Sting reflected on his lengthy career in a new interview ahead of his retirement match at AEW Revolution. The Icon spoke with Bleacher Report for a new interview talking about his start in the business, his run in AEW, his faith and more, and you can see some highlights below:
On his start in the business: “I was Channel 5 in Memphis, Tennessee. It was Lance Russell at the helm there. It was Jim Hellwig and me. This was before the Blade Runners. We were The Freedom Fighters. We wrestled Davey Haskins and another guy, his name I’ve forgotten. It’s been so many years. It was a two-minute tag match and we were supposed to come in and squash these guys, and we did. I remember that. It was just a tiny little studio at Channel 5 in Memphis. No paint at that point. We were just like these white meat babyfaces as green as can be, not at all ready to do what we were doing. We looked the part but that’s where it ended. We were both so green [laughs].
“That was with Jerry Jarrett and we lasted about three months. I separated my shoulder really bad. We started Thanksgiving Day 1985. That’s exactly when it was. Then that night we did a show somewhere in Alabama. That’s where it all started. The Freedom Fighters were Flash Borden and Jim Justice. When we switched gimmicks and went to The Blade Runners, I actually gave Jim his name, Rock. So he was the first Rock [laughs].”
On where he sees Darby Allin in five years: “It depends on what his choices and decisions are. He is still young. He’s definitely not going to be another Sting at age 64, pushing 65, who is still going to be taking bumps and being a wrestler. He has no interest in doing that at all. This I do know. Whatever he sets out to do at all, he will be successful because he has a work ethic that is beyond what mine was in so many ways. If there’s a small crowd or large crowd, it doesn’t matter. He’s going to go balls to the wall. No matter who he’s wrestling, a big name, a no-name guy, it doesn’t matter. Darby is just going to go for it. He’s always thinking, not just about himself but about others and how to make AEW as a whole better. How to get a better rating. How to get the roar of the crowd to happen. To put butts in seats. He’s a leader, a guy who was bullied as a kid and has figured it out and he now leads by example. And I believe his creativity and his innovative mindset in the ring and out of the ring is going to open so many doors for him outside of wrestling.”
On Allin’s outside interests: “He’s getting ready to climb Mt. Everest. I’m a praying man and I’ll be praying for him because that weather can change so quickly and so drastically in the blink of an eye. He’s a go-getter kind of a guy and he’s hungry to succeed. He’s a family guy, too. He cares for his family and friends. I’ve watched the way he treats his mom, his dad, his brothers, and friends of his that he’s known and supported and given them a place to live, given them jobs, given them work. A lot of the vignettes you have seen of Darby and me, that’s Darby’s brainchild most of the time. He’s got his own film crew and he produces a lot of this stuff.”
On taking risks in his AEW run: “In the ’80s and early ’90s, I was doing head-first dives out of the ring. Over the top rope onto the floor, into the chairs, onto the tables, onto human bodies, press slammed by guys like Sid Vicious. You’re like nine feet up in the air when he’s got you up there and dropping you through tables. Sid and I did that every night for weeks. I don’t know how many tables I’ve gone through during my career, even before I started with AEW. So jumping off of balconies, okay, I didn’t really jump off of balconies [laughs] but it’s not like it’s something brand new and foreign to Sting. I want wrestling fans to know that even now, at my age, I’m still going to put it out there and go balls to the wall. I’m hoping that everybody walks away from Revolution going ‘Wow, what an incredible memory. A night that we will not forget.’ That’s all I want.”
On how he wants to be remembered: “It’s going to be the Jesus Christ answer. I just want everybody to know ‘Yeah, he was one of those believers in Jesus Christ.’ or ‘He was a true Christian man. He was the real deal in Christ.’ Whether they believe in god or not, I’d like to be remembered like that. And after that, it would just be that I didn’t change. Yes, I changed my persona on and off, my likeness and gimmick a few times. From surfer Sting to crow Sting to Wolfpac Sting to Joker Sting and now old man Sting. I want to be remembered as someone who just cared about the kids that were there, the innocent minds that were there.”
