Wrestlemania 30 discussion is heating up on the potential main events. Already being discussed is Rock vs. Brock Lesnar as one of the main events. Originally, Brock Lesnar was thought to be an opponent for the Undertaker, but it’s possible that the Undertaker has a new opponent to face.
Sting.
Sting is currently in TNA working as a co-leader of the Main Event Mafia but his contract expires in January. Sting has been often rumoured to be jumping to the WWE, as he’s one of the few major stars from the WCW/NWA era to never come to the WWE. Every year there’s speculation and an expected payday against the Undertaker, and every year he re-signs with TNA Wrestling. Sting was one of the most interesting characters back in the heyday of the Monday Night Wars and his silent, monochrome persona was thought upon as a response to the gothic walking death portrayed by the Undertaker. This has been a dream match for almost 20 years now.
That said, this match is a dream from a forgotten era. An era where Steve Borden stayed quiet and hung out in the rafters. Where he would just point his bat at people and it would create an enormous amount of tension. The WWE really couldn’t do that with Steve Borden, aged 54, today. Oh they could try I’m sure, but are you really going to care about a 50 year old man pointing a black baseball bat at people? Especially the Undertaker? Borden was also that Sting only for a few years before moving towards a variation of his surfer persona but wearing the iconic black and white paint. He has worked that gimmick all through TNA Wrestling as well with only two breaks, one being his Heath Ledger joker inspired “crazy” Sting and the other being no paint and suit Main Event Mafia Sting, where he’s a lot more subdued.
On the other side of the ring would be the Undertaker, now 48 years old and only really capable of doing a by the numbers Taker match. His matches with Triple H and CM Punk were exciting because they were the match you come to expect from the Undertaker but he was also working with guys like Triple H and Punk who could carry their own. Sting has never been the type of wrestler who carries it himself. His best matches in TNA Wrestling had AJ Styles or Samoa Joe on the other side of the ring doing most of the effort. Back in WCW, he had to be in the ring with a Randy Savage or a Ric Flair to get an exciting contest out of himself. Otherwise you get Sting by the numbers and boy is it boring. Every year it gets more boring, and you’re going to want that at Wrestlemania?
I understand if you’re in your late 20s or beyond, you probably wanted this match more than anything as a kid. There they were the two dark and mysterious characters in pro wrestling. Sting, the man with a vendetta. Undertaker, the walking undead. But wait, what’s the real tension here? Why is Sting, a guy whose “Crow” gimmick was built around revenge coming to the WWE to fight the Undertaker? Revenge over WCW closing like 15 years ago? Oh, because you want to see it? That’s it? That’s the story? I thought we watched pro wrestling, especially the WWE, for good stories?
So now we have an over the hill guy from TNA coming over to the WWE for one match against an over the hill legend who always wins at Wrestlemania. You know the match will be terrible. You know it won’t make sense and you know the WWE would have to spend a lot of time using special effects to make it look even plausible at all. Do you still want it?
Oh of course you do. Just remember, next time you’re wondering why your favourite young wrestler isn’t getting the TV time he deserves or even a match at Wrestlemania? You’re part of the problem.
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Photo Credit: Simon Q, Wiki Commons, CC
