It was billed as "The Match of the Century", and it was to be the culmination of a storyline that had its roots over one year before. Yet, in the end, many people walked away dissapointed...and months later things would get even worse. It is the story of two hugely popular professional Wrestlers...one who's former persona had defined Pro Wrestling in the 80's, and who's career was now on a downswing. The other, a man at the peak of his fame, who could only become even more popular if all the cards fell in his favor.
However...it is not just a tale of scripted good vs. evil, black vs. white. It is also the tale of an ego out of control, an ego that would threaten the good of the company he worked for in order to preserve some vestige of his flagging fame.
Shortly before Starrcade '97, Scott "Slymm" Shannon of nWWWo.com wrote an article about the upcoming event. He made some great points throughout the article, but none bigger than this...
'2. DON'T END THE MATCH IN ANY WAY OTHER THAN A CLEAN VICTORY BY STING.'
'I swear that if WCW ends this match in an NWO run-in disqualification, WCW will have a riot on their hands. One of the tenants of the art of storytelling, as it pertains to professional wrestling, is that under most circumstances the good guy is always supposed to win. The bad guy never wins by being the better athlete - he always has brass knuckles in his tights, his feet on the ropes, his friends helping his outside the ring, etc. But when the cards are really on the table, when the biggest pay-per-view audience of the year is watching, those always fail the bad guy, and the good guy proves he is better by beating the bad guy fair and square. Can you remember a single time that a heel walked out of WrestleMania as the WWF champion? This is also, by the way, why most fantasy wrestling leagues fail to entertain - they don't use this formula, and as a result you feel like you're watching a Roger Corman movie, not a wrestling event. WCW will not suddenly band together to help Sting out. Sting will not conk Hogan over the head with his baseball bat when the referee isn't looking. Sting will lay Hogan out with the Scorpion Death Drop, and pin his shoulders to the mat, one, two, three. Or at least that's how it should be.'
While the match didn't end quite the way he theorized it would, the way it panned out turned out to be almost as stupid.
However, lets take a look at the buildup that led up to the "Match of the Century". At the time I was sent this letter, I was unfamiliar of the exact nature of what occurred. I wrote a letter, asking for the details. The following is the result.
The following is courtesy of Michael Naimark
'Before War Games '96, the NWO was seen in the parking lot talking to somebody
in a limo. When Lex Luger went out to investigate, Sting emerged from the limo
and attacked him. Luger went on to accuse Sting of selling out, and when Sting
later denied he was involved, Luger said he didn't believe him.'
'So WarGames comes around, and the NWO fields a team of Hogan, Hall, Nash, and Sting, against Savage, Luger, and somebody else who I can't remember (The team was actually Luger, Arn Anderson and Ric Flair). Sting was SUPPOSED to be on Luger's team, but of course he was on the NWO side. But halfway through the match, Sting (the REAL Sting) appears on the entry ramp and charges the ring. He enters the cage and beats the tar out of everybody in the NWO, then turns his back on Luger and walks out. The NWO recover to beat WCW.'
'Sting then appeared some weeks later with the white facepaint you now associate
with him. He gave one interview about how after he'd trusted Luger more than
anyone else had, Luger didn't trust Sting, and that maybe he would go NWO after
all. "The only thing sure about Sting....Is that nothing's really for sure."
With that statement, the last words he would say for more than a year, Sting
left the ring and wasn't seen for a few weeks.'
'Suddenly, Sting began to appear in the rafters on Nitro. For the next YEAR,
Sting didn't wrestle, but would appear in the rafters and occasionally come
down to the ring on a rapelling line (like the Crow) with a baseball bat to
attack anybody who publicly questioned his motives. Rick Steiner and Jeff
Jarrett were two, but there were others. Fans screamed, 'We want Sting' at
every WCW event, hoping he would rapel down from the ceiling and electrify the
crowd. By fall of '97, Sting was arguably the most popular wrestler in North
America. The match was signed for Sting to meet Hollywood Hogan at Starcade
'97, where Sting, a true icon of WCW who had never wrestled anywhere else for
an appreciable period of time, would defeat evil Hogan...'
