Last week, WWE teased a potential dream match between Sting and The Undertaker - leading some to wonder if the former is about to make an unlikely return to wrestling.
Sting had to retire in 2016 after suffering a neck injury in a match against Seth Rollins at Night of Champions 2015. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame that same year, and The Icon has remained in retirement ever since.
Well, fans shouldn't get their hopes up about a potential return to the ring. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Ringside News), explained that WWE would "never risk" The Icon injuring his neck - three years after undergoing surgery. The Observer detailed that with Sting being 60-year-old and dealing with spinal stenosis, the suggestion of having him compete again "is not even broached."
Related: Sting Names Bray Wyatt As The Current Star He'd Want To Face Today
It should be noted that Sting himself won't rule out the possibility of wrestling again. At the Starrcade event, the WWE Hall of Famer said he would do another match for "the right price." Not only that, but Sting has emphasized multiple times that he would come out of retirement to wrestle Undertaker, but WWE obviously isn't as keen on making the dream match happen.
But at this point, it's hard to envision WWE giving fans the dream match. Undertaker is 54 years of age and is wrestling on a very limited basis, and the idea of putting him up against a man who hasn't wrestled in three years probably isn't in the company's best interest. Sting might not be fully committed to staying retired, but there's no reason to believe WWE will clear him three years after he decided to hang up the boots on his illustrious career.
What This Means
It's no surprise that WWE wants to play it safe and keep Sting retired. It'd be extremely dangerous to have a 60-year-old come back to the ring, given the serious neck injury that forced him to initially retire. If WWE was keen on giving Sting another chance, they would have brought him back to the ring by now.