Sting recently spoke with WWE.com about his upcoming WWE Hall of Fame induction, reports of him being diagnosed with spinal stenosis and more. Here are some highlights:
– Sting revealed that he did not have surgery after suffering the neck injury in the WWE Night of Champions match with Seth Rollins last year. Two neurologists told him the same thing – he wasn’t having any of the side effects he should have had. Despite what he’s been through, he feels normal.
– Regarding TMZ’s report that he’s been diagnosed with spinal stenosis, Sting said, “I am not saying that is inaccurate. I’m agreeing there probably is spinal stenosis or cervical spinal stenosis.” He talked about different doctors giving different outlooks regarding his health and the health of other athletes. As long as he’s feeling alright, he doesn’t see the need to go under the knife.
– Had he not gotten injured at Night of Champions, he absolutely planned to compete at WrestleMania 32. “I would have loved to have done one more WrestleMania and I would have called it quits at that point. The Undertaker match — that’s what I wanted to do. ”
Despite an earlier report from TMZ claiming that Sting was retiring from the ring, The Icon himself clarified his current status in a video over the weekend.
When asked by TMZ Sports, Sting said his neck is “okay” and denied that he is officially retired just yet.
“I’m not officially retired,” Sting said in a brief video interview with TMZ Sports. “There are a lot of rumors out there, but I’m not officially retired.”
The former WCW World Heavyweight Champion didn’t elaborate any further, and could just be delaying his official announcement for the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony. He has not wrestled since being injured in s match with Seth Rollins last September and being diagnosed with cervical spinal stenosis.
When asked, Sting declined to comment on Hulk Hogan’s recent court victory over Gawker.
One of the worst-kept secrets in wrestling became headline news this week. After a 30 year career spanning multiple promotions and dozens of championships, The Man Called Sting has wrestled his final match. So says TMZ, which claims the official announcement could come from Sting himself as part of his WWE Hall of Fame acceptance speech in Dallas next month. And while he doesn’t get to go out on his own terms, he can take solace in the fact that few men have been able to enjoy the kind of charmed career he has had.
The writing was on the wall after his match with Seth Rollins last September at Night of Champions. One buckle bomb was bad enough, but two? The move looks brutal enough for a man half his age, but for Sting to go out there and willingly give up his body for two of them just seemed to be tempting fate. To his credit, on wobbly legs, he soldiered on to finish the rest of the match because that’s just what you do. He didn’t blame Rollins for what happened, and really, how could he? It wasn’t anyone’s fault. In fact, he later credited Rollins as being the best worker he had ever shared a ring with, which is pretty high praise coming from someone who has been in wars with the likes of Ric Flair, Vader and Kurt Angle.
With his neck all jacked up, he learned that he has cervical spinal stenosis, or a narrowing of the spinal canal. This can affect the nerves and result in great pain as time goes on. At the time, he indicated he would need neck surgery, but was hopeful that Night of Champions would not be the last image fans had of him inside the ring. Back in December, I made it pretty clear that I thought Sting was done, if for no other reason than the fact that spinal stenosis is the very thing that ended the careers of both Steve Austin and Edge. In the case of Edge, WWE made it clear that they would never medically clear him to wrestle, and he was “only” 37 years old at the time. Sting will turn 57 this weekend. It made little sense to think, and still does, that WWE would ever allow him to lace up his boots and step back through the ropes. This is just my opinion of course, but I believe this is more a case of WWE making the decision for Sting than Sting making it for himself. Were it entirely up to him, I think Sting would prefer to heal up and have one last match for closure, but ultimately, as hypersensitive as WWE is about these things today (concussions in particular), it wasn’t his call to make.
So, what now? The same TMZ report claims that sources close to Sting indicate he would be open to a non-wrestling role in WWE, but they have yet to pitch such a role to him. They could potentially offer up a scenario where Sting gives Shane McMahon the assist at Wrestlemania, looping back to the storyline where Shane “bought” WCW, and in turn, the next night on Raw, Shane could appoint Sting the new General Manager of Raw. The one drawback with that idea is that to have Sting cost Undertaker his match and NOT follow that up with some sort of confrontation between the two would likely leave a lot of fans feeling underwhelmed. Still, I think it merits some consideration because it would be nice to find a role for him on the show (not necessarily weekly) while also doing away with the overdone heel authority figure gimmick, at least for a while.
I can’t help but feel sad that Sting never got to have a real productive run in WWE. To think that his lone Wrestlemania appearance was in a losing effort to Triple H, even though Sting himself may have wanted it that way thinking it could be his final bout, it hardly seems like something loyal Sting fans had envisioned when he first came to WWE. Perhaps, as rumored, it was done as a way for Vince McMahon to put the final exclamation point on the WWE vs. WCW war once and for all, a war that apparently still exists only in his mind. Or maybe it was done with the idea of keeping Triple H strong for a Wrestlemania match this year against The Rock, also rumored before Rock’s filming schedule rendered such a match impossible. He earned two wins on Raw, one via disqualification against Big Show and one via submission in a tag match teaming with John Cena against Big Show and Seth Rollins. He followed that up with the loss to Rollins, so he goes down batting .500 with two wins and two losses. Yet I’m still glad he had his Wrestlemania moment. I’m glad he had the chance to wrestle on Raw. And I’m glad he finally got to wrestle for the WWE title. Not a bad way to go out.
