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And now, on with the show ...
The Man Called Sting was just a man called "Steve" before he decided to follow the instructions of the legendary Red Bastein and become a professional wrestler. Steve Borden was one of four elements of Bastein's project to turn a couple of bodybuilders into wrestling superstars. According to the RSP-W FAQ ...
Power Team USA was a group of bodybuilders formed by Red Bastien and Rick Bassman in California in 1985. Bastien intended to train them to be weestlers, but soon abandoned the plan. Upon disbanding the group, Bastien observed "they have great bodies, but they can't wrestle a lick." The members of the group were Jim "Justice" Hellwig (later the Ultimate Warrior), Steve "Flash" Borden (later Sting), Mark "Commando" Miller and Garland "Glory" Donnoho. Miller never wrestled after the disbanding of the group. Donnoho wrestled briefly in California as "The Myth."Like so many future stars before them, Flash (Borden) and Justice (Hellwig), collectively known as The Freedom Fighters, took their act to Memphis, Tennessee. Despite their awesome physiques, they failed to succeed in winning any titles or garnering much attention from the fans. Perhaps due to their disappointment over not having an immediate impact on the scene, they changed their image and became The Blade Runners, Rock (Hellwig) and Blade (Borden). Their attitude changed as well, and they took to disrespecting local favorites Jerry Lawler and Phil Hickerson in an interview -- if only to get that elusive attention. Hickerson responded by claiming that they had no abilities as wrestlers and were only good at "shooting steroids in their arms." Regardless of any truth in that statement, The Blade Runners took Hickerson out of action, breaking his arm with the ringside bell! Unfortunately, even the services of manager Buddy Wayne was not enough for them to get the attention that they felt they deserved.
Without doing much else in Memphis, they traveled to the dynamic Mid-South Wrestling Federation to continue their tag team work, but it didn't last long. Each man took part in the UWF Heavyweight Title tournament, but both were eliminated in the first round as Borden and Hellwig were beaten, respectively, by Kamala and Ted DiBiase. Blade Runner Rock went to Dallas' World Class Wrestling and debuted as The Dingo Warrior. As for Flash, he made some evil friends very quickly in Mid-South and became involved in one of that area's hottest feuds ever.
Eddie Gilbert was intent on making life difficult for Mid-South icon (and promoter) Cowboy Bill Watts. He formed a powerful alliance with the likes of Ivan Koloff, General Scandor Akbar, Nikita Koloff, Korstia Korchenko, and just about ANYONE who would offend the patriotic Watts. Steve Borden was one of Gilbert's recruits and his ring name soon became a "flash" in the pan. Gilbert noticed that, with his spiked blond hair and wild eyes, he resembled the lead singer for The Police. From then on, he was Sting.
Although he had huge potential, Sting was mainly just a background character in the wars with Watts. Still, just being around the likes of the clever Gilbert and the experienced Ivan Koloff was having an influence on the youngster. He even secured a match with the brutal Watts. The beating Sting received was really just the fruit of Gilbert's numerous assaults on Watts. On that night, Sting might have noticed that Gilbert was having him fight his battles for him. Sting tolerated his role ... for now.
When the whole Russian menace issue dissipated, Eddie Gilbert began compiling the newest version of his First Family. Sting was kept around and joined by double-tough Rick Steiner. Sting and Gilbert won the UWF Tag Team Titles by defeating The Fantastics on July 20, 1986. On August 17, their rematch resulted in the titles being held up. On August 31, Gilbert & Sting won a match to end the controversy. However, the resilient Fantastics took the belts back on September 27.
As time went by, Gilbert was not really concerned with the championship advancement of Sting's career, as he was more interested in stealing Missy Hyatt away from Hollywood John Tatum. Although the fact that Tatum and Jack Victory had taken the tag titles, their matches against Gilbert, Sting, and Steiner were more focused on Hyatt. As Sting desired another taste of championship gold, he had to spend most of his time trying to help Gilbert impress her. Sting once again tolerated his role ... for now.
