WCW, for most of its existence, featured heel superstars as top champions. The Four Horsemen, Vader, and Rick Rude were all heels when they dominated the promotion as its top stars. The notion was solidified with the revelation of Hulk Hogan as nWO’s third man.
Much like its archrival, WWE at the time, WCW gave fans many memorable heel turns. While some failed to execute their purpose, others made a major impact on this business. These five heel turns belong to the latter category.
The Steiner Brothers implode (WCW SuperBrawl VIII)
The Steiner Brothers emerged as legitimate threats to The Outsiders and their ambitions to turn WCW upside down. At SuperBrawl VIII, Rick and Scott squared off against Nash and Hall with the tag team titles on the line.
The Steiners dominated most part of the match due to their clearly superior wrestling skills. However, just as they were about to seize the win, Scott turned on his brother Rick. The crowd was stunned at what they had witnessed.
To fully cement his turn, Scott would ditch his signature singlet to go for a more rugged look, complete with blonde hair and a villainous persona. Big Poppa Pump was here to stay.
Scott Hall knocks out Kevin Nash (Slamboree 1998)
WCW had reached a saturating point with the nWO storyline by 1998. What was at one point the hottest storyline in pro wrestling had gone stale due to constant overbooking. Amid all the chaos, WCW came up with a surprise finish at Slamboree 1998.
The PPV event saw Scott Hall turn on longtime partner Kevin Nash to cost The Outsiders tag team titles against Sting and The Giant. As shocking as the heel turn was, WCW failed to follow up with the consistent storytelling it deserved.
The Four Horsemen turn on Sting
Sting and Ric Flair were sworn enemies before they became allies. The Stinger spent the majority of his early career going back and forth with The Nature Boy and his Horsemen. The duo would form a brief partnership in 1990 that saw Sting inducted into the faction as a full-fledged member.
The alliance won’t last long as Flair showed his true colors at Clash of Champions. After Sting refused to surrender his number one contender’s spot to the top title, the future Vigilante was kicked out of the faction by Flair and his men.
Eric Bischoff is the mastermind behind nWo
The nWO quickly established themselves as anti-authority figures following WCW Bash at the Beach 1996. This angle would serve as a blueprint for the idea behind D-Generation X and their controversial antics in WWE.
While originally composed of three men, the nWO would flex their muscles as they tore through WCW’s hierarchy. The faction would reveal Eric Bischoff as the mastermind behind it all on the November 18, 1996, episode Nitro.
This was truly a shocking moment, as Bischoff had gone to extreme lengths to prove he was loyal to WCW and the fans prior to the revelation.
That brings us to the following…
Hulk Hogan is the third man (WCW Bash at the Beach 1996)
Widely considered to be one of wrestling’s all-time greats, Hulk Hogan’s heel turn truly sent shockwaves across the industry. The Hulkster had enjoyed fan support since his AWA days. His popularity would only skyrocket in Vince McMahon’s WWE.
Hulk would arrive in WCW after a highly successful run with the Stamford-based promotion. He’d start off as a babyface, taking on popular heels at the time, such as Vader. This run saw him capture the promotion’s top title on multiple occasions.
By 1996, his character had gone stale. Fans wanted change, and they got just that at Bash at the Beach PPV. The main event saw The Outsiders take on Lex Luger, Sting, and Randy Savage in a multi-man tag team match.
Fans would see The Immortal One march down to the ring to take on Scott Hall and Kevin Nash, but were shocked to the core when Hogan turned his back on them and WCW by aligning himself with Hall and Nash.
Pro wrestling was never the same.
Honorable Mentions
- Curt Hennig
- Dusty Rhodes
- Miss Elizabeth
- Ricky Morton
- Masahiro Chono
Also read: 5 Best Heel Turns In TNA History