I’ve spent nearly 15 straight weeks counting down the greatest WCW matches of all time on my podcast. Sting has appeared five different times on that list, and there’s a reason for that. Whether it was leading his own squadron against The Dangerous Alliance in War Games, battling Big Van Vader to determine the “King of Cable”, or challenging DDP for the WCW World title, Sting had a tendency to deliver in big matches. More than his work, I think most people will remember him for his loyalty. His loyalty as the avenger of WCW against the nWo and Hollywood Hogan. His loyalty to the promotion behind the scenes as well, never working a single day for Vince McMahon so long as WCW still had a breath in its body. That loyalty extended even to TNA and Dixie Carter, to whom he arguably gave the last great years of his career. It was that loyalty that cost us potential matches with The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and Randy Orton, but at the same time, gave us matches with Kurt Angle, AJ Styles and Samoa Joe.
It’s not easy to “get over” in wrestling. It’s even harder to stay over. Sting has been a beloved figure for the majority of his 30+ years in the wrestling business. In a few short weeks, he will take his rightful place in the Hall of Fame. What his future holds beyond that date is still a question, but to steal a phrase, “the only thing that’s for sure about Sting is nothing’s for sure.”
Sting’s days as an in-ring competitor are over, according to TMZ Sports.
The 56-year-old wrestling icon was badly injured during his match against Seth Rollins back in September at Night of Champions. After meeting with several doctors regarding his condition, he was formally diagnosed with cervical spinal stenosis. It’s the same condition that forced Edge into retirement back in 2011.
Sting is expected to make the announcement at the 2016 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony. He’ll be inducted by his longtime rival, “Nature Boy” Ric Flair.
Posted March 17th, 2016 in News, WWE. Tagged: Sting.
Rob Naylor, who worked as Creative Assistant under Dusty Rhodes in Florida Championship Wrestling/WWE NXT from 2011 to 2013, tweeted some interesting stuff over the weekend. He kept formats, memos, and other documents from his time with WWE and decided to make some images of them public…
Format sheet for the first Full Sail University pilot taping in 2011 (note the puns):
Another gem. Before there was "NXT" – a secret pilot was taped at "Full Sail". Dream dubbed it "Project H" #1stdraftpic.twitter.com/jqJOr8nRLr
A list of indie wrestlers from 2012 that Naylor would sign if he could, which he was asked to make by Triple H’s assistant (the note about Alex Shelley being clear of a TNA contract is most likely due to TNA’s lawsuit against WWE and Brian Wittenstein being an ongoing matter at the time):
Naylor also mentioned that he found other things going through his collection of records, like performance reviews and a list of tips from Ricky Steamboat on how to work babyface, so hopefully there’s more to come.
NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor will be joining WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair at the January 25th RAW in Miami, FL. In an interview with The Miami Herald, Flair revealed he will be appearing on RAW the night after the Royal Rumble, and that Taylor, a WrestleMania 11 headliner, would be rolling with him:
“I will be in Miami. It’s always huge. I love Miami. I love being there, and I’m bringing [NFL Hall of Famer] Lawrence Taylor with me. So you tell me how much fun that will be. LT and the Natch, the combination to beat.”
Flair also talked about what made soon-to-be Hall of Famer Sting a fan favorite, and claims he hadn’t been asked yet by WWE to induct him:
“Charisma, a phenomenal look, a great physique, the spiked blonde hair, an incredible work ethic,” Flair said. “So the look, the body, the charisma. He had a lot of ability as well. So it’s pretty hard to deny [Sting] anything. I would love to be that person [to induct him],” Flair said. “I haven’t been asked, but I would love to.”
The Nature Boy will be appearing at the Magic City Comic Con on Jan. 16-17 at the Miami Airport Convention Center.
At WrestleMania 31, wrestling fans witnessed a site most thought they’d never see – Sting’s first-ever match in WWE. The WCW icon finally got his WrestleMania moment, but it was a losing effort against Triple H that involved arguably-excessive & convoluted run-ins from DX and the nWo. Sting losing his first WWE match was a real head-scratcher WWE Hall of Famer Scott Hall recently gave his first-hand account of how and why it all went down.
During an interview with Justin Barrasso for Sports Illustrated’s Extra Mustard blog, The Bag Guy said he got the impression Sting never felt comfortable during his WWE run.
“I was there and obviously involved in his match at WrestleMania last year,” said Hall. “We’re rehearsing the match in Cali last year at Levi Stadium, and it’s the Kliq and the New Age Outlaws out there, and we all know each other. And then there’s Sting, who doesn’t know anybody. He’s an outsider. I just think he never felt comfortable there. Being hurt was answered prayer for him–just let it end.