The tag titles ended up vacant in 1987 when one of the new champions, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, lost a loser-leaves-town match. (In other words, he had signed with the WWF.) A tag team tournament was set up to crown new champs. Now that Missy Hyatt had decided to join Gilbert's family, Sting was confident that he and Rick Steiner would take home the gold. Things were looking good when they beat Missing Link & Chavo Guerrero via disqulaification in round one. They next eliminated Sam Houston & Terry Taylor. On that same night, their would-be final opponants, Chris Adams and Iceman Parsons, had a dispute which broke up the team half-way through the tournament! As luck would have it, Adams won a coin toss which permitted him replace Parsons with Terry Taylor. Even though they had gotten rid of Taylor in the second round, Sting and Steiner lost to Taylor and Adams in the tournament final. Within two months, however, the disintegrating team of Taylor and Adams lost the gold to Sting and Steiner. Terry Taylor turned on Adams after the loss and joined Gilbert's family! (What is it with Adams? Doesn't any of his partners get along with him?)
Even though the youth and power of Sting and Rick Steiner made them almost unbeatable, you could easily guess that Eddie Gilbert would be their undoing. In a title defence against Brad Armstrong and Tim Horner, The Lightning Express, Gilbert could not resist trying to whack Horner with his cowboy boot. Swing and a miss, strike one, as he accidentally KO'd Sting, whose pinfall loss cost them the tag team titles. For the first time, Sting challenged Gilbert's authority and stood up for himself. Still, he controlled his anger and teamed with Gilbert and Steiner for the rest of the summer.
Eventually, Sting became fed up with Gilbert's family and set out on his own. Gilbert's embarrassment at being dumped by this rookie was overwhelming. He sent his men after him, but Sting was not to be stopped. Years of frustration feuled his independence. As if putting his former mentor in his place wasn't enough, Gilbert was holding the UWF TV Title, and Sting wanted nothing more than to win his first singles championship. The match was finally made, but when Sting approached the ring, he was attacked and injured by Gilbert's crew. Sting was replaced by young Shane Douglas, who was merely a preliminary competitor at this point. At ringside, Sting managed to distract Gilbert enough for Douglas to roll him up and upset him for the TV belt.
At about this time, the UWF was being absorbed by Jim Crockett Promotions, a division of the NWA. Competitors from both groups were now performing in front of entirely new audiences. Considering the huge amount of talent in the UWF at the time, it was very impressive that Sting, more so than any of his colleagues, gained the support of these new fans. Still, the competition was exhausting. Sting suffered a drawback when he lost to Black Bart in the tournament to crown the first Western States Heritage Champion . Also, Sting received some shots at United States Champion Lex Luger, but the muscular Horseman fended off his face-painted opponant.
On the other hand, he befriended some powerful allies, such as Dusty Rhodes. In an effort to end Gilbert's nuisance once and for all, Sting teamed up with Dusty Rhodes and Chris Adams to take on Eddie Gilbert, Rick Steiner, and the Angel Of Death in a no-DQ street fight. This was dubbed "The Battle Of New Orleans" and rightfully so. Nothing was really settled here, but the blood and violence made this an unforgetable match. To the fans, it was obvious that Sting was the next big thing and that Gilbert was running out of ideas fast. Gilbert and Steiner enlisted Larry Zbyszko in a last-ditch effort to eliminate Sting and ruin his rising career. Sting responded by calling on Gorgeous Jimmy Garvin and Freebird Michael Hayes. These six men met in the opening match at Starrcade '87. Although the match ended in a time limit draw, Gilbert gave up on trying to break Sting, and he left the NWA to go to Memphis. Garvin and Hayes were the top contenders to the tag team title at year's end, but Sting tried to fill in when Hayes went back to World Class Wrestling in Texas. Sting and Garvin won a dark match over The Sheepherders at The Bunkhouse Stampede pay-per-view, but by that time, Sting had other things on his mind.
When 1988 began, Sting was just one of several NWA powerhouses in line to challenge NWA World Champion Ric Flair. UWF Champion Steve Williams, Western States Champion Barry Windham, and former US Champion Lex Luger were the frontrunners, but Sting still wanted a shot at instant fame. Many fans felt that, while Sting could put up a good fight, Luger was the best bet, and Sting would only be another beaten name added onto to the resume of Flair. Perhaps it was just this very assumption that raised Sting's interest in a title shot that much more.
