Tag: Sting

Sting’s AEW Colleagues And Family Pay Tribute Ahead Of Revolution

Sting is set to call time on his iconic 38-year career at AEW Revolution this Sunday. “The Icon” will partner with Darby Allin for the last time, defending their AEW tag titles against the Young Bucks in a Tornado Tag match. Ahead of Sting riding off into the sunset, the Players’ Tribune collected voicemails left by his AEW colleagues and family members, including the likes of Jeff Jarrett, Eddie Kingston, FTR, Britt Baker, Tony Schiavone, and Arn Anderson, to commemorate his decorated tenure in wrestling and in life. 

https://twitter.com/PlayersTribune/status/1763964987616227518

Sting’s sons, Steven and Garrett Borden, both left messages for him, exuding pride to have him as a father and for what he has become within wrestling. 

“I want to say that I’m just really proud of you, and I think your will to resist the erosion of time is something that just continues to blow me away,” said Steven, “Especially over the last 12 to 24 months. Just your fortitude to kind of white-knuckle through pain and injury, broken ribs, surgeries, and everything that this business requires to deliver electric moments to the wrestling universe, is something that just — I can see kinda the behind-the-scenes stuff and it just has continued to blow me away. So I’m excited for this last ride and just really proud of you.” 

“You’ve managed to stay so youthful the entire time,” Garrett said. “I love how when we were kids, you were at every single football game, every Christmas party, Thanksgiving, track meet, you were always there. I know that, for this industry, it’s tough. Sometimes kids don’t get to see their dads that much, but I never felt like that as a kid and I always just knew that you were there.”

Sting’s daughter, Gracie, also shared a message for her father. She started with an emphatic, “I love you” before explaining that there are just three who have the distinction of calling Sting their father. 

“Me, Garrett, and Steven really scored in the dad department, if you ask me. One night, you’re painted up and jumping through cables; the very next morning, you’re sweeping leaves off my porch and helping me set up my washer and dryer,” she said. “You are so special to me, Dad, and it has been the coolest thing I’ve ever experienced getting to watch you do what you do over these last few years … I will never stop being your biggest fan and that is an understatement.” 

Sting’s sister, Kelley Bouck, remarked that she can say she has a superhero for a brother after a stellar and amazing career. But what makes him an exceptional man goes beyond what he does in the ring.

“You’re so faithful and steadfast in your commitment to the Lord and your family, and you’re just a superhero in every arena of life,” she said. “Congratulations on finishing this leg of the race so well. I love you, brother.” 

Closing up the family portion of the voicemails, Sting’s daughter-in-law and AEW colleague Katelyn Borden, along with his niece Randi Jackson, also shared messages for “The Icon.”

“It has been an honor to be your daughter-in-law as well as your co-worker at AEW. Anytime I get asked about you I always say the same thing. Anything you think about Sting, any picture you have of him in your head, he’s better,” said Katelyn, while Randi said, “I hope you feel all the love and admiration coming your way at the culmination of just such an iconic career.” 

Here are some other messages from friends and colleagues present and former on Sting’s last match.

https://twitter.com/THETOMMYDREAMER/status/1764335545990173126
https://twitter.com/GenuineLexLuger/status/1764279137168945204
https://twitter.com/RealRickyMorton/status/1764288856176693675
https://twitter.com/TonyKhan/status/1764044137181893101
https://twitter.com/missyhyatt/status/1764097884210024818
https://twitter.com/dustinrhodes/status/1764017133669724497
https://twitter.com/dustinrhodes/status/1763413418445267290
https://twitter.com/CodyRhodes/status/1764348850402426997

Sting Addresses His Last AEW Dynamite Crowd After The Broadcast Goes Off The Air

AEW star Sting is set to call time on his career this weekend at AEW Revolution, and last night was the final “AEW Dynamite” appearance of “The Icon” as an active wrestler. The veteran star appeared at the end of the show, coming to the aid of his tag team partner, Darby Allin, and his old friend Ric Flair, who were being attacked by The Young Bucks. In classic Sting fashion, he appeared from the rafters to make his way to the ring and used his trademark bat to inflict pain on the Bucks. 

After the show went off the air, the WWE Hall of Famer stuck around to address the fans in Huntsville, Alabama. 

