WWE drops major Sting reference months after his AEW retirement

WWE legend Sting retired from professional wrestling last year at AEW Revolution. The Vigilante is also a WWE Hall of Famer and the promotion recently posted his match against Triple H from WrestleMania 31 as a part of 50 greatest matches ever at The Show of Shows.

In 2014, Sting made a shocking WWE debut at the Survivor Series Premium Live Event. He made his presence felt by taking out Triple H and kickstarting his first feud in the promotion. The rivalry would culminate in a No Disqualifications Match at WrestleMania 31 where Sting and Triple H put on a great display. The bout also had run-ins from D-Generation X and the nWo. Triple H went on to pick up a huge victory over The Icon in his WrestleMania debut.

On WWE's YouTube Channel, the promotion listed Triple H and Sting's match from WrestleMania 31 at No. 49 in the collection of the 50 Greatest WrestleMania Matches Ever.

Vince Russo praises WWE Hall of Famer Sting's important decision

After his WCW tenure, Sting had a great run in TNA Wrestling. Wrestling veteran Vince Russo used to work in TNA Wrestling's creative and recently recalled pitching Joker Sting to The Vigilante.

Speaking on Sportskeeda Wrestling's Writing with Russo podcast, Vince Russo noted how Sting could have said no to the Joker Sting pitch and appreciated him accepting the character.

"When I presented him with Joker Sting, bro, he could have said no. Like he already was an icon and a legend. But the fact that he said yes, and then invested in it, and when I was like, that's a freaking pro. Because, like, at 60 years old or 50, whatever he was at the time, the dude was still challenging himself. I love performers like that, man." [1:13 onwards]

We will have to wait and see if Sting makes an appearance in All Elite Wrestling this year as he will be retiring his iconic war paint after 2025.