Now you are up to speed. This story began with a purpose, and despite occasional repetitiveness along the way, it did what it was supposed to do. It built heat. As the PPV approached, many worried that WCW would screw it up somehow...after all, they'd done it before.
However, the seeds of the upcoming blunder were actually planted a while before Starrcade.
We turn once again to "Slymm" Shannon's article about Starrcade...
'Perhaps the biggest screw-up WCW made was a few weeks ago, when the NWO attacked Sting en masse and pummeled him senseless, culminating in Hollywood Hogan landing a couple of Leg Drops of Doom on Sting's prone body. Right then and there, the eventual one-on-one match between the two lost a lot of its fire. Rule one about epic encounters is that the participants involved never seriously hurt each other before the match. Period. Just to reference my earlier example of another epic encounter, before the Hogan-Andre matchup you didn't see the two of them touch each other, did you? The only time the two got within breathing distance of each other was when Andre ripped the crucifix off of Hogan's chest, and that act was a symbolic one, not an aggressive one. And up until a few weeks ago, WCW did a great job of this, keeping both Sting and Hogan out of arm's reach of each other. Sure, Sting occasionally had to contend with other NWO members, but he disposed of all of them in short order, while Hogan stood several paces back, slack-jawed. Now ... well, now it won't be the first time the two have touched each other (forgetting their match on Monday Nitro some two years ago, as everyone else has). And that fact alone makes the Starrcade match far less special.'
'This segues nicely into my second example of how WCW has already diminished the significance of this match. When Sting finally got his comeuppance at the hands of the NWO, it showed he could be beaten. Epic encounters are supposed to be between two invincibles, not two near-perfect individuals. (Did Hogan or Andre do any jobs for the two or three years before their matchup?) Sting being beaten by several NWO members was bad. Lex Luger single-handedly destroying the NWO on Monday Nitro several months ago, winning the World title in the process, was far worse. If one man can single-handedly beat Hogan, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash in a matter of minutes, why should Sting have that big a problem with just one of them? Even if Hogan is supposed to be a yellow-bellied coward who can't win a fair fight, he's supposed to be able to make sure it's never a fair fight, so that even when he's down on his back, beaten to a near-bloody pulp, he always has a way to escape with the title belt around his waist. Whether it be his friends running in to make the save, spraypaint in the eyes, crooked refs, or whatever, Hogan should have had a deathgrip on that World title from Hog Wild '96 to now. Luger proved Hogan could be toppled once before - and the excitement of seeing Hogan surrender his title won't be as thrilling the second time around.'
Once again, Slymm hits the nail on the head. It crystalizes WCW's disturbing tendancies towards fumbling the ball when it comes to storyline resolution.
So what actually occurred over the course of the match?
Well, the intros were made, and Sting, who had made a habbit of dramatic entrances over the course of the past year, simply walked to the ring.
There, he and hogan faced off, and Hogan...who had previously acted like a lilly-livered coward each and every time Sting appeared...promptly started shoving Sting. They locked up into a test of strength, which Hogan escaped from by delivering a kick to Sting's midsection. Hogan followed with big blows to Sting's back, staggering the challenger...
And right there...the match starts off wrong. While the psychology of a big match demands that at some point the face must be in peril, starting there right off the bat is a bad idea. The face should be dominant at the beginning, and then loose his advantage somehow. At least, that's how I think it should work. If you make the heel dominant at the beginning, it makes the face look weak.
All this is compounded by the fact that Sting had previously appeared to be practically invincible. The trend should have continued, with Hogan getting the upper hand only by treachery or cleverness. This opening mistake could have been undone, but it was not. In fact, this would be repeated at Superbrawl.
