Share

Tweet

Share

Share

Email

Unlike most I give WWE creative the benefit of the doubt more often than not. They make lots of decisions that leave me scratching my head but eventually they hit a homerun like they did last Sunday in Santa Clara. Of course as usual it didn’t take long for the rumors about next year’s event to start flying. Will Stone Cold have one more match in his home state of Texas? Will Goldberg come out of retirement to mail in one last match? Will we relive the attitude era when the leader of DX and the leader of the Nation of Domination go head to head? Rock vs Brock? The rumors will be endless and as always a lot of fun to debate. However the Sting vs Undertaker rumor needs to go away. At most this match would be a cheap pop to feed the nostalgia of 90’s wrestling fans and nothing more.

The first question I have is who is going to carry the match? It’s been seven or eight years since the Undertaker had a Mania match where he needed to carry is opponent, which was against Batista. After Batista he goes against Shawn Michael twice, HHH twice, CM Punk, Brock Lesnar and Bray Wyatt. Now don’t get you commenting panties in a bunch fellas, I am not saying that he didn’t perform in those matches. In fact I think his first match with Michaels is the greatest match of all time. In order to make those matches to be epic, Taker had to perform. However, he was in the ring with top notch performers in top notch shape who did more than their share of the work. Can Sting carry the Undertaker to an epic match in the new WWE?

The second question that comes to mind is, who is Sting? That may sound like a silly question but there are a lot of wrestling fans who have no idea who this guy is. I know who he is but I watched him take down the NWO almost 20 years ago. I watched him take Flair to the limit time and time again. I even caught a few peaks at him in the Main Event Mafia during his TNA days. I would argue for most of the current WWE fan base, this feud with HHH is all they know. And he lost!

For my seven year old son, Sting is the guy who failed to take down HHH. He isn’t the savior of WCW, he isn’t the icon, he isn’t the franchise, he is just Sting. I know that is probably wrestling heresy, but let’s be honest here. The WWE agrees with me. When you think back to Sting’s match at WrestleMania what were the most memorable moments? DX, NWO, Shawn Michaels, bat, and sledgehammer. No one remembers the Stinger splash because Ziggler’s is better. No one remember the half-ass scorpion death lock, Nattie’s sharpshooter is better. I was in Santa Clara and I loved every match, but Sting’s match didn’t have me on the edge of my seat until “BREAK IT DOWN!”

The third question I have at this point is why? What is there left to fight for? The Streak is over, the match against the next dark force (Bray Wyatt) is over, the battle to bring down HHH’s empire is over and Sting has now had his WrestleMania moment. What is left to get excited about? The only hope this match has of being entertaining is to have a great storyline. At least then the ring work won’t matter as much as the resolution of whatever conflict is being fought over. Don’t be fooled but the “rebirth” of the Undertaker.

Sure he looked to be in much better shape against Wyatt but the pace and style of match helped create that image. Had this been a rematch vs Lesnar I am sure he would have looked outmatched. Same with Sting, HHH was a good opponent. Capable of working a slower match as the Cerebral Assassin as opposed to power matches like those from Reigns or Lesnar.

No one wins the battle against father time and as far as I am concerned the only place for Sting and the Undertaker at WrestleMania 32 is at the Hall of Fame podium thanking the fans for their unwavering support. It’s time for the Sting vs Undertaker at Mania rumors to rest in peace.

WWE: Ultimate Warrior: Always Believe

The Randy Savage Story DVD

Grab discounted WWE DVDs, merchandise, t -shirts, figures, and more from the WWE Shop on Amazon.com