Former WCW World Heavyweight Champion Sting made a surprise arrival in All Elite Wrestling during Wednesday night’s AEW Dynamite: Winter is Coming special event.
The WWE Hall of Famer interrupted Team Taz’s beatdown of Cody Rhodes, Dustin Rhodes and Darby Allin wielding his trademark black bat as snow began to fall in the arena.
.@STING HAS ARRIVED IN ALL ELITE WRESTLING!
Watch #AEWDynamite NOW on @TNTDrama pic.twitter.com/NMLGKqdQtX— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) December 3, 2020
More than ten years since WCW folded, Sting featured in the WWE at Survivor Series in 2014.
The Hall of Famer only wrestled in four matches, the last of which saw him suffer a career-ending neck injury while wrestling Seth Rollins at the Night of Champions.
Sting’s final WWE appearance was in February 2019, in May 2020 news broke that he was officially no longer under contract with the brand.
AEW announces Sting has signed a full-time, multi-year deal with the company. pic.twitter.com/SYVrSw8H2D
— B/R Wrestling (@BRWrestling) December 3, 2020
AEW’s official press release on the signing read: “The surprise introduction of Sting was a great way to celebrate our biggest episode of Dynamite yet,” Tony Khan said in the release.
“When AEW launched, I was ecstatic to bring wrestling back to TNT after a very long absence. Sting defeated the legendary Ric Flair in the final wrestling match to be shown on TNT for more than 18 years until the debut of Dynamite in 2019.
Now, almost two decades later, it’s such a thrill to welcome Sting to AEW and bring him back home to TNT!”