As for why Sting jobbed to Triple H when it would have made a lot more sense for the debuting legendary babyface to go over, Hall thinks Vince McMahon still needs to prove the point that he buried WCW.
“You need to remember that Vince is never going to go with something he didn’t create. But we didn’t get anything done at the rehearsal the night before, so WrestleMania day, there were tents in the parking lot set up with rings for rehearsal. So we’re all in there again, and I’m next to Hulk on the ring apron and Triple H is going over the match and then he goes, ‘OK, he’ll break the sledgehammer, then I’ll hit him with the sledgehammer, and cover him, 1-2-3.’ I looked at Hulk, and Hulk looked at me, and I was thinking, ‘Sting, what kind of lawyer do you have, bro? You’re coming in the door doing a job? You weren’t even guaranteed to go over?’ That’s Vince just reminding you who won, even if he’s going to make money the other way.”
A year later, Sting will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame during WrestleMania 32 weekend:
WWE Hall Of Famer Ric Flair spoke with Jim Varsallone of The Miami Herald this week to promote his appearance at the Magic City Comic Con event this weekend at the Miami Airport Convention Center. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On inducting Sting in the WWE Hall of Fame:
“I would love to be that person… I haven’t been asked, but I would love to.”
On WWE using Reid Flair’s passing for an angle on RAW:
“It was said that I was upset, but I wasn’t. Those kind of things are going to happen periodically. The emotion is real. She and Reid were very, very close. I certainly wasn’t offended by what happened [on Raw]. I just don’t like to see her cry. That was somebody’s thought, and she ok’d it. They said, ‘[Charlotte], do you mind if we do this?’ And she said, ‘No. I don’t mind at all.’ It’s the business, and sometimes things that are real come across in a way that the people are mad about it, but if I’m not mad, and [Charlotte’s] not mad, and we’re the key players.”
On his podcast:
“[Podcasts] can be very lucrative. I’m heading down to do one right now with Chris Jericho. It’s fun, and you learn form them. My problem is I can’t critique the [WWE] show, because my daughter’s on the show, and I’m still actively working for the company. The other guys who do podcasts can critique the show, but I wouldn’t be caught dead doing that.
“Actually, I don’t have anything negative to say about it anyway, but if there was something I thought, I couldn’t possibly say it, because I would basically be cracking on the hand that feeds me. I don’t feel like there’s anything negative on the show anyways.”
– WWE.com announced on Tuesday that a pre-sale for tickets to this year’s WWE Hall Of Fame induction ceremony is now ongoing at Ticketmaster.com with the code “DOTCOM.” The pre-sale ends at 11pm ET/10pm CT on Thursday, January 14th. The 2016 WWE Hall Of Fame induction ceremony, which will be headlined by Sting this year, takes place on Saturday, April 2nd at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. Tickets for the general public will be available on Friday, January 15th at 10am ET/9am CT at Ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000.
– Independent wrestling veteran Luke Hawx worked a dark match at the WWE SmackDown television tapings on Tuesday night after briefly appearing in a backstage segment on Monday’s WWE RAW. Apparently other talent from the Louisiana-based WildKat Spots promotion worked tryout matches for WWE this week as well.
– Darren Young posted the following photo that features he and Titus O’Neil with other WWE Superstars on the WrestleMania 32 promotion WWE is doing with the Texas lottery this year.
You probably could have guessed who will be inducting Sting into the WWE Hall of Fame this year. PWinsider is reporting that WWE is planning on bringing in Ric Flair to do the honors of inducting Sting on April 2nd. Sting and Flair were famous in-ring rivals in WCW, and wrestled on the final episode of Nitro in 2001.
WWE officials have reportedly been planning on using Sting as the headliner for the ceremony for quite some time. WWE announced on Monday that the former WCW champion would be inducted in the class of 2016.
This year’s Hall of Fame Ceremony takes place the night before WrestleMania on Saturday, April 2nd at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
On Monday’s RAW, JBL introduced a new video package highlighting Sting’s career to make his Hall of Fame induction announcement official. It was first announced by WWE.com on Monday afternoon that Sting was the first inductee in the class of 2016.
This year’s WWE Hall of Fame ceremony takes place the day before WrestleMania 32, April 2nd, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX. Tickets will go on sale Friday, January 15th at 10 AM ET/9 AM CT.
Don’t expect to see the Stinger step back into the ring any time soon though. In December, Sting revealed on Ric Flair’s podcast that he injured his neck during his match against Seth Rollins at Night of Champions and requires surgery.
WWE announced on Monday that Sting is the first inductee in the 2016 call of the WWE Hall of Fame. Several WWE stars have commented on the news, including Triple H, and Sting’s famous in-ring rival Ric Flair.
Here are some of the notable reactions on Twitter to the news of Sting’s induction:
Back in December, Sting revealed on Ric Flair’s podcast that he will require neck surgery to repair the damage sustained during his match against Seth Rollins at Night of Champions.