...Sting absorbs this and other assorted punishments from Hogan for a while until he finally delivers one of his patented Dropkicks, sending Hogan to the floor. Hogan re-enters the ring to be met by another pair of dropkicks, and is knocked to the floor yet again.
Hogan clambers to the ring, and the two lock up for a time, and he manages to execute a vertical suplex on Sting. Hogan gets up and fails to notice that the suplex phased Sting not in the least. As the champ turns and flexes to the
crowd, the Stinger steps up behind him, who turns to see an angry Sting (who directs a crotch-chop at Hogan btw.), who then promptly lights into the orange one like a house-a-fire. Hogan begins to barely sell Sting's offense.
The match spills out onto the floor, and Hogan manages to take control again when he dodges a Stinger Splash, causing Sting to crash to the crowd barrier. Hogan beats on Sting outside the ring for a while before tossing him back inside to deliver more pusnishment. He steps on Sting's neck, choking him for a while. Finally, while Sting is prone,
Hogan dives to the ropes, rebounds, and delivers his Legdrop finisher. Hogan then pins Sting for the count of three.
And, before the largest PPV crowd in WCW history, Hogan...defeats...Sting.
This point, despite what comes afterwards, cannot be overstated. And all this is due to Hogan's insistence that he pin Sting at Starrcade. Good of the company be damned, Hogan does what's good for Hogan, and that's the bottom line.
As Michael Naimark said in his letter...
'...But Hogan balked. He had complete creative control in his contract, and he
refused to put Sting over cleanly, despite the fact that everyone wanted to see
it. So Starcade came (pulling a huge 1.8 buyrate to see the main event) and
before everyone's eyes, the mighty Sting entered the match and had Hogan pound
on him from the opening bell. Hogan hit his 'mighty legdrop' and referee Nick
Patrick counted 1...2....3? Yep. With my own two eyes, I saw Sting take the 3
count after Hogan's weak-assed legdrop.'
But, back to the match...
Before the stunned crowd, Sting has been pinned. However, it isn't over.
At the announcer's table, someone has stopped the sounding of the bell. That someone is Bret Hart, who somehow managed to sneak to ringside without being noticed by anyone, save for the fans in the immediate area.
Hart had prevented the ringing of the bell, and now argues that there was a fast count. (There was no fast count...the whole thing had been botched.) The official, Nick Patrick, comes to ringside to argue with Hart. However, the Hitman won't hear it, and coldcocks Patrick. Hogan, having grabbed his belt, is hightailing it to the back...but Hart prevents this also, grabbing Hogan by what little hair he has left and dragging him back to the ring to face an enraged Sting.
Hogan begs off, but Sting howls and attacks Hogan in the corner. He tosses him to the opposite corner and executes a HUGE Stinger Splash, nearly falling out of the ring. Sting attempts to toss Hogan back to the first corner, but the orange
one holds on. Sting begins to kick and punch Hogan, and at this point, the nWo hits the ring in the form of Buff Bagwell and Scott Norton. Sting repells Norton and Bagwell, and then tosses Hogan into the corner as he intended. He splashes Hogan again, who staggers and falls flat on his face.
Sting grabs Hogan's legs and everyone knows what's coming next. Sting points to Bret Hart, who hits the floor to watch Hogan's reaction as Sting applies and sets the Scorpion Deathlock on Hogan. In seconds, Hogan gives up, and the bell is rung at last.
Sting stands and raises his arms in victory, and the belt is given to him. The Giant hits the ring to congradulate the new champ, and the Stinger leaps on his friend. As the Giant hauls Sting up high, the entire roster of WCW hits the ring in celebration.
Sting had his victory...for the moment.
Several days later on Thunder, the fallout from the match settled to the ground.
Sting and Hogan were called to the ring. J.J. Dillon began to speak of the hard descision that he and the executive commitee had been forced to make in light of the tape from the match.
The belt was being held up and ruled as vacant...with no champion. Sting had to relinquish the belt, and after tossing it at Dillon's feet in disgust, he adressed everyone for the first time in a year.
