MANILA, Philippines – Before anything else… “It’s showtime!”

The debut of wrestling legend Sting in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) finally took place on Sunday, November 23, at the Survivor Series pay-per-view.

Sting, real name Steve Borden, had never stepped foot in a WWE ring until Sunday, when he cost Team Authority the traditional 5-on-5 Survivor Series match against Team Cena at the main event.

As per match stipulations, authority figures Triple H and Stephanie McMahon were ousted from power, while 4 of 5 Team Cena members remained employed.

For the past 3 decades, Sting had worked for WWE competitors National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and Total Nonstop Action (TNA), and had legendary matches against the likes of Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, Kurt Angle, and AJ Styles.

He started making appearances for the WWE in April 2014, when he showed up in a segment on a WWE Network video. Since then, the WWE has featured Sting in the WWE 2K15 video game, made Sting action figures, and released a DVD of his illustrious career.

Sting is a 15-time World Champion: he has won 2 NWA World Heavyweight Championships, 6 WCW World Heavyweight Championships, 4 TNA World Heavyweight Championships, and 3 World Titles in two other wrestling promotions.

—–

And now, here are our thoughts on the highs and lows of the 28th annual WWE Survivor Series.

The Miz and Damien Sandow became the new WWE Tag Team Champions
by defeating Goldust & Stardust and challengers The Usos and Los Matadores

Nissi: Honestly, I was surprised to see The Miz and Damien Sandow, or Damien Mizdow, walk out with the titles. I was expecting that the Rhodes brothers would hang on to the belts for an extended period of time, but come to think of it, the outcome of the match will open another interesting storyline between the newly-minted champions.

The match was essentially a collection of spots surrounding a simple story and giving what the crowd wanted to see, which was Mizdow breaking his “stunt double” gimmick. Throughout the entire match, the crowd was chanting for him and was eager to see him tagged into action. When he finally got the chance, he grabbed the moment and pinned Goldust to win the titles for himself and The Miz.

This is Sandow’s first championship in his WWE career, and it is interesting that it came about by replicating another wrestler, considering how he had previously been Mr. Money in the Bank under his original persona. Despite technically being the supporting member of the duo, it’s obvious that Mizdow is moving out of the shadow of The Miz. If WWE is smart, this could lead to big things for Mizdow in the future, and it seems that the crowd would tag along on that ride.

Team Alicia Fox won the 4-on-4 Divas Survivor Series Match against Team Paige

Nissi: Naomi’s star shone in this match. Not only did she eliminate her erstwhile tag partner Cameron, but she also made former Divas champion Paige submit with her Rear View finisher. Emma likewise got my attention especially when she locked the Rope-hung Boston crab on Summer Rae. There are talent and potential worth cultivating in the Divas division.

Bray Wyatt defeated Dean Ambrose by disqualification

Nissi: Despite the result of the match, Dean Ambrose was clearly the critical point of the match. Losing the way he did does nothing to hurt Ambrose, and makes him look stronger in comparison to Wyatt, who ended up face down under a pile of tables and chairs.

(RELATED: RAW Deal: Welcome to the new age, to the new age)

Ambrose is a like a wrestler from the 1980’s. From his crisp punches to his vintage moves like the bulldog, he could have been Tully Blanchard’s tag team partner against the Rock and Roll Express. On the other hand, I like the Bray Wyatt character. I would say that he is like the present-day Undertaker. However, his relationship with every opponent is exactly the same. Wyatt has the identical relationship with every opponent.

Having these both men square off one more time in a TLC match is something to look forward to, but the rivalry has to end there.

Adam Rose & The Bunny def. Heath Slater & Titus O’Neil

Michael: An impromptu match that kept Adam Rose’s feud with The Bunny going. Nothing to write about, except to wonder when and how The Bunny would explain why he is still tagging along with Adam Rose despite the tension between them. Adam Rose kinda did that for him at the pay-per-view, but I wanna hear The Bunny talk!

Nikki Bella def. AJ Lee to win the WWE Divas Championship

Nissi: Nikki Bella capturing the Divas Championship has been a long time coming, but not many people would have been able to predict that Nikki would win the title so quickly. Amazingly, Brie Bella seemed excited to see her sister win. Was Brie playing us all or does she have other motives? For a while now, a lot of the eggs in the Divas division have been placed in the basket of the Bella Twins and their feud. Perhaps, we will find out in the weeks to come.

Team Cena defeated Team Authority in a traditional 5-on-5 Survivor Series Match
… thanks in part to Sting

Nissi: If there was one man to be named the MVP in this match, it’s the sole survivor, Dolph Ziggler. WWE gave the ball to Ziggler, and he didn’t let it drop out of bounce. At Survivor Series, he more than redeemed himself after suffering back-to-back setbacks in the hands of Luke Harper and Rusev last week. He technically got three eliminations in the match, with a fourth as an assist from “The Icon” Sting.

WWE could have easily given this spot to Cena and had him fight back against adversity, as the company has done time and time again in the past. However, the status quo was changed and the prime real estate of sole survivor went to someone who has deserved this kind of push for a long time. Ziggler is a potential Royal Rumble winner, and I won’t be surprised if he will be pointing to the WrestleMania sign after thumping 29 other participants in January next year. – Rappler.com