Tonight will be Sting’s/Steve Borden’s Last Stand
Taking place at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, tonight’s AEW Revolution pay-per-view will serve as the send-off to the legendary 39-year career of Sting. He and tag team partner Darby Allin will defend their AEW World Tag Team Championship in the main event, and they’re joined by eight more matches on the main card.
Sting and Allin will defend their titles against the Young Bucks, who are currently referring to themselves and Matthew and Nicholas Jackson. This match has been built for nearly two months, and Sting reportedly chose the Young Bucks as his final opponents. The veteran also promised to put on an incredible show and, based on the way his AEW run has gone so far, it seems a safe bet he’ll fulfill that pledge.
Read More: https://www.wrestlinginc.com/1530481/aew-revolution-2024-full-final-card-matches/
Closing Time for Sting
After a career that spanned across five decades, wrestling icon Sting wrestles his final match this Sunday
from JUSTIN BARRASSO with Sports Illustrated
Sting came to AEW to rewrite his final chapter in wrestling.
Even Odysseus would blush at what Sting has endured throughout his career.
A journey that has spanned five decades–including stops in the Continental Wrestling Association, Universal Wrestling Federation, Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling, TNA, and WWE before arriving just over three years ago in AEW–concludes this Sunday. One half of the AEW tag team champions, Sting will team with Darby Allin against the Young Bucks at the Greensboro Coliseum–the site of his 1988 Clash of the Champions bout against Ric Flair–in Greensboro, North Carolina.
No longer will Sting’s last match be remembered as the night in 2015 when he was nearly paralyzed in the WWE’s Night of Champions main event against Seth Rollins. That was an emotional rollercoaster, one where an audible should have been called and Sting should have won. The same should be said for his WrestleMania 31 encounter against Triple H, which marked Sting’s first-ever match in WWE. In case you forgot, that also ended in defeat.
“Losing is good,” said Steve Borden, who will forever be known as Sting. “You’ve got to lose. If you lose right, it gets you over even more.”
Despite the losses, or perhaps because of them, Sting found a way to persevere.
This Sunday at Revolution, a remarkable 39-year odyssey is complete. As Sting approaches this unfamiliar territory of a retirement match, he enters while doing so in a time of grief and sorrow.
Sting is mourning the loss of his father. His suffering was caught on camera, as he needed to deliver a promo for the upcoming Revolution pay-per-view. In what now stands as the final promo of his storied career, Sting looked deep into the camera and told a captivating story with his eyes, lamenting the loss of the man who raised him.
In the midst of the mourning, Sting turned to his home away from home–pro wrestling–and his second family–wrestling fans–in his moment of need.
“My lip quivers thinking about it,” said Borden. “Wrestling fans, they’re in my heart. The Little Stingers aren’t little anymore. They’re adults now. We’ve all grown together. We’ve been through all of this together.
“The relationship with the fans, that’s what brings this to a whole other level. I can’t tell you the amount of conversations I’ve had where someone would tell me that the only relationship they had with their father was watching Sting in WCW, or the ones where people told me they were bullied in school but they watched Sting and he made them feel strong. Can you believe that? I still can’t. The feeling that wrestling fans give me is as great as anything I give them. It blows me away. Hearing that I touched a person’s life, it’s very humbling.”
Only weeks away from turning 65, Borden made the long overdue decision to retire. A seasoned veteran of pro wrestling, he vowed to himself decades ago in TNA that he would do whatever it took to remain relevant in the industry. Whether that meant evolving the character–Joker Sting is a very underrated iteration of the character–or taking unnecessary and unsafe risks in AEW, even jumping off a balcony–he has stayed true to his promise.
This Sunday, take a deep breath and sit down before the main event. Borden has one last memorable ride in mind for Sting that will not be for the faint of heart.
“I want people to walk away saying, ‘How was that even possible?’” said Borden. “I want people to be entertained. I want to elevate AEW.
“I never wanted wrestling to pass me by. That’s why I wrestled the way I did. This Sunday, I’m going to wrestle a way that will make people want to save the tape.”
