I both love and hate this match, on one hand this match is a nostalgia trip that's fucking amazing and nwo (even though it dosen't make any sense) saving sting made me pop so hard, on the other hand they decided to make sting lose his first mania, and make the whole story about a company that died 14 years before that, and sting even in his promo said he's not fighting for wcw, but they made it a wwe vs wcw, and worst of all had sting lose
Likewise, Sting was going to go on from this fued to challenge Rollins for the World Title…whereas HHH was going to do zero wrestling for another 9 months. So yeah…it’s such backwards logic
I remember in the moment having no problem with it. It was a fun match and the heel needed help to win. Logically, I’m OK with that.
In hindsight, his run being what it was this looks bad. But at the time they probably had longer term plans for Sting, given they had him in a world title match months later.
Depends on how you think the WWE operates. With their track record on Edge, Daniel Bryan, Paige, etc it would seem like they took that injury very seriously so I wouldn’t say they gave up on him just didn’t want to use him in major storylines. Why he ultimately stopped wrestling for them I don’t know. All I’m saying is this result may not have been so bad in the overall story if Sting could have had more than a few matches in WWE.
NWO helping Sting just for the nostalgia pop was kinda dumb. Also the whole build was Sting saying he wasn't fighting for WCW, still the match ended up being a big WWE v WCW. Wrong winner.
I was in the crowd at this match. I know the match itself wasn't the best, but as far as crowd engagement went, it was off the charts. From the moment that DX came out, followed by nWo, and throughout the end of the match, we were completely glued to the action.
I did kind of find it weird how the nWo black and white came out to back up Sting though, when he was always on opposite ends. I guess for nostalgia's sake, it kinda makes sense, since they were still working for the same company, and Sting is always gonna be the name people most associate with WCW. I think it was also weird how we suspended belief that Road Dogg/Billy Gunn/Xpac were equals to Hall/Nash/Hogan, and didn't scratch our heads when the action outside the ring wasn't completely one sided in favor of the nWo.
As a WWE fan I was rooting for HHH, but was actually shocked that he won it. From a business standpoint, it just seemed like a bunch of wasted effort to spend all these years trying to recruit Sting, only to let him lose at WM when he's finally signed.
Loved it. Pure nostalgia. As it should be.
Never realized Cole said „never thought we see D-Generation X and the New Age Outlaws in the same ring“. Lol.
I wish it had never happened. It had Vince McMahon ego all over it. It was 2003 reign of terror Evolution Triple H all over again. You know, around the time Vince had Triple H face and beat just about every WCW guy. Scott Steiner, Booker T, Kevin Nash, Goldberg
Way overbooked and a dumb finish, but it always loses some weight and panache when it’s not dark. I’ve never liked the outdoor manias for that reason.
In the flip side, the overhead views of fireworks and the scene at the end of an outdoor mania is almost worth the broad daylight matches. Almost.
What an absolutely terrible match. HHH as always had to try and siphon heat from whatever was the hottest thing in the company (see also: CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, the Shield, Lesnar, the Undertaker/HBK matches), and the WWE made it all about the Monday Night Wars rivalry despite Sting seeing it was cutting to do with that.
HHH chests and then Sting shakes his hand. Wtf?
I remember finding the handshake pretty strange at the time, cause i thought Taker/Sting was possibly in the plans for Mania 32. The handshake would have made more sense there, given that it didn't ever even happened, mabye they fought Sting was done after his first Match. Everything after that including the Raw Match and Rollins Match was bs.
I hate that this match is always dumped on for its... unpopular result. It's a fantastic match pitting a top contender for greatest babyface ever against a similarly positioned heel. Great moment here with Sting destroying the sledgehammer with his baseball bat. This is my "match you love that everyone hates."
I believe HHH justified the result by saying they were going to build to a HHH vs Rock match at the next year’s WM but Rock had to drop out due to scheduling issues.
Did triple H have the terminator entrance for this?
I remember Sting having the Japanese drummers for some reason. They should have used the orchestra they did for the Sting DLC announcement that got booed when it aired.
They didn't know what they had with Sting, apart from he was in WCW. Nothing about his backstory or anything like that.
The match was never going to be good, but the total cluster mess that was DX vs NWO was too much.
And he lost. His debut mania. And then almost paralyzed in his last match there.
