By THE LILSBOYS
AND ADAM SIBLEY

WHEN American wrestling outfit WWA said they were bringing Sting – quite simply one of the greatest wrestlers of all time – to the UK, we were sceptical.

We thought The Stinger had retired and, as revealed in our exclusive webchat below, so did he.

Steve Borden – the man behind the Sting mask – chatted to us about his 18 months away from the ring, the rise and fall of WCW and why he doesn't want to follow many of his old friends into the WWE.

We honestly thought you had retired from wrestling and were shocked when the WWA announced you were coming back. What made you decide to get back in to the squared circle?

Well I thought that I had retired from wrestling too! I never officially retired or anything – I hadn't closed the door on wrestling – but I thought that I was probably done.

Then I got a phone call from Andrew McManus, the WWA promoter, and I decided to go back to work. It wasn't as though I had a motive to get back into the ring, my phone rang and I agreed to do this.

Do you think you may return full time in either the WWE or Japan?

I honestly don't know. I have no plans but I am not going to close the door on coming back. So far my tour of Europe has been pretty good and I would go to Japan.

I would say my chances of going to Japan or back to Europe are better than me going to the WWE.

What do you think about the current state of the WWE and the wrestling business in general?

It just seems that notoriously over the years the wrestling business has had ups and downs. And it seems to be on a down right now

There is only one big organisation to work for now which is a bad thing, as I think the world needs two big wrestling groups.

Right now it is kind of frustrating to see what is going on because of the rise in shock TV that continues to this day. They've pushed it beyond comprehension almost. I can't believe it.

Things like the necrophilia angle that the WWE did are pushing things too far. When I tune in and watch I think how can I plug myself into that? That is one of the reasons I can't see myself in the WWE.

We've not seen you since the final episode of WCW Nitro back in March 2001, can you tell us a bit about what you've been up to since then?

Since WCW went I have put all my focus in being a husband and a father and I've got really involved in my church. I've also been developing a 90-acre piece of property in Southern California, which has resort recreational zoning. My wife and I are slowly but surely turning it into a Christian retreat.

What were your thoughts when WWA contacted you to come back?

I tried to sort out some sort of comeback with the WWA a year ago which didn't work and the second time around I was sort of wary. Andrew McManus has had some success and he's tried to be very accommodating for me.

You know, I am just going to go back and try it and see what happens after my long absence, knowing that if I don't get back in the ring sometime soon it will never happen.

You've fought anyone who has been anyone in the wrestling business. Who would you pick out as the top wrestler you have ever faced?

There isn't any one. Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan and The Great Muta are the big ones for me.

Do you keep in contact with any of the old WCW guys?

Yeah, mainly Ric and Scott Steiner. You know I only talked to Lex Luger once and Buff Bagwell from time to time before joining up with them again on this tour.

I also talk to DDP and Bill Goldberg from time to time. I have talked to Eric Bischoff once or twice, and some others but I can't remember.

You are arguably the best wrestler never to have competed for the WWF/E. Were you ever tempted to join them?

Yes, I was tempted in the past. I was close to leaving WCW on a couple of occasions in the 1990s and going up there.

What did you think of Scott Steiner joining WWE?

I'm not surprised, I knew he wanted to attempt it at least and I knew they have been very interested in Scottie going up there. I think he is a good fit for their brand.

You and Ric Flair had one of the greatest wrestling rivalries in WCW what are you thoughts on the man?

Those are great memories. Ric really put me on the map, he could have made me look average but he made me look great and I am thankful for that. I owe him a lot of credit.

With the nWo angle in the mid 1990s, WCW took off and started to get higher ratings than WWF/E. What was it like to be in WCW at that time and what were your thoughts on the angle?

It was a good feeling. The mood was really good, we had some new refreshing faces, angles and storyline and everyone's creative juices were flowing.

Eric Bischoff was listening to everyone around him but was taking what was good - not his motive and agendas - and running with it. We were successful and everyone was having fun. It was a good time.

You had a massive change in character from a comic book style Sting to the dark Crow style Sting. Whose idea was that change?

It was Scott Hall's actual idea specifically. But the idea to change was mine. Because wrestling was changing and I knew that I had to change and take the Sting character into the future.

Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff both had a hand in the creative direction of WCW over the years, whose ideas did you like the best?

I can say I never preferred Vince Russo's style, ever. Eric never really wrote shows but he would tweak what was happening.

When WCW was coming to a close what was the atmosphere like?

It was already on such a downward spiral. If anything could get worse it did, it was out of hand, it wasn't a very happy time for anybody.

How are you enjoying your stay in Britain and Ireland so far?

Well it has been pretty short so far but it has been good. I have one match under my belt in Dublin. I didn't know what to expect after being out of the ring for 18 months but it felt pretty good.

Have you got anything left you would like to accomplish in your wrestling career?

There are a lot of people who look at it as being a bad deal that all of a sudden it was over, without a chance to say goodbye. I didn't have a retirement match and I think that bothered a lot of people.

I would like to say goodbye properly.

Finally, why should people come and see you on the WWA tour?

If you are a wrestling fan, I guess you never know if you are going to see me in the ring again! It is kind of special because most of the world thought that Sting was probably done and retired, and here I am.

I also believe that most people, especially in Europe, didn't actually believe the WWA when they said I was coming over.

This could be my last tour. I wanted to come here and shake out the rust – because it is 18 months since I was last in the ring – and see how I feel. If I feel good and the world is interested in me then I would consider doing something, somewhere in wrestling, in the future.