Sting Is Writing His Final Chapter In AEW
Sting’s greatest hits includes a new album from his run in AEW, this time as a duet beside Darby Allin. The two have fit together seamlessly, and it is hard to picture one without the other.
“I’m in good hands next to Darby,” said Borden. “It’s been an honor to see him turn into this polished star. I’m grateful my last hurrah was with him. I didn’t teach him much about wrestling other than psychology here or there. Less is more, I taught him that. I taught him that it’s good to lose if you can lose the right way. Overall, he’s got the wrestling down. But I’ve learned so much from him. I couldn’t have been this successful without him.”
During the promo where Sting shared that his father had passed away, he stated, “Family is all that matters.” This is relevant to the storyline, as the Bucks also attacked his grown sons during the tag title victory celebration.
“Bottom line, that promo, it was very difficult,” said Borden. “The heaviness was on me. Of my gosh, the heaviness. It was all real, all sincere, and I’m grateful for the reaction. Tony Khan sent me some high praise. A lot of others did, too. That meant a lot. On behalf of my dad, I’ll accept all those kind words.”
Sting’s family, wrestling fans included, will be filling the Greensboro Coliseum on Sunday, as well as around the globe watching intently as he wrestles his final match. The man who became WCW’s flagbearer, stood up to Ric Flair and The Four Horsemen and later fought off the NWO and Hollywood Hogan, and even fought in enemy territory against Triple H, now takes a swing at the Bucks’ Matt and Nick Jackson.
Carrying wrestling fans in his heart, thankful for the rarified heights they climbed together, Sting fights–for his family–one last time this Sunday.
“The grace of God is upon me,” said Borden. “He used me to touch people, and I’m so grateful for it. And I am fighting for what I believe in. That interview where I said ‘Family is the most important thing’, it’s the most important thing I’ve ever said. I’m fighting for all of my family at Revolution.”
Justin Barrasso
BY JUSTIN BARRASSO
Justin Barrasso has been writing for Sports Illustrated since 2014. While his primary focus is pro wrestling and MMA, he has also covered MLB, NBA, and the NFL. He can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com and followed on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.
**********Update/Results of Sting’s/Steve Borden’s last match from the Greensboro Coliseum, and Courtesy of Wade Keller at PWTorch.com:***********
STING & DARBY ALLIN vs. THE YOUNG BUCKS (Matthew & Nicholas Jackson) – AEW Tag Team Title match
Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat made their way to the ring. The Young Bucks came out in boxing robes. They were lifted on Cody’s old stage elevator. Darby then came out to his music. The lights went dark and then a video package aired with a piano score showing a theater saying “The Final Showtime.” Then curtain opened and Sting’s scorpion logo was on the screen. The screen showed Sting on the cover of Pro Wrestling Illustrated and photos of him with Ric Flair, Lex Luger, Rick Rude, and others. It also showed New Japan footage of him. Then it moved to AEW clips including cutaways to Sting reacting in the empty theater, including wincing at a big bump he took. It included footage of Darby & Sting winning the tag titles and then the Young Bucks attacking him. The curtain then closed and the camera showed Sting in the old theater, alone and looking around. Then he said, in a contemplative tone, “It’s showtime. Showtime for the last time.” He looked at the camera and leaned in and intensely said, “Let’s do this.”
Back live in the arena, the lights went dark and then Sting’s theme played and he made his way out. Sting’s sons came out dressed in two different era’s ring gear. Justin Roberts introduced “Stinggggg!” for the final time. Darby greeted Sting in the aisle. Darby leaped onto the Bucks at ringside. The ref called for the bell as Darby threw them back into the ring.
The bell rang 32 minutes into the fourth hour. Schiavone talked about seeing so many Sting matches over the years and he didn’t expect to be present for the last one. Sting’s sons each hit Stinger Splashes on the Bucks in the corner. Sting then landed one. His sons flexed and yelled. The fans politely applauded, but they didn’t come to see Sting’s sons. Sting then put the Bucks in a double Scorpion Death Lock. The wriggled themselves free of Sting’s grip. Fans chanted “Thank you, Sting!”