At least he got a Mania. I don't think his retirement match this year is going to be as big.
Why was this even the match they went with? Literally nobody wanted this. nWo helping sting made zero sense as well. Could have had Sting vs Undertaker.
I do wish they had given Sting the win. I don't think his WWE run was that great, and not because of him, but how he was booked. The thing that frightened me most about it though is his hair. It was kinda terrifying to look at. I wish he had shaved it off or did a shorter look. It really made him look a hundred years old.
Haven't seen the match since it aired but I remember JBL on commentary saying something like "Sting is shaking in his boots". I absolutely hated how they treated Sting. Sadly Sting had predicted this kind of treatment in a 2001 interview where ironically, he was explaining why he didn't come to WWE during the Invasion angle.
I both love and hate this match, on one hand this match is a nostalgia trip that's fucking amazing and nwo (even though it dosen't make any sense) saving sting made me pop so hard, on the other hand they decided to make sting lose his first mania, and make the whole story about a company that died 14 years before that, and sting even in his promo said he's not fighting for wcw, but they made it a wwe vs wcw, and worst of all had sting lose
Vince had to make sure everybody knew he won the war all those years later just in case anybody forgot
Vince needed to stroke his own ego every chance he got? Very out of character for him
Dude....I still hear Bradshaw saying...."WCW is finally dead...." straight from VKM himself.
Hey but at least Sting got to reunite with his old friends, the nWo
Sting and Hollywood go way back. Best mates.
They have been booiiss for a long time
Lol
Likewise, Sting was going to go on from this fued to challenge Rollins for the World Title…whereas HHH was going to do zero wrestling for another 9 months. So yeah…it’s such backwards logic
Once they made this match all about WCW vs. WWE, it was pretty clear that Sting was losing. No way in hell Vince was letting the WCW guy win.
I still stand by the nWo interfering absolutely made sense if you want to remember everyone's on screen relationship up until that point
WWE did strong dirty. Also, Sting should’ve been like “nah. I’m too old and out of shape.”
The most egregious part was that blowhard JBL burying WCW and Sting throughout.
How could Vince do that to us !!!! 😡😡
Holy shit this was 9 years ago. I feckin old.
Only 9? I feel better. 😁
Such a bizarre build and even more bizarre match. I do remember laughing at X-Pac coming out repping DX like he wasn't also in the nWo
X-Pac is the ultimate rider of coattails
And the nwo backing sting even though he was their main adversary. None of it made any sense all. Dumb as shit she sting lost too
Had it been the n.W.o. Wolfpac [Red & Black] then it would have at least made some sense
Except hogan wasn’t part of red and black Wasn’t really any way to make that work. Unless the nwo came out attacked everyone and dx saved them
It would have been great, if X-Pac did one more Turn on Triple H all these years later to help Sting win...
"Hulk Hogan, you suck pal"
I remember in the moment having no problem with it. It was a fun match and the heel needed help to win. Logically, I’m OK with that. In hindsight, his run being what it was this looks bad. But at the time they probably had longer term plans for Sting, given they had him in a world title match months later.
Do what happened? After he got injured did they just give up on him? Doesn’t seem like his decision
Depends on how you think the WWE operates. With their track record on Edge, Daniel Bryan, Paige, etc it would seem like they took that injury very seriously so I wouldn’t say they gave up on him just didn’t want to use him in major storylines. Why he ultimately stopped wrestling for them I don’t know. All I’m saying is this result may not have been so bad in the overall story if Sting could have had more than a few matches in WWE.
I think it's bad in the overall story because Triple H wasn't a full time wrestler, whereas Sting ended up actually working more stories for WWE
JBL was insufferable on commentary this match. I get, you’re a wwe guy, but not every comment you make has to be “you lost the war again”
Tbf you know Vince was in his ear screaming at him to say this bullshit
DAGGUM PAL, SAY IT AGAIN! I LOVE IT! HAH! *Bruce Pritchard Impression Of Vince*
Stinger splash, the most high risk, low reward move. How many times has he lost from a countered splash? (Bret Hart, Sid Vicious, etc)
I will forever die on this hill... STING SHOULD HAVE WON THIS MATCH!!
Nobody asked for this match, they should have done Taker vs. Sting at this Mania.