In January, The Horsemen had pretty much turned one entire edition of the World Wide Wrestling TV show into a party for Flair. They were decked out in tuxedos and drinking champagne. It was, more or less, a day off for the infamous group. On this of all days, Sting finished his prelimnary match quickly and grabbed the microphone. He dared Flair to face him, man to man, right then and there. Not to be out-classed by the youngster, James J. Dillon (and not Flair) approached the ring and pretty much downplayed the whole affair by explaining that Sting should lighten up and join the party. When Sting made it clear that he meant business, Dillon splashed him with a martini. Sting responded with a splash of his own! (A "Stinger splash", of course!) He then twisted Dillon into the Scorpion Death Lock and dashed out of the ring as Flair, Arn Anderson, and Tully Blanchard ran in to the rescue. No longer would Sting have to wait, as Flair demanded to have a match against him "at any cost" -- something a World Title holder might not want to say very often.
After meeting in a handful of untelevised matches in which Flair managed to get some dishonorable victoies over Sting, the two squared off in front of millions on WTBS in the main event of the very first Clash Of The Champions. For this match, the unscrupulous Dillon was suspended over the ring area in a small cage. This was the match that "made" Sting, as he matched up with Flair on a level of competitiveness unheard of for such a young wrestler. The match swung back and forth as each man withstood each other's offence. When Sting finally locked in the Scorpion Death Lock, there was only about 1 minute left in the 45-minute match. Flair held on, but the final decision went to three ringside judges. Seeing as how Sting was in control at the match's end, one judge awarded it to Sting. Another judge vote for Flair. The third and tie-breaking vote .... a draw?!? Fans were confused as they all wondered why judges were used if a draw could be decided. Despite failing to win the title within 45 minutes, Sting definitely had nothing to be ashamed of. His day would come.
In April, it was time for the Third Annual Jim Crockett Senoir Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament. Sting entered the tourney with former World Champion Ron Garvin as his partner. As luck would have it, Ronnie was injured at the hands of Kevin Sullivan when he tried to get involved with Sullivan's match against brother Jimmy Garvin. This was just minutes before the beginning of the tournament. Meanwhile, the #1 seeded team (as they were the NWA World Tag Team Champions), Barry Windham & Lex Luger, was broken up when Windham turned against Luger just two nights before. Luger and Sting each needed a partner, so they selected each other, and thus began one of wrestling's greatest "Cinderella" stories. In their very first match as a team, they beat Dick Murdoch and Ivan Koloff. The Midnight Express, and then The Powers Of Pain all fell to Lex and the Stinger. Finally, with the legendary Magnum T.A. at ringside, the new team in town beat Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson, the new NWA World Champions, to win the tournament and the one million dollar prize.
As long as The Four Horsemen were a nuisance to him, Sting figured he could be the same to them. At the second Clash Of Champions, he teamed with Dusty Rhodes to challenge tag champs Blanchard and Anderson. The match got out of hand when Sting roughed up the referee in order to get his shots in on Anderson. At about the same time, the newest Horseman, Barry Windham attacked Rhodes. The match was thrown out, but Sting recruited Nikita Koloff as his next partner. This new team had a title match at the 1988 Great American Bash: The Price Of Freedom pay-per-view. This time, Sting applied the Scorpion Death Lock just too late -- time ran out before Tully Blanchard gave up.
Sting continued his efforts to win a singles title throughout 1988. He came very close to beating Mike Rotundo for the TV Title on many nights. Whenever he faced Western States Heritage Champion Larry Zbyszko, it was a one-sided affair with Sting always winning -- but always by DQ or countout. At Clash III, he managed to beat United States Champion Barry Windham by disqualification.
The Stinger was having a stellar year, and the fans let him know it. He was arguably the most popular wrestler in the NWA at this point. He wasn't all business, though. Sting liked nothing more than to show his fans his appreciation. Some of his fellow wrestlers felt that Sting was enjoying himself a bit too much. They wanted to teach him a lesson, and no one teaches lessons as harshly as The Road Warriors.
Sting had been teaming with the Legion Of Doom throughout the year, calling themsleves the Brothers In Paint. Even though The Warriors and Dusty Rhodes were the Six-Man Tag Team Champions, Sting would often be seen taking Dusty's slot. In October, the painted trio met Mike Rotundo, Kevin Sullivan, and Rick Steiner. They had beaten the same three members of The Varcity Club a few weeks before, but the Warriors seemed a bit anxious and ill-tempered. Then, like a sudden car crash, it happened. Both Road Warriors attacked Sting in the middle of the ring! They even sent him through a 360-degree mid-air flip when they landed their clotheline finisher. When Lex Luger rushed to Sting's aid, they pounded him too.
