The Young Bucks have sat down to discuss AEW Revolution, their experiences with Sting and Cody in WWE.
In just a matter of days, AEW will head to the Greensboro Coliseum in North Carolina to stage Revolution, where The Icon Sting will have his last match. The now 64-year-old is set to team with Darby Allin to defend the AEW World Tag Team Championships against The Young Bucks in what is sure to be an emotional evening for all as he steps into the squared circle for one final time.
Speaking with Sports Illustrated, the Bucks’ Matt Jackson began by saying that their success is ‘undeniable’, yet they will never receive the flowers they deserve.
“Our success is undeniable. One day, we will get our flowers, but unfortunately, they will be at our gravesides. When you are cast as a villain, you must accept that role. But we know what we’ve done–we lived it. Hate our style of wrestling? Hate the way we look? Hate the way we talk? That’s fine. But we made a lot of people a lot of money. I bathe in the tears of yesterday’s broke wrestling personalities, whose only content is talking about what I did last, in my backyard lazy river.”
-Matt Jackson
Nick then talked about how he used to regularly see Sting on Nitro and how it will be a huge moment for him and Matt to be The Icon’s final match.
“It’s a crazy rollercoaster ride we’ve been on the last 20 years. I remember watching Nitro, seeing Sting come down from the rafters to attack the NWO, and how mad I’d be that he’d always beat up Hogan. So to see him still performing at a high level all these years later is amazing. For Matthew and me to be his last match means a lot. It’s the biggest match of our career, and it’s a moment I didn’t think would happen.”
-Nick Jackson
Matt then talked about the changes in his life since he met Sting at TNA Wrestling way back in 2010.
“I was a poor, newly married man with a baby on the way when I first met Sting in TNA Wrestling in 2010. We’d hold hands and pray before some of the big shows. Now I’m extremely wealthy, wildly successful, married to the same beautiful woman, and have two kids who adore me. Nicholas and I will keep the tradition alive Sunday at Revolution and say a quick prayer for Sting before our match.”
-Matt Jackson
The Young Bucks and Sting last shared the ring when they were part of a six-man tag team match at Forbidden Door 2022. On that night, the Jackson’s teamed with El Phantasmo to battle The Icon, Darby Allin, and Shingo Takagi.
Matt talked about how stepping into the ring with Sting initially felt like a dream and how he remembers that match for its emotion rather than what actually happened. He stated that Sunday will be an emotional occasion for him, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to take the challenge lightly.
“Forbidden Door was the very first time we’d ever been in a ring with Sting. You can get caught up in moments like that when you’re standing face to face with an icon. It can mix you up and take you off balance because you almost get caught watching yourself, like you’re in a movie or a dream. You have to stop acting like a fan and remember you’re a participant. I remember more about how I felt in that match, and less about what happened. This match at Revolution, nobody is more emotional about it than my brother and me. Although we usually rooted against Sting when we were kids, we always respected his game. It’s a lot of responsibility on our shoulders. Sting has had a legendary career, and it’s up to us to stick the landing. But this isn’t going to be Kobe scoring 60 points on his final night. We’re looking for a shutout and I know Sting wouldn’t want it any other way. He mentioned us being in for the fight of our lives. We live for high pressure, high stakes, big fight feel matches. Nobody performs better in those types of situations than us. Sixty-four years of age, performing in his final match or not, we’re not going to take him lightly.”
-Matt Jackson
On the Forbidden Door match in question, Nick chimed in to emphasise how excited he was to be part of it. In particular, he notes how Sting was remarkably happy with it and, even then, hinted to The Bucks that he may want them to partake in his retirement match.
“I was super excited about that match, and I remember Sting coming to the back so visibly happy with how the crowd reacted to it all. I remember Sting saying something about how he wanted to wrestle us for his retirement match that night. I also remembered thinking, ‘Duh.’”
-Nick Jackson
If The Young Bucks win, they will become the first three-time AEW World Tag Team Champions. On this, Matt comments about how 2021 was likely the peak of AEW’s tag division and how the Bucks reaching the summit again at the expense of Sting will put them where they need to be.
“The height of AEW, and the tag team division in particular, was in 2021 when we were on top with the belts, running and gunning. I’d like to get us back to that place. This is the ethos of what we are accomplishing. Sting has had an unbelievable career, and I do believe his AEW run in particular has been remarkable. But when you think of Sting, you don’t think of AEW. You think of someplace else that no longer exists. It’s time for the new era of wrestling stars to step up and become the level of star that Sting is. And when you think of that star, you should think of AEW. Saying goodbye to Sting, and everybody like him, is step one of the process of getting us back to where we need to be.”
On AEW as a whole, Matt discussed how it’ll always be their thing. He talked about how the company changed the landscape and how he’s still rooting for Cody Rhodes despite him not being part of the project these days.
“AEW will always be our baby. It’s our life’s work. We sought out to change the world, and we did just that. We created a new workplace for so many deserving people. Tons of talented individuals received a spotlight that they may have not gotten otherwise. And several people’s careers were taken to new heights because of the sole existence of AEW. We’re proud of the things we accomplished with Cody and happy to see him rising to the occasion. We’re all rooting for each other.”
-Matt Jackson
Adding his thoughts on this, Nick confirmed that AEW’s founding members will always share a bond and that they always knew that Cody would become a major star.
“Cody is the face of the WWE now, and it’s cool to see because we always knew how much of a star he was. The founders of AEW will always have a lifetime bond with each other because we all know what we did for wrestling. We talk every week and in a weird way him leaving made us grow more as friends.”
-Nick Jackson
To close, Matt turned his attention back to Sting by saying that he plans on giving The Icon the fight of his life, to leave him with a lasting memory of how his career ended.
“I want to give Sting the fight of his life. I want to give him a lasting memory of how it all came to an end. After all, the ending is the most important part. It’ll be Sting’s honor.”
-Matt Jackson
As we are just four days away from Revolution and his final match, Sting will make his last stop at an edition of AEW Dynamite tonight. He has truly had a legendary career, and this Sunday has the chance to bow out as a champion.
As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on Sting’s last match as soon as we hear more.