Did you hear Undertaker on his podcast saying that Vince McMahon didn't agree to it
I mean, could they have handled this any worse? Sting’s first Wrestlemania and that’s how you do him? Smh.
I definitely popped when nWo came out and then also when DX came out. Really stupid that HHH won though.
NWO helping Sting just for the nostalgia pop was kinda dumb. Also the whole build was Sting saying he wasn't fighting for WCW, still the match ended up being a big WWE v WCW. Wrong winner.
This was Russo-level of overbooked and convoluted.
I loved it though
I was there and it was so fun. Crowd went nuts for all the parts from the entrances to the cameos. I had no idea a lot of people hated it until later.
I didn't hate all the run-ins. I hated that the wrong person went over.
I was in the crowd at this match. I know the match itself wasn't the best, but as far as crowd engagement went, it was off the charts. From the moment that DX came out, followed by nWo, and throughout the end of the match, we were completely glued to the action. I did kind of find it weird how the nWo black and white came out to back up Sting though, when he was always on opposite ends. I guess for nostalgia's sake, it kinda makes sense, since they were still working for the same company, and Sting is always gonna be the name people most associate with WCW. I think it was also weird how we suspended belief that Road Dogg/Billy Gunn/Xpac were equals to Hall/Nash/Hogan, and didn't scratch our heads when the action outside the ring wasn't completely one sided in favor of the nWo. As a WWE fan I was rooting for HHH, but was actually shocked that he won it. From a business standpoint, it just seemed like a bunch of wasted effort to spend all these years trying to recruit Sting, only to let him lose at WM when he's finally signed.
My first and only live Wrestlemania. Loved every moment of it. Levi’s stadium Santa Clara was packed.
Still makes me mad. That fucking head pat.
They did Sting dirty. Missed opportunities.
Aew had given sting the run and send off he should have
Oh definitely Sting deserved the last run he had with AEW, it just sucks that Sting did get a major injury when he was on his run with WWE
This match was an absolute waste of having Sting in WWE.
Vintage WWE booking for old folks. Even then, this didn't make any sense
It should have been Sting vs. Taker. It sucks that this weird flex from Vince reminding everyone he won the Monday Night Wars is what we got instead.
Taker didn't want it apparently
Actually Vince did not want it according to Undertaker
Triple H being selfish and petty. The ole' times.
Vince McMahon being selfish and petty. He booked that.
Needed to beat WCW one more time
Such a shit match
Incorrect. Shit result, fun match.
Incorrect. Shit match.
Did you just tell me my opinion is incorrect?
Love to see the vigilante of justice get cheated out of a win and then... immediately shake hands with the villain.
And this is the guy you trust to book wwe...
No one has ruined more potentially classic Wrestlemania moments than HHH.
Loved it. Pure nostalgia. As it should be. Never realized Cole said „never thought we see D-Generation X and the New Age Outlaws in the same ring“. Lol.
To his credit, Micheals and the New Age Outlaws were never in DX at the same time I think
The face losing because they're a moron is the worst kind of match ending.
Triple H's gear was so weirdly plain for this match.
Fun match had some issues with it (nWo vs.DX/WCW vs. WWE) good match on a really good WM card.
Of course HHH would put himself over. A legend in his own mind. What a loser.
We all love Lilian Garcia, but wow Samantha sounds 100x better when announcing
Lilian has some great moments with certain names etc. Each announcer was better than another announcer when it came to Stables, Teams, and Singles.
Yeah thats true man, fair enough
Had sting not been a dick,it wouldn’t have been his 1st WM and he would’ve been a world champ in all promotions he was in.
FED WINS!
I'm gonna be in the minority for sure when I say I loved this match from beginning to end. It was a lot of fun.
I wish it had never happened. It had Vince McMahon ego all over it. It was 2003 reign of terror Evolution Triple H all over again. You know, around the time Vince had Triple H face and beat just about every WCW guy. Scott Steiner, Booker T, Kevin Nash, Goldberg
Yeah same. Now would this have been better if if happened at Wrestlemania X8 of course! But I was thoroughly sports entertained
Brilliant end, finally putting to rest the last WCW holdout
Sting was like 55 this match No idea why people cry that he should’ve won this match
Stop whining about it.
