On the latest episode of his “83 Weeks” podcast, Eric Bischoff discussed the controversial WCW invasion angle in 2001 that WWE booked and has faced criticism for. Bischoff believes WWE had the opportunity to bring in Sting early and use him as a key anchor for the storyline.
Bischoff reflected on the perception within WCW at the time that WWE would treat incoming talent poorly and bury them in an initiation process, making it challenging to convince stars like Sting to join immediately. He said,
“The perception within WCW is that ‘Oh yeah, if you go to WWE, he’s gonna prove that WWE is superior, and their talent is superior. You’re just gonna get buried, and they’re going to embarrass you. And once they’re done having fun with you, if you still stick around, maybe they will do something with you.’ But the perception was, there was going to be this initiation process. And it would be ugly and miserable, and you wouldn’t enjoy it. Vince could have overcome that with Steve. It would’ve taken time. And I think once you landed a Steve Borden as the Sting character and one or two others like Sting, even if they were kind of lower on the roster, less exposed, maybe less made events under the belt, whatever. Not to be disrespectful, but all you needed was one anchor, like a Sting.”
“If Sting had come, Lex Luger would’ve come, right? Now that Lex Luger’s there and Sting’s there, guess who would follow shortly after that? The Steiner Brothers. Now you’ve got enough. And if I would’ve made a different decision, perhaps I would’ve been leading that charge. Then you’ve got an invasion that at least the audience feels like it could be true. Or could relate to the angst in the conflict that would exist between that WCW roster and those names that I just represented. You could have created a conflict that would’ve felt real and believable, much like the NWO story felt real and believable in the very beginning. You could have done that, but it would’ve required a little more time, a little more salesmanship, and a little more money, but not a lot more.”
Bischoff went on to share his thoughts on choosing Sting as the ideal starting point for the angle due to his strong association with WCW and his iconic Crow character, which would have added an intriguing layer to the storyline.
“Sting. Because I think other than Ric Flair — and really the reason Sting was, aside from Hogan, for the largest portion of the existence of WCW, Ric Flair and Sting represented that brand. And I think particularly then, it would’ve been Sting. And can you imagine too if it was Sting and he brought that spooky Crow character along with him? And kind of — not replicate, but extend the kind of imagery and mystique that the Crow character brought, so that he started showing up at WWE events and stalking certain people or whatever. That would be the guy for me. If I was in Vince’s shoes at that time and could only pick one guy, if I understood your question correctly, it would’ve absolutely been Sting.”
Finally, Bischoff explained his hypothetical plan for utilizing Sting in the invasion storyline, including a three-month buildup with the Crow character, maintaining silence about WCW after the acquisition, and building anticipation for a high-profile main event matchup featuring Sting. Bischoff said,
“So I would’ve thought — I would’ve looked at a calendar and said, ‘Okay, what’s my main event three months from now?’ It would’ve taken three months to build the backstory. Act one would’ve taken a month. And let’s say in act one, let’s go with the example I gave of utilizing Sting’s Crow character. After the acquisition, after the announcement, I would’ve gone radio silent regarding anything that had to do with WCW. Would not have talked about it, wouldn’t have been told all the talent not to talk about it, just let the dust settle on the acquisition. When the time was right, Sting’s my only guy. I would’ve full rights to that Crow character. I would say, ‘Okay, who do I want him in the main event with in whatever pay-per-view would’ve been 30 days from the date that it started? And if you’re gonna go, why not go for the biggest?”