Could Sting have a reign as the AEW World Champion before he retires?

Before he signed with AEW, Sting was already considered a living legend. An icon with nothing left to prove, he took a chance by joining a fledgling promotion at 61 years old.

The AEW faithful may have been ecstatic over Sting's arrival, but they had some cautious optimism as well. Two things immediately sprang to every loyal fan's mind when it came to this childhood hero: Please don't get hurt, and please don't harm your legacy.

If anything, the old man has proven to everyone that he's still got a lot of gas left in the tank. While he can't exactly be The Stinger of the past, he's making up for it with guile and instincts. You tend to pick up on those little tricks when you've been around for over three decades.

He's traveled lots of roads, taken on many incarnations, and lived several different lives during his time in the squared circle. In fact, the veteran has been around for so long; he won his first world title before several of his AEW roster mates were even born.

That hasn't held him back, however, as the man behind the face paint has worked with reckless abandon. Or at least as close to 'reckless abandon' as you can at 63 years of age.

While he doesn't have the same spring in his leaps during a Stinger Splash, it still gets a major reaction. Whenever Sting waves to the crowd, signaling that the Scorpion Deathlock is coming, the cheers are still deafening.

He's also been a great ambassador for All Elite Wrestling. His class and professionalism are a great example to the young locker room, who surely learn small lessons just by watching him. That's called quiet leadership.

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Sting's AEW World Championship run would evoke nostalgia for multiple generations of wrestling fans

Right now, it's been pretty common knowledge that AEW wants to protect the title and avoid a lot of 'hot-shotting.'

But with the right angle, right timing, and maybe just a little bit of super glue and duct tape, Tony Khan could fashion an angle that gets The Stinger one last run. The kind that he should have had in WWE.

It's unclear how long Sting wants to stay active or if he would even want to take the belt at all. He's seen as someone who is mostly there just to help the younger talent along like he has with Darby Allin. So maybe another opportunity to be the champ doesn't even really matter to him at this stage.

At the same time, an out-of-nowhere win for Sting to capture the illustrious gold would be one heck of a trip down memory lane. Nostalgia may sometimes be overused in wrestling, but this bat-wielding warrior would be an exception.

He's universally respected and admired, so no one would quibble over him having that one last chance at glory. Most critics and observers would likely just view it as a tribute to his amazing career.

So why not give Sting a short run as the AEW World Champion? Then, let him ride off into the sunset and collect his retirement checks. Goodness knows, he's earned all that and more.