Ths year’s WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony takes place the night before WrestleMania 32 on Saturday, April 2nd. It goes down at the American Airlines center in Dallas, TX at 6:30 PM local time. Tickets will go on sale Friday, January 15th at 10 AM ET/9 AM CT.
Who do you think will be the one to induct Sting on April 2nd? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
As noted, “The Icon” Sting recently appeared as a guest on Ric Flair’s “WOOOOO! Nation” podcast and revealed that he was injured during his WWE Night Of Champions pay-per-view match against Seth Rollins and as a result, will need to undergo neck surgery.
In addition to breaking the news about his neck surgery, Sting also spoke about his legendary career and shared some stories with “The Nature Boy” about topics such as the first time he thought he was going to leave WCW for WWE during the time Jim Herd was in charge from 1988 through 1992.
“That was the first time I just about left and went to [WWE]. I hadn’t had any conversations with Vince [McMahon] at all, aside from a NATPE convention once, a few words here and there, and very friendly [and] all good. And when it came time for me to negotiate my contract with [WCW Executive Vice President] Jim Herd and he threw an offer out, and I said, ‘what? What?’ And I’m thinking Road Warrior money and Flair money, and I said, ‘I’m not going to do that.’ And he said, ‘well, what do you think?’ and so I threw a number out there and he just about gagged. And he said, ‘well, I see no precedent for that and Steve Avery, pitcher for the Atlanta Braves, he’s only making $100,000 a year.’ I said, ‘he’s going to make millions coming up here. This is his rookie year.’ And I’m not in my rookie year, by the way. And so, I’m standing firm on what I’m presenting here and he said, ‘well, alright’ and I thought that was it, so I was prepared to, whether Vince would take me or not, I was prepared to leave.”
Although he admitted that he does not know if 2016 will be the year he gets inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame, he did talk about his desire to have Ric Flair be the one to induct him if he does go in.
“I’ve been asked that question so many times over the years, ‘who would you want to [induct you into WWE Hall of Fame]?’ and I said, ‘Ric would have to be the one.’ I mean, that’s my first choice.” Sting added, “I don’t know what’s going to happen for sure, so we’ll just have to wait and see.”
With his 57th birthday and a neck surgery coming up, “The Icon” alluded to his in-ring days being over and being satisfied that he finally got to challenge for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and work a match at a WrestleMania event.
“At least I have bragging rights now to say that I did WrestleMania and now I’ve wrestled for the [WWE] world title.” Sting continued, “I think I’ve done just about everything there is to do and so I feel good that I can look back and say that I actually did something with WWE.”
Sting was Ric Flair’s guest for this week’s WOOOOO! Nation podcast and revealed that he will require neck surgery to repair the damage sustained during his match against Seth Rollins at Night of Champions.
Sting said that his neck whiplashed during both buckle bombs by Seth Rollins. Sting says that after the first buckle bomb, he had shock going down his left and right thighs down both down to his fingertips. After the second buckle bomb, he began to lose strength in his legs and had a “temporary paralysis.” For a few minutes, he didn’t think he would be able to continue the match. He pushed through it until he needed to compose himself while a referee intervened.
Unfortunately, MRI results and his doctors have determined Sting will require surgery to correct what he believes is cervical spinal stenosis.
“Yeah, MRI’s and neurologists have been looking at it, Dr. Maroon out of Pittsburgh, he’s looked at it. He’s telling me that I’ll have to have a surgery,” Sting said. “The dust only in the last couple weeks has kind of started to settle a little bit for me, just trying to get so much done in life but now it’s time to go get this thing taken care of. No, I’m hoping (they don’t have to do a fusion surgery). I know that’s one of the techniques that they use and I’m not sure if Dr. Maroon will have to do that or not. I’ve got two spots in my neck that are troublesome. I guess it’s called cervical spinal stenosis. That’s what it is.
I have two areas in my neck where the spinal canal, which holds the spinal cord, it’s kind of choked off in two different locations. Lucky that a catastrophe didn’t happen that night, long story short. I’ve gotta go get it fixed. I guess John Cena had something very similar, he had his fixed, and Dr. Maroon has done several of the WWE guys up there and all with great success.”
There had been some speculation that WWE would reach out to Sting to compete at WrestleMania 32 if he was healthy to compete, but now that’s out of the question. Perhaps a WWE Hall of Fame induction is in order. Either way, we wish the Stinger a speedy recovery.
As of a week or two ago, there had been no real internal talk within WWE about booking Sting vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania 32 in Texas next year. In fact, there hasn’t been any real talk of Sting appearing on the show at all, even though that doesn’t necessarily mean he won’t end up appearing at the show.
As far as The Undertaker is concerned, it appears that WWE is going forward with the plans for an Undertaker vs. John Cena match at WrestleMania 32. The idea of Undertaker vs. Cena came up a few months ago and was seriously discussed in August, and then again in October.
As far as rumors of Seth Rollins vs. Triple H taking place at the big event, it’s said that a match between those two has never actually been considered for WrestleMania, although it’s possible that a HHH vs. Rollins match eventually happens when Rollins returns at some point down the line.