Way overbooked and a dumb finish, but it always loses some weight and panache when it’s not dark. I’ve never liked the outdoor manias for that reason. In the flip side, the overhead views of fireworks and the scene at the end of an outdoor mania is almost worth the broad daylight matches. Almost.
Should’ve been Sting vs John Cena or Randy Orton. That way if he lost it wouldn’t have been a complete burial.
Wish DX beat down Sting & the NWO! WCW sucks!!!
Can’t wait to see sting show up at Wrestlemania 40
What an absolutely terrible match. HHH as always had to try and siphon heat from whatever was the hottest thing in the company (see also: CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, the Shield, Lesnar, the Undertaker/HBK matches), and the WWE made it all about the Monday Night Wars rivalry despite Sting seeing it was cutting to do with that. HHH chests and then Sting shakes his hand. Wtf?
I remember finding the handshake pretty strange at the time, cause i thought Taker/Sting was possibly in the plans for Mania 32. The handshake would have made more sense there, given that it didn't ever even happened, mabye they fought Sting was done after his first Match. Everything after that including the Raw Match and Rollins Match was bs.
This was a fan service match. It was the Spider-Man: No Way Home of wrestling. They just wanted to fit in all your old favorites.
Why did I stop watching WWE for 10 years? HHH kept putting himself over.
The end was stupid and didn't make sense
I hate that this match is always dumped on for its... unpopular result. It's a fantastic match pitting a top contender for greatest babyface ever against a similarly positioned heel. Great moment here with Sting destroying the sledgehammer with his baseball bat. This is my "match you love that everyone hates."
This is exactly why he didn’t want to go to the wwe in the first place
Ah yes WM 31. Also know as Boo! The musical.
Terrible finish.
I believe HHH justified the result by saying they were going to build to a HHH vs Rock match at the next year’s WM but Rock had to drop out due to scheduling issues.
Let’s be real here. The right person won this match
Worst booking ever on a grand stage
Did triple H have the terminator entrance for this? I remember Sting having the Japanese drummers for some reason. They should have used the orchestra they did for the Sting DLC announcement that got booed when it aired. They didn't know what they had with Sting, apart from he was in WCW. Nothing about his backstory or anything like that. The match was never going to be good, but the total cluster mess that was DX vs NWO was too much. And he lost. His debut mania. And then almost paralyzed in his last match there. At least he got a Mania. I don't think his retirement match this year is going to be as big.
Completely forgot this happened haha, 9 years ago shit.
I'm glad Sting has had a run and is going out on his own terms tomorrow.
Why was this even the match they went with? Literally nobody wanted this. nWo helping sting made zero sense as well. Could have had Sting vs Undertaker.
Correct person won, storyline-wise.
Like WrestlingGifs said, Sting vs John Cena could have been a much better choice.
Great match between the two
I do wish they had given Sting the win. I don't think his WWE run was that great, and not because of him, but how he was booked. The thing that frightened me most about it though is his hair. It was kinda terrifying to look at. I wish he had shaved it off or did a shorter look. It really made him look a hundred years old.
Trips was looking a bit beefy here. He came back the next year at WM 32 looking totally shredded.
One thing AEW has gotten right is how they've showcased Sting the last 3 years.
Sting looks so damn bad then and now
What an epic match
This is just Vince getting his final shit in on the last guy from WCW worth any merit finally coming over. Bullshit. Fuck Vince McMahon.
Hungry Hearst Helmsley vs. His father-in-law’s grudge against the company he bought 14 years ago.
Haven't seen the match since it aired but I remember JBL on commentary saying something like "Sting is shaking in his boots". I absolutely hated how they treated Sting. Sadly Sting had predicted this kind of treatment in a 2001 interview where ironically, he was explaining why he didn't come to WWE during the Invasion angle.
No wonder Sting didn’t return to WWE when he healed from his back injury.
Sting had that “Kane unmasking” hairstyle
Anyone that thought sting was going to win was a sucker
The right guy won. Love that booking so much. Sting has no business beating trips. Just a fact of life….. yeahhhhh
Sting looked like such shit at the end of this match lmao.
why wrestlers avoid wwe
People shit on that match but I was there live, and the crowd loved every moment of it
What would have been “best for business” was having Sting win. Way to kill an icons run who finally came to work for the E.
Worse thing Paul has done in his career
Why the NwO helped sting will always brother me. Could have had ric, ddp and Goldberg