5 WWE legends with the most wins in a WarGames match

With WWE Survivor Series WarGames this weekend, interest in the "Match Beyond" is at a fever pitch.

For the second year in a row, the WarGames match will be headlining a major WWE premium live event. Considering how long it took for the company to start using the gimmick bout in the first place, that's pretty remarkable.

WarGames has a decades-long history, going all the way back to a time before WCW was even WCW. Between 1987 and 2000, there were a total of 31 of these matches held. It's the forerunner to match types like Hell in a Cell and Elimination Chamber.

But who are the wrestlers with the best track record in the WarGames match? Who has the most appearances or the most wins? Glad you asked. Not surprisingly, this list contains a lot of wrestling legends - including four WWE Hall of Famers.

So, let's take a look. Here are the five wrestlers with the most wins in a WarGames match.

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#5. Nikita Koloff - 11 WarGames appearances, 11 wins

The only name on this list not in the WWE Hall of Fame (not yet, anyway), "The Russian Nightmare" Nikita Koloff is still an icon of 1980s NWA/WCW. And he's a name that will forever be associated with this match.

Originally born in Minnesota, Koloff went to extraordinary lengths to sell the idea that he was actually from the Soviet Union. He would learn to speak Russian and use a Russian accent even when away from the ring.

Nikita was also known for his ferocious power-based move-set, employing a devastating running clothesline he dubbed "the Russian Sickle" as his finisher.

Koloff was involved in the very first WarGames match, teaming with some of the other names on this list to face the Four Horsemen. He would eventually compete in ten more battles in the two-ring steel cage, being on the winning team for all of them.

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#4. Dusty Rhodes - 12 WarGames appearances, 12 wins

Considering he's the guy who invented the match in the first place, it makes sense that Dusty Rhodes shows up on this list. Besides, who better to follow the "Russian Nightmare" than the "American Dream," right?

While it shares a name with the 1983 Matthew Broderick movie WarGames, the inspiration for the match actually comes from a different 1980s flick. That film in question? Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome.

While the match was originally envisioned as a showcase for the Four Horsemen, Rhodes was never on the losing end of any of those bouts. The guy who invented the match also never lost one... huh? Funny how that works out.

Dusty would participate in his last of these matches in 1994 at Fall Brawl (the WCW event most associated with the match), where he teamed with his son, Dustin, as well as the Nasty Boys to face Terry Funk, Arn Anderson, Bunkhouse Buck, and Col. Robert Parker. He won that one, too, by the way.

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#3. The Road Warriors - 13 WarGames appearances, 13 wins

Like the names mentioned earlier, Hawk and Animal (and, occasionally, their manager, Paul Ellering) were a part of the "Match Beyond" from the very beginning.

In fact, out of the first 10 'Games bouts, The Road Warriors took part in seven of them. They also clearly won all of those, too. And then some.

The Warriors - called the Legion of Doom while in WWE - were arguably the most dominant tag team of the 1980s. They were the only team in history to hold the NWA/WCW, WWE, and AWA tag team titles. They were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, along with Ellering, in 2011.

Now, is it just a coincidence that a match inspired by a Mad Max film frequently featured a tag team named after another Mad Max film? Probably. That's pretty awesome, though.

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#2. Lex Luger - 19 WarGames appearances, 14 wins

"The Total Package" has the interesting distinction of being the only name on this list to both team with and face off against the Four Horsemen in a WarGames match, not at the same time, obviously. That would be weird.

Aside from a brief run in WWE - where he wore shirts with the American flag and rode a bus a lot - Luger is mostly known for his time in WCW. During that time, he was in a lot of these matches. And while he's the first name on this list not to have won all the Matches Beyond he fought in, he holds the record for the second-most wins overall - coming in at a cool 14.

While Luger still works with WWE regarding their Wellness Policy, he's unfortunately in no shape to step back in the ring and break that record.

In 2007, he suffered a spinal infraction that left him temporarily paralyzed. Thankfully, he eventually regained movement to the point where he could walk, but he still requires a wheelchair to get around to this day.

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#1. Sting - 19 WarGames appearances, 15 wins

Of course, it's the Stinger. How could it not be?

The seven-time WCW World Champion (eight, if you count that WCW International World Championship he held for a bit) has had a long history with WarGames. Not only has the match played into his feuds with the Four Horsemen, but he's also faced the Dangerous Alliance, the Dungeon of Doom, and the nWo in the double cage, as well.

In 1998, he competed in the first WarGames match to feature three different teams instead of the usual two. That wouldn't be seen again until 2017, in the first WarGames match under the WWE banner.

Sting participated in the very last Match Beyond in WCW history on the September 4, 2000, episode of Monday Nitro. Despite being a five vs. five battle, the bout was somehow also for the WCW World Championship. WCW in 2000, folk. There was nothing quite like it.

In 2016, after a brief cup of coffee in WWE, he was inducted into their Hall of Fame. He's currently wrapping up his career in AEW, which makes one more appearance in the double cages pretty unlikely.