Currently, there is no word yet as to who Triple H will be facing at WrestleMania 32 now that it appears that The Rock will not be able to wrestle on the show as WWE had originally hoped.
The latest chapter in the drama between Gawker and Hulk Hogan (real name Terry Bollea) came yesterday, with Gawker attempting to file a stay to block a judge’s ruling while they file an appeal. That’s the ruling from last week, when Judge Pamela Campbell ruled that a forensic investigator can be hired at Hulk Hogan’s request to search Gawker’s computers and phones. The goal? Discovering if Gawker violated a court order in their lawsuit.
Hogan is suing because Gawker published excerpts of a sex tape shot without his permission on a friend’s home security system, and insisting that Gawker is playing dirty. The allegation/ That the leak of Hogan’s racist comments that got him fired by WWE came from Gawker, and that they sourced sealed documents to facilitate said leak. While not the only sealed documents in the lawsuit, everything from the FBI’s investigation into Hogan being extorted via the sex tapes has been sealed from the public.
Gawker is arguing that there is little basis for such a wide examination of employees’ and in-house counsel’s computers. They also cite their earlier filings when they responded to Hogan’s attempt to get the investigation going, which shed more light on, among other things, exactly what Gawker received from the FBI. With the argument being that there’s barely even circumstantial evidence that Gawker was behind the leak, they state that:
* A timeline of what’s contained in the Hogan/Heather Cole sex tapes was circulating in New York and Tampa radio circles by March 2012.
* Other parties who were well aware of Hogan’s racist comments before this past July included Bubba Clem, Heather Cole, Nik Riichie of TheDirty.com, the source of an October 2012 item in the Philadelphia Daily News, Keith Davidson (the lawyer who tried to help a client sell the videos to Hogan or extort money from him depending on your view), Davidson’s client, numerous federal investigators, and TMZ’s Mike Walters,
* Gawker didn’t have most of what was released by the National Enquirer in the first place, with what they have from the FBI being incomplete. The audio of the FBI sting on Davidson (where Hogan, his lawyer, and Davidson watch the videos) “simply does not include most of the quotes reported by the Enquirer.”
The radio community timeline, which Gawker got in discovery, “does not contain the racist language published by the Enquirer. It also does not reference Bollea’s use of homophobic slurs, as reported by the Enquirer.” Davidson’s transcripts, which Gawker’s lawyers got from the FBI, also don’t match what the Enquirer published.
Specific examples of quotes that the Enquirer had that Gawker’s lawyers didn’t included some of the most damning ones. That includes “I guess we’re all a little racist. F**king n***er,” which is probably the most cited one because it’s used to refute people who say Hogan’s not a racist.
* Gawker never had proof of the racist comments “in large part because Bollea successfully thwarted Gawker’s efforts to obtain that proof or take any discovery about the contents of the timeline and transcripts.”
Hogan had, under oath, represented to the court and the Special Discovery Magistrate overseeing the sealed documents that he besides what Gawker got in 2012, he “had no knowledge of the existence of any other tapes.” In actuality, he watched all three (the one Gawker got, the one with the racist comments, and one more) during the FBI sting. He also claimed that any allegations of racist comments on the videos were lies fabricated by an extortionist.
In a hearing on July 1st, a few weeks before the leak, Hogan’s lawyers claimed that if a video with the racist comments existed, then the audio may be from an impersonator hired by the extortionist. They also argued that the rumors of such comments may have been coming from the extortionist. On top of that, it was argued that mentions of the FBI investigation shouldn’t be allowed in the case because it was “predicated on these tapes purportedly saying something that they don’t say.”
* The DVDs of the sex videos Gawker has are heavily edited. None of the racist comments were included. At the time of the leak, “reprocessed” versions of the DVDs (there were issues with the first one) had not yet been seen by Gawker’s lawyers.
— Lachlan Cartwright (@LachCartwright) July 24, 2015
* The Enquirer and its reporters have always claimed that Gawker was not one of their five sources for the articles. They also worded the articles to make it clear that the sources had access to the unedited videos themselves, or at least it seemed that way.
Regardless of your feelings as to the main case and whether Hogan should win that, it does seem like Gawker has a very compelling argument when it comes to this. While the appeals court itself has generally favored Gawker, this attempt at getting a stay is with the trial judge, who has seemingly favored Hogan. It should be interesting to se where this goes, and we’ll keep you apprised of any updates.
– The Sting: Into the Light film was officially released on DVD and Blu-Ray was today. It’s available on WWE Shop for $24.99. Here’s the official synopsis:
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the man behind the black and white face paint with Sting: Into the Light. Go into the mind of “The Vigilante” himself as he reflects on his historic career in sports entertainment and prepares to compete in a WWE ring for the first time ever on The Grandest Stage of Them All at WrestleMania. Hear from his greatest allies and rivals, relive his greatest matches as “The Franchise of WCW” and see “The Man Called Sting” finally emerge from the shadows and into the light.