“I’m not only doing my last ‘Dynamite’ — I’m doing my last ‘Dynamite’ in Huntsville,” Sting said. “I’m doing my last ‘Dynamite’ with Darby Allin as my tag team partner. I’m doing my last ‘Dynamite’ with the ‘Nature Boy’ Ric Flair right next to me.”

https://twitter.com/istomatoafruit/status/1763048670016962870

The crowd then erupted in “Woo!” chants for Flair, giving Sting a moment to pause before continuing with his farewell speech. The former WCW star thanked the fans again before noting another significant aspect of his appearance last night.

“This is, I think, the second time I’ve actually come out of the ceiling in this building,” Sting continued. “What was the first time? Did I throw the bat to Dallas Page?” 

Sting’s memory proved correct, and the fans let him know.

Sting was referencing a pivotal WCW moment that took place in the very same arena. On April 7, 1997 — the night after that year’s WCW Spring Stampede — ‘Diamond’ Dallas Page made his way down to the ring during “WCW Nitro” to discuss his match against the NWO’s Randy Savage from the prior night. After discussing threats Savage made against Page’s wife following Spring Stampede, Page said he would have killed Savage if he had been able to find him. Despite being hurt from the match, Page told Savage to come down to the ring to face him, and Savage did — on crutches but joined by ‘Hollywood’ Hulk Hogan and the rest of the NWO.

Just when Hogan seemed poised to move against Page, Sting appeared, zip-lining down from the rafters for an assist. “The Crow” was brandishing a baseball bat and soon revealed that he had brought an extra, tossing it over his back to Page, who was still in the ring. Despite Sting and Page being vastly outnumbered, the two were able to intimidate the NWO into backing off as that episode of “Nitro” came to a close.

Though there was no actual action in the segment, the moment remains iconic in Sting’s history. As pointed out by commentary, part of the significance came from the fact that both Sting and Page had previously been battling the NWO separately for months. With the two coming together, the segment in Huntsville marked a turning point for the faction’s grip on WCW.

“There’s some good history right here, and I’m glad to be back right here,” continued Sting, addressing the Huntsville crowd last night.

With his time as an active wrestler coming to an end in a matter of days, the 64-year-old took some of his last promo time to let the fans know how much he has appreciated their support throughout his career.

“What can I say after all these years? What can I say? Anything I would say is just kind of trivial, but I really mean — thank you, thank you, thank you. From the bottom of my heart,” said Sting. “I could not have done any of this without this tag team partner right here, Darby Allin. And I wouldn’t have been put on the map if it wasn’t for this man right here, ‘The Nature Boy.’ I love you Huntsville.”

The crowd then chanted, “Thank you, Sting,” before the legendary star bid goodbye. Sting will have his final match in pro wrestling on Sunday, March 3, where he and Allin will defend their AEW World Tag Team titles against The Young Bucks, and the champs will have “The Nature Boy” in their corner. Allin and Sting won the tag team titles earlier this month on “Dynamite,” defeating Ricky Starks and Big Bill to begin their first run with the titles. Heading into Sunday’s pay-per-view, Sting has yet to suffer a single loss during his time in AEW. Only time will tell if the legend will retire undefeated in the promotion or if he’ll “go out on his back,” as the saying goes.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Sting Descends From The Rafters To Save Ric Flair & Darby Allin In Final AEW Dynamite Appearance

The Young Bucks got quite the surprise on “AEW Dynamite” after spending the majority of Wednesday’s broadcast looking for Sting on what was “The Icon’s” final appearance on the show ahead of his final match on Sunday at Revolution. Matthew and Nicholas Jackson entered the arena at the start of the show, armed with baseball bats. They attempted to find Sting in his locker room to no avail, so they came out to the ring at the end of the night and heckled some fans in Sting masks at ringside, one of whom turned out to be Darby Allin.

The Young Bucks beat up on Allin in the ring with their bats, then called out Ric Flair. Flair was seen heading into the Bucks’ locker room last week on “Dynamite,” seemingly turning on his longtime friend. When the Bucks wanted Flair to hit Allin with one of the bats, Flair turned on them with a thumb to the eye and a cheap shot. The Bucks then started to beat up on Flair, hitting him with a low blow and beating him down. 

It was then that Sting’s music hit, and the Bucks headed up the ramp to wait for him on the stage. Sting never appeared from the back, however, and descended from the rafters armed with his own baseball bat to come to Flair and Allin’s rescue. Allin hit the Bucks with a Coffin Drop, and Sting hit Nicholas with a Scorpion Death Drop to end the show, and Sting’s final “Dynamite.” Allin and Sting put their AEW World Tag Team Championships on the line against the Young Bucks at Revolution.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW Dynamite Preview 2/28/2024, Stings Final Dynamite Before Retirement

AEW Dynamite will air live tonight on TBS from the Propst Arena at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, AL.