As Sting recovered from this beating, his friend Dusty Rhodes confronted The Road Warriors concerning this issue. They responded by trying to destroy Rhodes' eye using one of their shoulder-pad spikes. When Rhodes met Road Warrior Animal with Rhodes' share of the Six-Man belts on the line, both Sting and Road Warrior Hawk got involved. Even though it was scheduled as a "No DQ" Match, Rhodes was disqualified and replaced on the Six-Man Team by Genichiro Tenryu.
What was left for Sting and Rhodes to do now? Well, it just so happened that Animal and Hawk had won the NWA World Tag Team Titles. Where better to get revenge and gold than at Starrcade '88. No match on the card was quite as intense. Sting amazed the world when he executed a suicidal dive from the top rope to the floor on Animal. The upper hand shifted first to Rhodes and Sting, then to the Warriors, and then back again. After Sting connected with a top-rope splash on Animal, the pinfall was academic. Paul Ellering had no choice but to tackle the referee to save the titles. Even though the DQ loss kept the titles on the Warriors, Rhodes ground Ellering's sunglasses into his face - a reminder of the attack they had perpetrated on him two months before. Sting wasn't through with the Warriors yet. He and Lex Luger battled them throughout the weeks that followed. Again, most of the matches ended in some sort of violent no-contest.
Sting was temporarily on the back burner when 1989 began. Dusty Rhodes was gone, and Lex Luger was pursuing US Champion Barry Windham. Sting looked upon The Junkyard Dog and the returning Michael Hayes to help him take on The Road Warriors and Genichiro Tenryu at Clash 5: St. Valentine's Day Massacre. Unfortunately, The Varcity Club trapped Sting and company in the backstage area and took the match for themselves. When they finally escaped and stormed the ring, the match was tossed out. He never did get another shot at The Road Warriors.
Sting patiently continued his winning ways by defeating Butch Reed in a rather forgetable match at Chi-Town Rumble '89. For a moment, the world might have forgotten about the Stinger, but he quickly reminded them all by capturing his first singles championship, the NWA TV Title by pinning Mike Rotundo on March 31, 1989. It was sweet revenge, seeing as how Rotundo's group had kept Sting out of the six-man match the month before.
Just two days later, he successfully defended the title against Rip Morgan at Clash 6: Ragin' Cajun. Next to go down in defeat was Wild Bill Irwin at Clash 7. At May's Wrestle War PPV, Sting trounced former WWF World Champion The Iron Shiek. Granted, these weren't the top stars in the business, but Sting seemed to be unbeatable at this point. On the other hand, the next challenger, The Great Muta had been unbeatable since his NWA debut, thanks in part to his routine use of the moonsault, a novel sight to many fans at this point. His manager Gary Hart announced that Sting would be Muta's next victim.
The match was partially the fall-out of Muta's feud with Sting's old boss, Eddie Gilbert. Muta and Hart had humiliated Gilbert's wife, Missy Hyatte, when Muta spewed his infamous green oral mist in her face. Gilbert challenged Muta to a series of "Dragon Shai" matches during the 1989 Great American Bash tour, but Muta always came out on top. Gary Hart must have figured that Gilbert would send Sting in to defeat Muta for him. Hart wisely guessed that with Sting, of course, came the TV Title. The match was set for the pay-per-view special of the 1989 Bash pay-per-view The Glory Days. Some fans had actually predicted that Gilbert was setting Sting up in revenge for their split in 1987. Instead, Hart and Muta showed that they needed nobody's help at all. The match itself was a look into wrestling's future: Sting's high-impact power moves pitted against Muta's aerial attack, with each man pulling some unique tricks out the proverbial bag. Counter after counter, neither man was a lock for a win. Finally, Muta resorted to his mysterious mist. However, Sting had coached him well and ducked at the last moment - leaving the mist to blind referee Nick Patrick! Muta then connected with his trademark moonsault, but only attained a two-count from replacement referee Tommy Young. The match ended ten seconds later when Sting caught Muta in a back suplex ... but who had won? Sting was announced as the winner, but Muta had raised his shoulder just before the final three, perhaps unseen by Young. Sting, on the other hand, had bridged his neck to keep his shoulders off of the mat as well. As Patrick tried to explain to Young that Muta was not pinned, Hart and Muta grabbed the TV Title belt and made a hasty retreat.