– WWE wrestler Titus O’Neil has been selected as the keynote speaker for the 30th annual Muster and Music Festival Weekend hosted by the Navy UDT-SEAL Museum. Here’s the official announcement:
The Navy UDT-SEAL Museum Announces Muster Keynote Speaker
Fort Pierce, Fla. – October 13, 2015–The Navy UDT-SEAL Museum has announced their primary speaker for the 30th Annual Muster and Music Festival Weekend. Thaddeus Bullard, also known as WWE® Superstar Titus O’Neil, will deliver the keynote address for the festive and commemorative event.
“We are grateful to welcome Mr. Bullard as our keynote speaker,” said Rick Kaiser, Executive Director of the Navy SEAL Museum. “His unwavering patriotic commitment to our military and positive influence in the community makes him a compelling advocate for the cause.”
“My content of character is a constant reminder of what is truly important to inspire others,” said Thaddeus Bullard, also known as WWE Superstar, Titus O’Neil. “Nobody’s character is higher than that of the individuals who make up our Navy SEAL teams, and I am truly honored they have entrusted me with this humbling opportunity.”
The Museum will host the Muster and Music Festival November 6-8, Veterans Day Weekend. The celebration begins Friday evening with a cash bar happy hour and live music. Saturday commences with an early morning 5K beach run, followed by an afternoon of special guest speakers, including Bullard, and several SEAL capabilities demonstrations on Museum property. Entry into the facility is included. This family friendly venue will showcase the SEAL parachute team, the Leapfrogs; the K-9 tactical team; and additional enemy apprehension displays. More than 10,000 spectators are anticipated to attend.
For more information about the Navy SEAL Museum and the 30th Annual Muster and Music Festival Weekend, please visit: www.navysealmuseum.org.
During a recent Q&A session in Glasgow, Scotland, Sting provided an update on the neck injury he suffered at the hands of Seth Rollins at Night of Champions. A fan on Reddit who attended the event says that Sting said:
“I feel great, I feel normal. However the MRI’s are showing things and the doctors I’m speaking to are telling me I’m not great. Basically, it’s my neck, and I’ll have to get it dealt with.”
Sting said he lost all feeling in his arms first, then when he went to run the ropes the feeling started to go in his legs also. He said he hadn’t felt anything like it before and that he got the ‘fright of his life.’
You can read a full recap of the Q&A session here.
Earlier this week, Seth Rollins also commented on Sting’s injury, which took place when he power bombed the 56-year old legend into the turnbuckles. Rollins called it a freak accident and admits he feels terrible that Sting suffered a career threatening injury during their match.
Posted October 10th, 2015 in News, WWE. Tagged: Sting.
WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins was a guest on the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast this week and spoke candidly about Sting getting injured at Night of Champions.
Sting took a corner powerbomb and got rocked so badly the match was temporarily stopped and they wound up ‘going home’ sooner than planned. Since then, many have been questioning whether the 56-year old icon should be wrestling hard hitting main event matches against guys like Rollins, who is under 30.
Here’s what Rollins said about it:
“It was an amazing experience for me to get to step into the ring with somebody I dressed up [as for] Halloween. I mean, I was Sting two years in a row when I was like 13, 14, so it was pretty rad to be in there with a legend like that.”
“Ironically enough, Sting got a ‘stinger’. It happens to all of us, but it was just bad timing in his situation.” Rollins added, “we got through it, and he’s a professional.”
“I mean nothing against Sting – he’s in phenomenal condition, but he’s also a 56-year-old man.” Rollins continued, “I have taken the buckle bomb myself many times. It’s just one of those things. It’s a freak accident.”
“I feel terrible. I was definitely concerned about his health, still am, but after tests and everything, he seems to be okay, so it’s all good.” Rollins also said, “he’s going to make a good recovery”.
Over on CSRWrestling.com Vince Russo has written two lengthy articles about Sting and his work so far in the WWE. In what sounds like a letter to Vince McMahon he explains that Sting deserves better.
Below is an excerpt from the piece where he discusses Sting in the WWE. Part one can be read at this link while part two can be read by clicking on this link.
“Fast forward a couple of years later—WWE. After holding out for 15 years . . . Sting finally decides to go to work for Vince McMahon. I’d be lying to you if I didn’t admit that there were tears in my eyes when I witness Sting come out in front of that crowd at WrestleMania. For years I was there when he came out to only a handful at Universal Studios—this is what this legend deserved. Sadly, knowing Vince and his massive ego, I knew deep down going in that Sting wasn’t going to win this match. To Vince, even after 15 years, he was still getting off on beating Ted Turner, and Sting was basically the last and biggest pawn. But, as unbelievably sad as that is—it really didn’t matter. Sting was getting the send-off in front of a massive audience, and win, or lose, I was glad he was going out that way. I also knew that the W meant nothing to Sting, because in the almost decade that I had worked with him—he was always business.