  • Tonight will be Sting’s final appearance on AEW Dynamite before retirement
  • Blackpool Combat Club’s Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli vs. Eddie Kingston and FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler)
  • Atlantis Jr vs. Chris Jericho
  • Kris Statlander vs. Skye Blue
  • Will Ospreay to appear
  • Hangman Adam Page will announce his status for Sunday’s Revolution

WWE Hall Of Famer Says He’s Prohibited From Attending Sting’s Final Match In AEW

Sting’s legendary career will officially come to a close at this year’s AEW Revolution, which will place in less than two weeks. While many expect “The Icon’s” old rivals and allies to appear at the event, Kevin Nash has confirmed he will unfortunately not be able to attend during a recent episode of “Kliq This.”

According to Nash, Sting had approached him and asked him to make some kind of appearance, but due to his obligations to WWE, it’s not possible. “He asked me to be a part of it, I just said that … you know, with my positioning with WWE I couldn’t -– I couldn’t even be … If I went in the crowd, it would be … you know?”

Nash noted that both he and Sting were disappointed by the outcome and expressed that he believes their close friendship is why “The Icon” wanted him there. “I think he wanted me to be there because I was just one of the guys who has been there with him the whole run. Yeah, I think he was disappointed. I mean, I was disappointed,” said Nash.

While he was ultimately forbidden from attending, he claimed that he first approached WWE before giving Sting his answer. “I asked [WWE] –- you know when you ask and there’s that three-second pause? It’s like when you be on the road and you’re like, ‘Hey babe? We’re at Fort Wayne, I’m gonna go to Stewie’s Strip Joint, you got a problem with that?’ Nothing.”

Sting, who is the current AEW World Tag Team Champion alongside Darby Allin, will defend the titles against The Young Bucks at Revolution on March 3 at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Sting And Darby Allin Win AEW World Tag Team Championship On Dynamite

Sting will seemingly retire in All Elite Wrestling a champion, though Matthew and Nicholas Jackson did their best to take out “The Icon” following his win with Darbin Allin on Wednesday’s episode of “AEW Dynamite.”

Sting and Allin, an undefeated team, faced off against Big Bill and Ricky Starks for the titles in the main event. The match was billed as a tornado tag and saw both teams immediately go to the outside, with Sting waiting to hit a drop on their opponents from a set of steps high above the actual ring ropes. Bill and Starks regained control, however, and sent both Sting and Allin out of the ring. 

Sting battled back in the match after Big Bill had the legend wrapped up in the ropes. Starks attempted to hit “The Icon” with his own Scorpion Death Drop, though Sting was able to kick out with the help of Allin. Allin hit a Coffin Drop to Big Bill, and Sting was able to get Starks into a Scorpion Death Lock for the win. Following the match, Matt and Nick (now going by their “government” names of Matthew and Nicholas Jackson) beat down the duo of Sting and Allin, foreshadowing what is widely expected to be their match at AEW Revolution — a match which, presumably, will now be for the tag titles. The Bucks also took out Sting’s sons who was in the ring to celebrate with their father. It will also be the final match of Sting’s career, as he announced back in October.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Sammy Guevara Returns On AEW Dynamite, Reunites With Chris Jericho

Sammy Guevara is back.

Guevara returned to AEW television on Wednesday, aligning himself with Chris Jericho again after turning on Don Callis and the Callis Family. Callis introduced Guevara and showcased a painting of him and the family with his new child. Guevara was hostile, accusing Callis and the family of not being there for him when he had his child or was out of action with a concussion. After Callis gave him an ultimatum and brought up his child negatively, Guevara attacked Callis, which led to the family attacking Guevara until Jericho made the save. Jericho extended his hand, but Guevara went in for a hug, reuniting the two.

The two were then jumped by Big Bill & Ricky Starks, Jericho’s former opponents for Worlds End before Kenny Omega was put out of action indefinitely with diverticulitis. The lights went out and when they came back on, Darby Allin and Sting were in the ring and made the save.

Later, an eight man tag team match was made for Worlds End where Guevara, Jericho, Allin, and Sting will team together to take on Starks,Bill, Kyle Fletcher, and Konosuke Takeshita. 