A weird night for the Stinger? Well, it was about to get even wierder. Backstage, NWA officials had decided that the match was controversial enough to cause the TV Title to be held-up, pending the (hopefully)decisive outcome of a rematch. One can only imagine the burning rage of Sting as he paced the hallways of the Baltimore Arena off-camera. He had spent so much time and effort into finally winning a championship, and it was being taken from him without a real defeat. The event was coming to an end as World Champion Ric Flair was about to defend against Terry Funk, who introduced his "suprise" -- the managerial services of Gary Hart. Flair ended up with a pinfall victory, but the exhausted champ was immediately ambushed by Muta. The sight of his foe drew Sting to the ring like a cannonball. Together, Flair and Sting (you read that right!) fought off their enemies in a brawl that rambled throughout the entire arena. With his face red with blood and green from Muta's mist, Flair screamed out his gratitude to Sting: "I haven't said this in ten years! Thank you, Pal!" A dream team was born.
Sting had quite a task ahead of him in 1989. Although he and Ric Flair were now watching each other's backs, there still was the matter of the held-up TV Title. Sting was not about to see the title - the first major singles title in his tough career - disappear through poor officiating. Ever since the Bash, he fought The Great Muta to numerous no-decisions in matches for the belt. Thanks to their supreme conditioning, along with an unbelievable will to win, it was too even a match to call. Muta was a proud competitor, but winning the belt was more important than honor. Eventually, Sting's unwillingness to take a short cut in life was his undoing. On September 3, he met Muta in Atlanta. Once again, the mixture of athleticism and emotion resulted in a great match. Muta then decided to take it to the next level by using one of his martial arts weapons to knockout the Stinger. In Muta's mind, Sting could hold onto the fans and the rulebook - while he held onto the TV Title belt.
The feud pitting Flair and Sting against Gary Hart's men only escalated throughout the summer. On September 12, they were scheduled to meet in a tag team match at Fall Brawl (Clash Eight) in Columbia, South Carolina. Unfortunately, Terry Funk's elbow had been injured in the weeks before the match. As a result, Gary Hart hired a mercenary to team up with Muta against Flair and Sting, choosing Dick Slater as the substitute. In the minds of Flair and Sting, Slater was guilty by association, and they definitely wanted to get into the ring with Muta. Their only regret was that Funk would escape the beating he deserved. To everyone's amazement, Terry Funk (with an elbow brace on the outside of tuxedo sleeve) interfered in the match with disgusting intentions. While Slater and Muta double-teamed Sting, Funk produced a plastic bag and tried to suffocate The Nature Boy! Luckily, Brian Pillman led the rescue and even performed CPR to revive the gasping champion.
Funk's actions were appalling, but the duo of Ric Flair and Sting now knew that no limits were placed on this war. When Funk was fined and suspended, Flair paid the fine and requested his reinstatement. This feud was not going to be ended through suspensions and fines. The only way things would be settled would be until someone gave up. It was along these arguments that the four wrestlers agreed to a most unusual match. For starters, it would be held inside of a steel cage, but not just an ordinary cage. The cage encompassed the entire ringside area (similarly to the WWF's "Hell In The Cell" cage), and it was fitted with an electrical current running through the upper perimeter. Anyone who attempted to get in or out would meet with truly shocking consequences! Furthermore, the match would only end when one team or the other literally threw in the towel. Gary Hart responded by saying that he wouldn't let his men give up, as he himself would be in charge of the towel. Flair and Sting agreed to have their towel (and their fate) in the hands of former Horseman, Ole Anderson. Last, but certainly not least, the NWA decided that some sense of order needed to be maintained. Although Hart and Ole would determine the outcome of the match, one more man was needed to make sure that even they didn't interfere in the action. That one man was The Living Legend himself, Bruno Sammartino.