The Bucks rolled to ringside. Sting went after Matt and brawled with him at ringside for a minute. Darby leaped off the top rope onto Matthew. Sting looked for something under the ring and came out with a pane of glass. He very gingerly leaned it against the ring and then pulled another pane of glass out. Darby directed Sting’s sons to place the pane over two rows of three chairs. Sting swung his bat at Nicholas, but Nick moved and the bat hit the ringside steps. He swung at Matt near a pane of glass, but Matt moved. The bat missed the glass, so Sting just bashed the pane with the bat after Matt scurried away and the pane shattered.
They brawled up onto the stage at 6:00. Matt gave Darby a Falcon Arrow of the stage through two tables below. Matt tried to throw Sting off the stage, but Sting resisted. Sting set up a Scorpion Death Drop, but Matt blocked it and then he suplexed Sting off the stage onto two tables with some equipment on it. The crowd chanted, “F— the Young Bucks!”
Back in the ring, the Bucks tossed Darby back-first into a ladder leaning in the corner. Darby made a spirited comeback and hit Matt with a Code Red. Darby leaped off a tall ladder in the ring aimed toward Nick on the glass panes, but Matt pulled Nick out of the way and then Darby crashed through the panes of glass. Darby was bleeding from dozens of places on his back. Ross said doctors were standing by. Schiavone said, “He could bleed out here.” Ross said this has turned into a more grave situation than he anticipated earlier in the day.
Sting returned to the ring, but the Bucks double-teamed him. The Bucks tried to suplex Sting onto a table in the ring, but Sting fought back. Matt let out a Sting yell to mock him. Nick kicked Matt in the head by mistake. Sting clotheslined Nick. Sting rammed Matt’s head into the mat over and over. Sting put Matt on the table and then climbed the tall ladder. Matt got up and pulled Sting down a few rungs. Nick set up a pane of glass in the corner as Matt slammed Sting off the ladder and through the table. Sting no-sold it and popped up. He punched away at Matt and Nick, but they fought back and threw Sting into the pane of glass in the corner. Matt gave Sting a low-blow and a Scorpion Death Drop and scored a two count at 14:00. A “Let’s Go, Sting!”chant rang out.
Nick picked up a belt at ringside. Steamboat yanked it away from him. Matt jabbed Steamboat with the chair. Flair entered the ring to checjk on Sting. Matt was going to hit Flair with the belt, but he paused. Flair covered Sting and yelled, “No! No! F— off!” Matt backed off. The Bucks then stereo superkicked Flair. Steamboat leaped onto the ring apron. The Bucks superkicked him off the ring apron. Matt then hit Sting with the belt and scored a believable near fall.
The Bucks stood in the ring and waited for Sting to stand. Darby was still out at ringside. They stereo superkicked Sting, but he bent backwards and let out a yell and pounded his chest. He clotheslined both of them and delivered a Scorpion Death Drop on Matt. Nick broke up the cover at two. Sting set up another Scorpion Death Drop, but Matt blocked it. The Bucks hit the EVP trigger for a near fall. Ross said the tag titles are at stake.
The Bucks shook Sting’s hand and Matt said it’s been a pleasure doing business with him. They hit another EVP Trigger. Sting kicked out at one and laughed. Schiavone said they’re not going to keep him down tonight. They kicked Sting again. Matt lifted Sting and Nick set up the TK Driver. Darby shoved Nick to the floor. Sting then countered Matt into a Scorpion Death Drop for a believable near fall. Darby back was bleeding heavily as he climbed to the top rope and hit a Coffin Drop as Sting held Matt’s legs. Sting then applied the Scorpion Deathlock while egging on the fans to cheer. Matt tapped out. Schiavone said he was so happy to be there with both Excalibur and Ross.
WINNERS: Sting & Darby in 21:00.