Fast forward to just a few weeks ago. Yeah, I was kind of surprised that the WWE was wheeling Sting out again. Why? Because they had lowered his stock with the loss to Hunter, and now a match against the Champion just really didn’t make much sense. This clearly showed that it was Vince’s ego that defeated Sting at WrestleMania and nothing else. Why would you beat the guy who was going to eventually get a shot at your Champion a few months later, and put over the guy who isn’t even close to wrestling again. That’s ego in its rawest form. Sting got beat, because Sting was WCW and not WWE. I’m sitting here not even believing that I wrote that last line—ridiculous.”
As previously noted WWE.com caught up with Sting following his match with Seth Rollins at WWE Night of Champions which left him injured and the WWE Universe concerned for his future.
Among a variety of topics including his injury, what happened after the match and if he’ll wrestle again, Sting was also full of praise for his opponent that night Seth Rollins.
What he has to say about competing against Seth Rollins:
“The biggest pleasure. I’m honored. After 30 years and working with some of the best and some of the greatest, [Rollins] is, I’m telling you, he’s got to be the best I’ve ever worked with. I mean, this guy has it. And I think he’s just scratching the surface on what he will do. I’ve never seen somebody as talented. He’s working two [matches] on Raw, two [matches] on the pay-per-view, he’s involved in every other segment and it’s physical. He’s got guys coming from every angle. There’s a lot on his plate. He’s carrying a lot, and he’s handling it. He’s proven he can do it. I’m just glad I had a chance to work with him. He’s the kind of guy who could be in there with a broomstick and make something very interesting happen, a match that people would love somehow.”
What they had to say to each other once the match was over:
Really, I can’t say enough. He poked his head in the ambulance and said, “Man, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened.” I said, “Seth, don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault.” And he, for 15 minutes, he said, “I just wanted to tell you what an honor it was, what a pleasure. I can’t believe I had a chance to get in the ring with you and work with you. I was you for Halloween when I was a kid.” He was on and on about it, but man, this young guy, he doesn’t have any idea how much I appreciate being able to work with him.
Credit: WWE.com
– In other news, this coming Monday following RAW exclusively on the WWE Network fans will get a unique insight into the NXT panel from SummerSlam weekend in Brooklyn.
The panel which took place before NXT Takeover: Brooklyn features Triple H, Finn Balor, Sasha Banks, Kevin Owens, Corey Graves and Seth Rollins.
During his match at WWE Night of Champions this past weekend against Seth Rollins for the WWE World Heavyweight Title, Sting was visibly injured after taking a running powerbomb into the turnbuckle.
On watching the match live and again on demand you could see Sting’s head snap back on contact with the turnbuckle and it was moments later that it was apparent he couldn’t shake this off.
His legs gave way but he got back to his feet, it was a second time that his legs gave way and he collapsed again, it was during this time that the referee paused the match and called in the trainer.
Sting would go on to lose the match to Seth Rollins and since then the rumor mill has been spinning with regards to just how serious Sting’s injury was. He has now spoken with WWE.com. Highlights are below.
WWE.com asked if can set the record straight on the extent of his injury:
Bottom line, I had tingling, numbness down both arms, all the way to my fingertips. And then, later in the match, I just fell wrong, whatever it was, and this time [the tingling and numbness] went down both arms and into my legs, and I couldn’t feel my legs too well. They just felt like rubber. I don’t know how to describe it. I had to go down on all fours there for a minute, get my composure. I was a little … I was worried.
Long term, well, I’m just going to take care of the short term first and see how the long term might play out.
Sting was asked about what treatment he received following his match at Night of Champions:
I was out in the hospital — out like a light. They had a neck brace on me, and they were pumping me with [medication] to get me out of pain. I had to do a CT scan and an MRI. They ended up talking to my wife, and I have some details from my wife, but I still have [further evaluation ahead]. They mentioned cervical spinal stenosis, but that’s only part of what I heard. I don’t know if there’s anything else. The doctor did tell my wife, “He’s going to have to get this dealt with. He’s lucky he walked out of there.”
Photo Credit: WWE.com
WWE.com then asked Sting whether or not he would get back into the ring again to which he replied that he would, but only in the right scenario.
Sting went on to explain that he was aware that on both times into the turnbuckle that he was injured, the first being like whiplash and the second being a lot worse.
He also recalled what was going through his mind when the referee stopped the match and he was being looked at by the WWE trainer:
The referee, the doctor, they’re all in there talking to me: “Are you OK? What’s going on? Can you continue? Are you all right? Tell us what’s happening.” And the whole time, I’m just thinking, “Oh, man, not now,” I mean, I want this to be good, you know? And if it ends up being the last thing I ever do in the ring, I don’t want to go out like this.
“God help me.” I’m trying to just shake it off, you know? “C’mon, c’mon.” I’m stamping my feet or moving my toes, just trying to get a feel back, get my legs back underneath me. It started to kind of clear up a little bit. My fingers were still tingling and all that, but my legs were not at that point. I said, “Let me try to continue, let’s just try it.” So I just stood up and walked away from them, and we continued.
To read the rest of the interview that WWE.com had with Sting, you can do so by clicking on this link.