In a tradition that would follow every October since then, Halloween Havoc combined wrestling excitement with an aura of the mysterious. Gary Hart walked to the ring accompanied by members of his group, calling themselves the J-Tex Organization. They now had the assistance of The Dragon Master (Kendo Nagasaki), a mysterious character who walked to the ring backwards. History was made when Ric Flair was accompanied by Ole Anderson for the first time in two years. As the cage was being lowered, some of the Halloween decorations on the cage caught on fire. Muta dutifully responded by putting the fire out with his green mist! The bell rang, and all hell broke loose. For the first fifteen minutes or so, Sammartino tried to confine the match into a traditional tag team bout, but it eventually degenerated into something resembling a Texas Tornado match. After pairing up into two seperate brawls, the four men only stopped beating on each other to trade opponents! At one point, Sting used a decorative rope to swing into Muta from one cage wall to another. When Muta tried to climb out over the top of the cage, a firey spark reminded him that the electrical wiring was in place! After about twenty minutes of warfare, Sting and Flair managed to isolate Terry Funk. As Flair held him in the figure-four, Sting conected with three big splashes from the top rope. Even at that point, Gary Hart refused to throw in the towel! They had all but lost the match, and they became desperate for a way out. Muta decided to test Bruno's skills by throwing a martial arts kick at the Italian's head. Did Bruno still "have it?" You bet! Bruno ducked and replied with a bruising right hand! Gary Hart himself tried to enter the ring, but he was knocked down by Ole. In the process, Hart's towel landed in the ring. Bruno saw that Ole still had his own towel, so he had no alternative than to award the match to Flair and Sting.
Sting was very proud of his performance in the cage match, but he was about to be given a much higher accolade. In a ceremony held at New York Knockout (Clash Nine), he was given the 1989 Most Popular Wrestler Award by the editors of Pro Wrestling Illustrated Magazine. His partner Ric Flair received the Best Wrestler Award. All of this was all fine and dandy to the winners, but it just did not sit too well with United States Champion Lex Luger. Which award did he want? Both of them, of course! The cowardly Luger waited until the end of the night. After Ric Flair defeated Terry Funk in the famous "I Quit" match, both Funk and Flair were attacked by Gary Hart, Muta, and The Dragon Master. As Luger suspected, Sting entered the ring to even the sides. It was now time for Luger to interject. Not that he had any ties with Gary Hart, but he relished the idea of pummeling Sting and Flair in the same night. To make his emotions fully clear, he proceeded to destroy the trophies they had won that evening as well.
So now, as if he had enough troubles already, Sting had to deal with the violent insecurities of a man who was once his closest friend. It would be a fine piece of irony if he could snatch Luger's US Title to put him in his place. The TV Title, just as enticing, was still around Muta's waist, much to his chagrin. And even at this point, Sting still openly stated that his ultimate goal in life is to capture Ric Flair's NWA World Title. What better place than Starrcade '89 to lock up with each one of these champions in one night.
The format for the evening was a round-robin tournament to decide the NWA's "Iron Man." As the only one of the four participants without a title, Sting was the underdog, something that had never discouraged him in the past. His first opponent in the evening was Lex Luger. Sting started the match running on pure adrenaline. For several minutes he exacted revenge for the incident in New York. Sadly, his emotions took their toll on his focus. After eleven minutes of fury, Luger stole a cheap pinfall by using the turnbuckles for leverage. Next up on Sting's hitlist was Muta, who had just been handed his very first defeat by Flair earlier in the night. Muta's bad luck continued when Sting turned one of Muta's attempts at an aerial move into a superplex, giving Sting the 20 points he so desperately needed. Two of his opponents were still ahead of him. Luger was in the lead with 35 points, thanks to a draw against Flair and a DQ win over Muta. Flair was in second place with 25. The final match saw Flair and Sting compete with the entire tournament on the line. Time was running out on these two men. If there was a draw, neither man would exceed Luger's score. Even if Sting won by a DQ or countout, Luger would still be the winner. For Sting to win the tournament, he needed to gain a pinfall or a submission - coincidentally the only two ways he could ever hope to capture Flair's World Title. Only seconds before the time limit expired, Sting managed to reverse Flair's figure-four into a small package for a 20-point victory!
Sting's night was not over yet. Although he was the Iron Man champion, the fans all wondered what was to become of him as Ole and Arn Anderson entered the ring. Sting cautiously rotated around the ring, realizing that he now shared the ring three men who may be his enemies. He was prepared to repel an ambush. Instead, Arn Anderson raised Sting's hand. It was not an ambush, but an induction ceremony. His months of support as Flair's partner, combined with his display of superb wrestling skills (even at Flair's expense on this night) were enough to convince Ric Flair to reinstate THE FOUR HORSEMEN with Sting as its newest member!
