Sting a better heel there than any other time when he was in MEM.

 

[xxxdaniel_ariesxxx]

Another big problem with this scenario is that Sting has never had a real convincing heel run that either didn't bomb completely or seemed forced, and whoever joined the nWo had to be able to be a top heel. The fans of WCW never wanted to boo Sting, and you can't force the fans to cheer or boo anyone that they don't want to. They wanted to boo Hogan, and 1996 WCW was the perfect time and place to do that.

It wouldn't have worked to turn Hogan heel in the WWF in the run up to WrestleMania VI in the WWF, or at any of the other times that he was there, because the WWF fans simply didn't want to boo him, and it wouldn't have worked to turn Sting in WCW for the exact same reason.

Hogan, Hall, Nash, Dibiase, Sean Waltman a.k.a. Syxx, all worked because they were all seen by the WCW fan base as "the other guys", and Bischoff worked because he was supposed to be the leader of WCW and he joined "the other guys" therefore he was a traitor of the highest degree to WCW. When Giant joined it didn't make sense because he wasn't a former WWF guy, and had just lost to Hogan so instead of getting payback and getting his title back he joined the guy who had to cheat to beat him? They should have kept the nWo as an invading force of "outsiders" with one high level WCW traitor as long as possible, and the entire angle should have ended at Starcade '97 when Sting beat Hogan.

 

[crippler]

If Sting had joined the nWo the ratings would have gone down after Goldberg's 1st loss nobody was really interested in him Sting was the guy they had to have lead WCW against nWo if not they would have had to drop the nWo storyline and tried to get back the ratings they had

 

[Dagger Dias]

It was better for things to happen the way that they did because Sting would have been overshadowed by Hogan the whole time had he joined the original nWo, thus making him into less of a big deal in today's world. Plus, there really was no one else at the time who could possibly have been better in the role than Sting. Even Booker would not have come close to being as good as Sting was in the savior role. I won't go as far as to say he would not be relevant today, but I definitely think he would not be as big of a deal today if he had joined the original nWo to help Hogan.

 

[Poop Master Flex]

Its crazy how often we get this thread on the forum here.

To answer the question it was better that he didn't go to the nWo as Sting was the perfect guy to go against the nWo and frankly made the whole angle more interesting since he was the only real threat the nWo had. Frankly, if Sting joined the nWo the angle would have become a lot more stale a lot quicker than it did.

Stings descent into madness of sorts and him playing almost the "dark knight" of WCW was an awesome way to go. It gave Sting more longevity into his career and was one of the best characters in WCW.

Sting was the only real guy to go against the nWo so if he was part of that group, in 6 months it would have gotten boring. The only others who were even kind of threats were Luger and Piper but in both cases they got rubbed out rather quickly, everyone else was a mid carder and with the exception of Goldberg WCW did a shit job pushing new guys to the top.

 

[sikkbones]

Sting was the original choice for the third spot in the nWo. This is fact

This is doubtful.. Eric was presenting the Outsiders and the NWO as the other compnays henchmen.... to the point that Dibease was the money... why would Eric Have Sting be the reveal at bash at the beach....

i would think that it might have been luger, but you know what I thought it might have been with all the Nonsense in WWE at the Time... Either Shawn or Bret... and I bet that's what eric was coutning on.... so he needed someone just as Huge as Bret Hart or Shawn micheals jumping ship.... and the only person with that Kinda of Appeal was Hogan, plus he was a former WWE guy.

 

[Sinister Shadows]

I remember an interview with Eric Bischoff from awhile back that I will look for later talking about the plan for the nwo, Hogan was the first choice, but no one was sure that he would go for it, he flopped back and forth on it for weeks, no one knew how the whole segment was going to unfold until the moment that Hogan actually leg dropped Savage. The backup plan was to have Sting turn and form the nwo in his place if he decided on staying face.