"You got no guts!" he said, pointing his bat at Dillon.
"And you..." he said, pressing the bat to Hogan's neck "...you're a dead man."
A rematch between the two was set for Superbrawl...but the damage had been done. The screwy events of Starrcade '97 had left the fans flat, and Sting began to loose his heat. Superbrawl came, and played out in a similar fashion. Hogan dominated the beginning, Sting recovered, nWo runs in after the ref is disabled. Sting fights them off, and in the confusion Randy Savage coldcocks Hogan with a can of spraypaint. Sting pins Hogan for the three count and gets the belt.
However...he didn't beat Hogan cleanly did he? Once again, the victory by Sting has a question mark attached to it.
Once again, we turn to the words of Michael Naimark...
'...But Hogan had already dispelled the myth of the unbeatable Sting ... Sting would win the rematch with another screwy ending, but by then all the heat that he had built over the past YEAR was gone. Hogan continued to be booked ahead of Sting; Sting's first title defense against Scott Hall at Uncensored '98 wasn't even the main event. Hogan's cage match with Savage was. Savage went on to beat Sting ( at Spring Stampede ) and drop the belt to Hogan the next night before undergoing surgery on his knee. The Savior Sting was dead, but Hollywood survived unscathed and went on to headline most of WCW's PPVs this year while Sting never competed in a PPV main event again.'
'Hogan would justify the downgrading of Sting's push by saying he wasn't drawing
heat, but of course the reason Sting was no longer the hottest property in
wrestling was because Hogan refused to put him over, and insisted on actually
pinning Sting in front of WCW's largest PPV audience ever.'
'So Sting, the only WCW'er who stayed with the company through the dark years
and never went to the WWF, was shunted aside so that Hulk Hogan could continue
to be the straw that stirs the drinks in WCW. All of his loyalty was rewarded
by being relegated to the undercard for his efforts.'
'So Hulk Hogan can go f*ck himself as far as I'm concerned.'
'Thanks for asking'.
Strong feelings that many wrestling fans share concerning the huge botchup that was Starrcade 1997. The "greatest event in the history of our sport" fielded several bad matches, and then ended the "Match of the Century" by bending to the ego of one of the most selfish men in sports history.
I, and many like-minded fans, believe that the problem will not end until Hogan gets out of the business permanently. He's not one of WCW's bookers, but he carries a lot of personal influence...influence that he uses to push those he likes at the moment, and bury those he dislikes ( usually those that get more pops than him ). I, like many, was a Hogan fan for many years during his tenure in the WWF. Despite his lack of great ring skills, he had loads of charisma, and played his role very well. He and Vince McMahon helped to raise Pro Wrestling to the heights it reached in the 80's. Now, Wrestling is even more popular....but its also a different entity.
What's more, a man of Hogan's age should, by all rights, be moved aside for younger talent. However, that is not what is happening. Hogan continues to push himself, and his developing face turn will result in just more of the same...with an even greater risk of alienating promising young stars like Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, etc. So long as Hogan weilds any real power in WCW, true screwjobs at his hands will continue.
As for Sting...
He is finally getting involved in a main event ( No...I don't think Fall Brawl 98 counts. ), one year after dropping the Strap to Savage. So, he is being raised to place of prominence once again. However, it is highly unlikely that he will ever regain the heat he had prior to Starrcade '97. An opportunity missed, likely to never be regained.
I'm a big WCW fan, and I want to see the venue continue to succeed, and to hopefully regain the top spot in pro wrestling. However, I believe that continuing to bend to Hogan's whims will result in nothing but dissapointment.
As Michael Naimark said...
'Sting's rape (metaphorical) at the hands of Hulk Hogan is probably the most reprehensible and selfish action I've seen in my life as a wrestling fan. For that, if nothing else, Hogan is worthy of nothing but scorn.'
I agree completely.
I would like to extend thanks to Scott Shannon, and Michael Naimark, without whom this article would not have been possible
