25 Best Wrestling Moments Of 2024

3. Sting’s Last Stand

AEW Revolution Sting Young Bucks
AEW

The Sting formula was perfect. 

Sting, under the paint and carefully protected through a quite sensational use of smoke and mirrors, was able - in his sixties - to perform like the ageless Icon of old. His party matches were amongst the most surreal, magical spectacles in pro wrestling history. He removed your cynical husk and reminded you what it felt like to escape. Moreover, through his balcony dives and badass no-selling sequences - which he timed to perfection, always - he spoke to the ECW-obsessed edgelord teenager within. 

At Revolution, he wrestled his last match. In a masterstroke, Tony Khan added peril to that formula. 

Darby Allin’s unhinged smash through a (worked) pane of glass set an unsettling tone. An honest-to-goodness Death match played out, it was terrifying, and the Young Bucks did a phenomenal job of creating an air of finality. Sting was on his own. He was outmatched. 

Except he wasn’t, because he’s Sting, and when - after being smashed through glass and through a table (off a ladder) - he pounded his chest and rose from the dead one more time. 

The superhero won. That was always the magic. Making you think he wouldn’t do it was the most effective trick of all.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!