In late 2020, Sting made his surprise debut in AEW. Despite his advanced age—at that point, 61—his iconic stature meant that the debut generated a lot of buzz. That included speculation about whether he’d work dream matches against the likes Kenny Omega, MJF, or CM Punk.
Be it a shrewd call on the part of Sting himself or AEW management, he actually hasn’t worked any singles matches in his run with the company, despite getting in the ring for 27 bouts to date. Using The Icon in tag team, six-man tag, and other team scenarios has protected him nicely.
These formats have allowed him to give other wrestlers the rub by teaming with or battling against them. Additionally, with a number of other bodies in the mix–including the steady presence of dynamic Darby Allin who is always willing to take big bumps–Sting has had the chance to contribute a key high spot or two each outing that highlight what he’s still capable of without the strain of wrestling at a high level all match long.
Last Fall, Sting announced he’d have his final match at Revolution 2024. Then, on the February 7, 2024 of AEW Dynamite, he and Darby Allin won the Tag Team Championship—a final milestone for The Icon, and also a reinforcement that his rumored last match opposite The Young Bucks was a likely eventuality.
With this final chapter of Sting’s in-ring career so focused on tag team wrestling, it calls attention to the fact that he actually has an underrated legacy specifically as a tag team wrestler, dating back to the mid-1980s.
Sting Launched His Career In A Tag Team With The Ultimate Warrior
Sting got his start in wrestling working with southern and mid-south territorial promotions under the banners of Power Team USA, The Freedom Fighters, and most famously The Blade Runners. His signature partner for these years was the man who’d eventually become known as The Ultimate Warrior.
It’s noteworthy that the team featured two future main eventers who’d come to reign as world champions in WCW and WWE respectively. While neither were necessarily polished in-ring workers, this pairing was foundational to each man’s success in the wrestling business.
Some Of Sting’s Best Work Came Teamed With Lex Luger
Both in real life and on screen, much of Sting’s prime was intertwined with Lex Luger. The two alternated between friendship and rivalry in WCW storylines, including a superb early 1990s tag team match that pitted them against The Steiner Brothers at the original SuperBrawl.
Years later, Sting and Luger had some even more intriguing creative behind them in 1995, when The Total Package returned to WCW at the dawn of the Monday Night War. Sting was at the tail end of his Surfer Sting run that brought him so much acclaim. The worked an ahead-of-its-time angle in which Luger was a tweener, then a full-fledged heel who kept talking his staunch babyface partner into bad situations.
This partnership paid dividends in Sting’s first WCW Tag Team Championship win. More importantly their bond was a key element of Sting feeling betrayed by WCW when fellow babyfaces thought he’d defected to the nWo in 1996. Luger in particular not trusting Sting was a key factor in launching the legendary Crow version of Sting’s character. From there, it’s telling that by 1998, the duo was ready to get back together under the nWo Wolfpac banner.
Sting Won More WCW Tag Team Gold During The Monday Night War
Something interesting happened for WCW’s tag team title and division during the Monday Night War. On one hand, the company had a wealth of iconic teams at different points, like The Road Warriors, The Steiner Brothers, Harlem Heat, Meng and The Barbarian, Kronik, and different permutations of top cruiserweight talents.
On the other hand, particularly when WCW was around the height of its popularity, the tag titles became less of a defined division than a prop for upper card talents who had cycled away from the world title picture. Some of that has to do with the depth of the roster and WCW striving to find a meaningful spot for its top talents. Some of that also has to do with The Outsiders ruling the roost.
Kevin Nash and Scott Hall had main event level heat, but played second fiddle to Hollywood Hogan throughout the original nWo’s hottest periods. On one hand, one might argue they elevated the tag titles on account of their star power. On the other hand, WCW booked itself into a corner in which most traditional tag teams weren’t portrayed as all that credible against them, requiring make shift star teams to assemble to compete, let alone take the titles.
Sting factored heavily into this picture in 1998. First, he and The Giant took the tittles off The Outsiders, only for the partners to turn on each other and feud over who should carry the title forward. The Icon prevailed and wound up seeing through the rest of his reign teamed with Nash.
Interestingly, Sting would enjoy one more tag title reign before his most recent one in AEW. This one occurred in TNA when it was again unconventional circumstances that led him to the gold. He won a four-way match over AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, and Christian Cage to be appointed Kurt Angle’s partner for a two-week reign.
Sting’s In-Ring Career Closes Teaming With Darby Allin
The final chapter of Sting’s in-ring career has been all about tag team wrestling in AEW. Every single one of his documented 27 matches to date has occurred with Darby Allin as his partner (and, in some instances, additional partners to make up a three- or four-man team).
So, it’s fitting that Sting would wind up his in-ring career in pro wrestling and AEW alike not only side-by-side with Allin, but reigning as AEW Tag Team Champions. (Incidentally, this title win makes him the only man to have held the tag belts in WCW, TNA, and AEW). This choice not only features Sting while protecting him from too much ring time and physical punishment, but also fits and pays homage to his underrated legacy as a tag team wrestler.
AEW fans will see in the weeks ahead how Sting’s final angle takes shape en route to his final match. Maybe the presumptive angle of Sting and Darby Allin defending the AEW Championship against The Young Bucks will come to fruition, but maybe some more twists in the road lie ahead. Maybe the babyfaces in face paint will drop the titles as Sting “does the honors” in traditional fashion, or maybe he’ll get an ending befitting only a legend of his stature when he retires as champion. One way or another, fans should be in for something memorable in these final stages of one of the greatest careers in pro wrestling history.