Sting In A WWE Ring: No Thanks

Normally I would do a Raw notebook but in all honesty I felt like I watched a three hour infomercial. In addition I ended up doing Between the Ropes recap of Raw anyway. Part of that infomercial was the big hook to pre-order WWE 2K15 this year. Last year it was the Ultimate Warrior and this year it will be Sting. This is the first sign that Sting will be part of the WWE officially and you will get retro Sting and the black and white crow version of Sting that he has been doing since the mid-90’s.

Why people are excited of the prospect of Sting beyond this is a mystery to me? If you saw him at all on TNA he is pretty much an old guy that can still work but nothing tremendous. I find it funny that a wrestling audience that for the most part screams for change many of those same people clamour for nostalgic performers like Sting.

How on earth are you suppose to have change if you keep bringing back dinosaurs that by the length and success of their careers demand spots higher on the card. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. This is unless you’re playing the WWE Video Game which it is fine to have all the guys from that past and makes for a great selling point for the game. The reality is though, the actual man that is Sting will not fair as well as his video game counterpart in the ring.

Did we not learn a lesson from this past Wrestlemania that legends get old and when it becomes obvious it can be a painful and eye opening experience? I am making reference of course to the Undertaker’s match with Brock Lesnar in which he looked slow, lethargic and past his due date. How bad that match was is only covered up by the fact his legendary Wrestlemania streak came to an end. I realize he suffered a concussion at some point in that match but isn’t that in itself maybe a sign it is time to go. Concussions at any age are not good but when you reach a certain age you don’t bounce back from any kind of injury as fast as you once did in younger days.

People for pretty much the last decade have clamoured for a match between the Undertaker and Sting. I would suggest to you that two men in their 50’s try as they might are not going to live up to your expectations. It just isn’t going to happen. Aside from that I have no desire to see Sting face a John Cena or anyone else on the current WWE Roster. It just wouldn’t mean anything at this point. Sometimes you can catch lightning in a bottle as the WWE did with The Rock and Hogan at Wrestlemania 18 but in truth those moments are few and far between. Even in that match do we really remember much about the match itself or just the stare-down and the ending of it?

I can have all the nostalgia I want on the WWE Network watching all of these past heroes when they were actually credible performers in the ring. Wrestling has been littered with guys that have hung on to long and stayed long past the time they should. I have respect for guys like Randy Savage and Shawn Michaels who knew when to make an exit and basically stayed away from the temptations of returns to the ring.

I don’t care if it is in the WWE or at a local independent show there is nothing more sad and pathetic to watch than someone trying to hang on to be cheered or worse yet hang on because they have too having wasted away all they earned.

Wrestling is supposed to be this magical place where we can set aside reality and just go boo and cheer to our hearts delight. Nothing feels worse, that breaks that illusion than watching someone that you can remember who was so much better than what you see in front of you. It reminds you that these guys and gals are actually human beings and not superheroes. The irony is it is rare we see women stick around to long because at the first sign of age they are cast aside because they are not good looking enough to remain in a business that still values appearance over substance as relates to women.

Yet Hogan, Flair and Sting are allowed to just continue on and be simply because we as fans don’t want to admit they are mortal. While they as performers don’t want to admit their time is done and it is time to go back to being just an average human being.

If Sting is here to add context to the WCW and its history as part of the WWE Network I welcome him with open arms. If he is here to try and be Peter Pan and never grow old and wrestle I am not on board with that. At some point the concept of “One More Match” and “You Still Got It” becomes a ridiculous statement to make in terms of wrestlers. We as fans need to enjoy people while we have them and look towards the future and not the past if wrestling is ever going to create stars to rival these past heroes and all they accomplished.


 

Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! If you have questions/comments for our NEW Weekly Google+ Show Live Thursday's 8pm EST use hashtag #AskMachoMoon. You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com.