Coming out of this past Sunday’s WWE Night of Champions pay-per-view event, there was a throughline to the big news stories: Wrestler safety. On the undercard, we saw the latest in the series of recent fan run-ins/attacks on wrestlers, leading to the fan in question getting arrested. In the main event, Sting suffered some kind of neck injurytaking a turnbuckle powerbomb from Seth Rollins, and it was bad enough that they quickly went to the finish. On the surface, they’re separate problems, but the safety issue ties them together. WWE already appears to be increasing security to deal with unruly fans, so we’ll set that aside for today.
Sting’s injury gave me a lot of pause about both WWE using older wrestlers (especially in a main event position) and the type of moves they allow. Sting is in fantastic shape for a 56 year old man, but he’s still a 56 year old man. The buckle bomb, as Seth Rollins normally does it, is relatively safe, and it looks that way, too. Just look at how Rob Van Dam took it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCPso908-68
The goal is to come down as parallel to the ring post as possible, the way Van Dam did. Personally, I always thought the move was kind dumb because of how obviously Rollins is trying to protect his opponent. If you want the move to look “good,” you do it the way guys like Ricky Marvin did:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2u7oWHdV24
Of course, that’s clearly many orders of magnitude more dangerous than the way Rollins usually does it. If there’s no real middle ground and the safer version looks ineffectual, why do it in the first place?
Sunday at Night of Champions, Sting hit the turnbuckles much more folded over than Van Dam did in the first example. This type of newer spot that uses the areas of the ring you’r not supposed to bump on require incredible body control and timing ven by pro wrestling standards. If I had to hazard a guess, maybe a 56 year old man who barely wrestles anymore doesn’t have the reflexes to ever take the buckle bomb correctly. That’s nothing against Rollins, and he could very well have done everything on his end correctly, but my gut is that whoever produced the match for them should have nixed that spot. Maybe it was just a miscommunication and Sting could hav taken it safely, but I wouldn’t bet on it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Eo-rpv4gfA
Sting’s injury reminded me of how a couple months ago at Battleground, for whatever reason, the show was full f wrestlers taking bumps on the ring apron. Apron bumps were popularized on the independent scene in the IWS promotion in Quebec where Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn first made a name for themselves. The whole point is that everyone knows it’s legitimately unsafe (again, but relative standards) to bump on the apron because of the lack of give. It’s just a cheap pop, especially when it happens repeatedly on the same card, and Battleground showed a surprising lack of continuity in WWE when it came to limiting those spots. Like with a man nearing his 60s taking a buckle bomb, it’s hard to believe it happened.
Of course, there’s also the question of whether or not someone Sting’s age should even be taking bumps, doing dives etc. I hesitate to say they shouldn’t wrestle at all because you can work a simple, safe match, but Sting being expected to work a 2015 WWE main event style match with modern indie influences was not smart. He’s a beloved legend who still looks really athletic doing his trademark spots and should not have been put in that position when something safer would have sufficed.
After thinking about it for a few days, my gut says WWE needs to b more diligent about cutting guys off and not letting them wrestle past a certain age. Jerry Lawler was, by all appearances, an ageless freak of nature who could wrestle forever until his heart stopped right after a match on Raw. Ricky Steamboat suffered a brain bleed much worse than most fans realized after the 2010 angle where the Nexus attacked him. Hulk Hogan, who has no business taking a bump these days, took one on the floor at WrestleMania, though he may have gone into business for himself on that spot.
And that’s is really part of the problem: You can’t guarantee that they’ll agree to work a restricted style while they’re amped up in the ring. WWE has been pretty careful as of late with how they’ve used older wrestlers, but they’re in a business where they can never be too careful.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated the Q&A section of his website and commented on Sting suffering a neck injury at Sunday’s night of Champions pay-per-view.
A fan said it looked like Rollins botched a move on Sting and asked at what point Rollins would get heat for injuring opponents. JR said, “It’s a physical business and certainly isn’t ballet. Accidents happen. If a trend develops, and two situations isn’t a trend, then you may have a valid point.”
In response to a question about the way Rollins has been booked lately, JR replied, “Booking is highly subjective and can’t truly be judged over the short term. I’d likely tweak how Rollins is being booked, but that doesn’t make me right either. I think WWE is setting him up for an eventual ‘face turn down the road and I have no issues with where Seth is at this time at it’s a marathon and not a sprint even though many fans today have little to no patience.”
After undergoing medical tests to determine the extent of his injuries at Night of Champions, we can thankfully report that Sting’s neck is not broken.
Sting was taken to the hospital after Night of Champions and reportedly underwent a CAT scan and MRI. According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, “He was able to walk [after the PPV], but he was not doing well … The MRI showed no fractures”
There had been plans for Sting to appear in the opening segment of RAW, but he wound up going home after a long 24 hours. Sting suffered the neck injury after taking a powerbomb into turnbuckles at Night Of Champions. Despite the relieving medical news, Meltzer thinks WWE is “going to be leery” about putting Sting back in the ring after this close call.