Guevara was last on television back at WrestleDream in October, teaming with Konosuke Takeshita and Will Ospreay in a winning effort against Jericho, Omega, and Kota Ibushi. He has been out of action ever since due to suffering a concussion in the match. He’s also been out as Tay Melo, his wife, gave birth to a daughter back on November 28.

Source: Wrestling Observer

Sting Announces Impending Retirement, Will Wrestle Last Match At AEW Revolution 2024

Current AEW star, WWE Hall of Famer and former WCW World Heavyweight Champion addressed the future of his career on Wednesday’s episode of “AEW Dynamite” in Rosenburg, TX. Sting pointed out that he wrestled his first AEW match at AEW Revolution 2021 and that announced that his retirement match would take place at AEW Revolution 2024. There is no word on when or where AEW Revolution 2024 is set to take place yet.

Sting mentioned at his WWE Hall of Fame induction that “the only thing that’s for sure is that nothing is for sure,” hinting that his original retirement in 2015 wasn’t permanent, but on Wednesday Sting made himself clear saying “the only thing’s that’s for sure” is that the Revolution 2024 match will be his final match. Sting had initially retired after suffering a neck injury at WWE Night of Champions 2015, where he was facing WWE Champion Seth Rollins in the main event. During Dynamite, Sting mentioned that he wasn’t quite satisfied with that retirement and that his AEW tenure helped put a cap on his 30+ years in professional wrestling.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Full Card Announced For The Great Muta’s Final Bye-Bye Event

The full card for The Great Muta’s Final Bye-Bye event presented by the Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling NOAH has been announced.

Muta will wrestle in a six-man tag match and team up with AEW stars Sting & Darby Allin.

The event will take at the Yokohama Arena on Sunday, January 22, and air live on Abema TV. This will be Keiji Mutoh’s final match as The Great Muta. However, this is not going to be his final match as a pro wrestler. Mutoh’s actual final match will emanate from the Tokyo Dome on Tuesday, February 21.

-The Great Muta, Sting, and Darby Allin vs. Hakushi, AKIRA, and Naomichi Marufuji

-Kaito Kiyomiya, Hijo de Doctor Wagner Jr., Takashi Sugiura, and Satoshi Kojima vs. Kenoh, Katsuhiko Nakamjima, Masakatsu Funaki, and Manabu Soya

-AMAKUSA, Ultimo Dragon, and Ninja Mack vs. YO-HEY, Kzy, and Dante Leon

-GHC Martial Arts Rules match: Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Hideki Suzuki

-Jake Lee, Jack Morris, and Anthony Greene vs. Masa Kitamiya, Daiki Inaba, and Yoshiki Inamura

-Yoshinari Ogawa, Eita, and NOSAWA Rongai vs. Junta Miyawaki, Alejandro, and Yasutaka Yano

-Timothy Thatcher vs. Masaaki Mochizuki

-Jungle Kyona and Saori Anno vs. Sumire Natsume and Maya Yukihi

-Atsushi Kotogi and Seiki Yoshioka vs. Hajime Ohara and Hi69

Sting Confirms Recent Surgery And Talks His Health

At the age of 63, All Elite Wrestling star Sting is still going strong. It’s been just about two years since Sting debuted for AEW at Winter is Coming 2020 by coming to the aid of Darby Allin, and since then he’s put on a number of astonishing performances. In a recent interview with “The K&C Masterpiece” radio show, however, Sting revealed that he recently underwent surgery on both of his knees.

“I just had surgery, it [was] 6 or 7 weeks ago now,” Sting said. “Basically just a clean-out on my very old knees. … I’ve seen those that went through the physical therapy process with flying colors, and did what they were supposed to do, and worked through the pain versus those who did not. Those who did not, they never recover. The game never comes back to them.”

Sting would then recall several instances from his past where he knew that he was injured, and stressed the importance of stopping immediately rather than attempting to power through certain injuries. “Then there are other times where you’re hurt almost to that point, but you can still go on,” Sting continued. “I’ve dealt with all of it.”

The recent surgery might come as a bit of a surprise for fans, considering Sting wrestled a match at AEW Full Gear just a few weeks ago. “The Stinger” didn’t take it easy during the match, either — he even dove off a raised platform, landing on Jay Lethal and Satnam Singh, in one of the more memorable moments of the match. His actions in the match seem to confirm Sting’s surgery was relatively minor, and it certainly looks as though the wrestling legend is already back at full capacity.

Source: Wrestling Inc.