#2 Black Scorpion
In one of the weirdest angles in WCW history, Sting would have to run into a former person from his past who went by the name of Black Scorpion.
All that was really known about the man at the time was that he was from Sting’s past and that he had a score to settle obviously. It was August of 1990 and WCW, still part of NWA at the time, he was trying to do everything to stand out.
Sting was NWA World Champion at the time and would need a good opponent to help him continue to get over, which is why the Black Scorpion made some sense in theory. Many thought that since the Scorpion said he was Sting’s past and a former friend, that the man was the Ultimate Warrior, a friend and former tag team partner with Sting years ago.
He finally made his debut at Clash of the Champions XII on September 15, 1990. The wrestler playing the character then was known as Al Perez, who was set to remain the man behind the character until the unmasking that would eventually happen. Suddenly, Perez quit and that meant the character would need to be recast.
Scorpion would also perform magic and illusions to help add on to the mystique of his character. He would perform often at ringside for fans. The magic was done by a known illusionist at the time, Franz Harary.
Finally, a match was signed where Scorpion would take on Sting at Starrcade for the NWA World Title. If he won, he would claim the championship but if he lost, he would be forced to unmask. To make sure he wouldn’t run, the match was done in a steel cage to settle the rivalry.
Sting would beat the Black Scorpion and unmask him. The man turned out to be Ric Flair, who made total sense for the role at the end of the day. It was a last minute thing. According to Flair, it was set to either be him or Barry Windham. Flair claimed that he felt he was best for the part, because if the angle turned out bad it wouldn’t hurt him at all, but it could hurt Windham who was an imposter Sting at Halloween Havoc previously.
Sting would lose the NWA World Title to Flair less than a month later, which only added to their terrific rivalry.
