Seth Rollins and top AEW stars are to be blamed for Sting's risky spots, says former WWE writer (Exclusive)

Sting's risky behavior inside the ring during his AEW run, despite his age, is the result of The Icon being goaded into performing dangerous stunts by younger wrestlers, says former WWE writer Vince Russo.

Speaking on Sportskeeda Wrestling's Writing with Russo, the veteran producer, and on-screen personality recalled a time he was working at an independent show where former WWE star Tracy Smothers was on the card. Russo stated that he had to stop a younger wrestler from convincing Smothers to partake in a high-risk match, as Smothers would have most likely agreed to it had no one intervened.

Similarly, Russo believes that Sting's pride is what allowed him to be roped into doing risky spots with Seth Rollins during his brief WWE run. Ultimately, an awry buckle bomb by the hands of The Architect would see The Icon suffer a serious neck injury.

“That’s the situation Seth Rollins put Sting in; ‘Oh, we’re going to do this and then I’m going to hit you with a bucklebomb’ – now you’ve got the veteran in a position that [he's] every prideful and he’s going to go along with the plan.” [08:40 – 08:54]

On top of this, Russo asserts that the same thing is going on during Sting's current spell in AEW as well:

“It’s the same thing now. Freakin’ Darby Allin is laying out – Sammy Guevara, they’re laying out these ridiculous matches and they’re involving a 64-year-old freakin’ man. […] Bro, Sting could be their grandpa, literally. And you’re laying out this crazy crap and you’re putting a 64-year-old man in the middle of it, and if you know Sting, you know he ain’t gonna say no.” [08:55 – 09:27]

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AEW star Darby Allin denies being a "bad influence" on Sting

One man who would refute Vince Russo's claims is Darby Allin. The 30-year-old AEW star recently spoke to Busted Open Radio about being a "bad influence" on Sting, his on-screen mentor.

Allin swiftly denied these accusations and asserted that The Stinger's high-risk spots are his own ideas. The former TNT Champion also stated that Sting's dangerous stunts are a result of his "hunger and want to give the fans something".

Given Darby's track record of death-defying stunts, it is easy to see why people would place the blame on him. However, at least according to the man himself, the onus is solely on Sting in this case.

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