Posted in: AEW, Sports, TV, WWE | Tagged: aew, opinion, Sting, undertaker, wwe

Sting vs Undertaker: Could Legendary Match Still Happen in AEW/WWE?

Even after Sting's retirement match at AEW Revolution, could he suit up again one last time if that opponent was The Undertaker in AEW or WWE?

As Sting wraps up his in-ring career at AEW Revolution on March 3rd, there's always that lingering question of what's currently billed as his "retirement match" would be it, as wrestling retirements don't always stick, especially when that itch comes back for those like the late Terry Funk. After all, it seems like the current white whale of wrestling dream matches is if the 64-year-old Steve Borden and the 58-year-old Mark Calaway, aka WWE's The Undertaker, could battle for a one-off epic final match. As far as in-ring legacies go, Sting has done it all wrestling for almost every single major US promotion during his nearly four-decade career. He never wrestled for ECW, but would he have fit in? Not only was he the face of WCW, but you can also argue that he was also the franchise in TNA. You can argue how WWE's overly cautious ways ruined his run with the company, but unfortunately, he was on the shelf for a large part of it, not to mention one of the injuries that occurred during his match with Seth Rollins, the current World Heavyweight Championship that was also the final one he had for the company. Let's circle back if a match could happen in, say WrestleMania 41 in 2025 or even later, given Sting and Undertaker's ages and the time needed to prep.

Also, before I go on, Borden and Calaway did tango back in WCW when the latter was "Mean Mark Callous" in a squash for Sting before Calaway solidified himself in WWF as Taker. Not that the WWE Hall of Fame has ever stopped any wrestler from competing, but could Sting and Taker squeeze a classic bout for the ages? Well, let's reexamine another wrestler who came back after a long time away from the ring Stone Cold Steve Austin, in 2022's WrestleMania 38 against Kevin Owens. Before his proper farewell match with WWE (for now), Austin last wrestled for the company defeating The Rock at WrestleMania XIX in 2003, citing his ongoing neck issues. He would become a part-time and behind-the-scenes character off-and-on since then, currently hosting his podcast and talk series Broken Skull Sessions. If you look carefully at his match against Owens, it was hardly a technical bout, nor did the then-57-year-old take anywhere near the bumps as the much younger then-37-year-old Kevin Steen. Again, older versus younger opponents typically work better.

This begs the question, could Sting vs. Undertaker work in 2025 and beyond? Well, if it were AEW (or in Japan), then I would say they would do that in a heartbeat, but Calaway is probably too loyal to WWE for that to happen. He's hardly in the same condition as guys like AEW's Chris Jericho and Adam "FKA Edge" Copeland, who are still capable talent and not riddled with Taker's physical issues. Could WWE book Sting/Taker for WrestleMania 41? I can see Borden giving WWE another shot for that one-off, working with wrestler-turned-executive Paul Levesque (Triple H) again, but like their bout in WrestleMania 31, which was riddled with run-ins from the nWo and D-X, it won't go as fans expect. I see them with, at minimum, a plus one or more with a tag match, triple threat, or fatal four-way, with younger talent carrying the bulk of the work far more likely than a one-on-one bout.

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