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AEW
By Ella Jay/March 4, 2024 11:30 pm EST
While Sting's in-ring career may officially be over now, the legacy he carved in between the ropes will not be forgotten. On a recent episode of "Busted Open Radio," multi-time tag team champion Bully Ray looked back on his various interactions with "The Icon" while under the umbrella of TNA Wrestling. For Ray, one of his fondest memories occurred across the pond, as TNA hosted a television taping in Manchester, England in January 2013 (later aired that February).
"I turned into a little kid all over again," Ray said. "I turned into a wrestling fan because it was me and Sting versus the Aces and Eights in a tables match. I'm in my dressing room, and I said to myself, 'Wow, how cool would it be if I could come out painted up like Sting?' I was like, 'Screw it, I'm just going to go ask him.' [I] knocked on his door, walked in, I go, 'Will you paint me up?' He looked at me, and he smiles. He goes, 'Hell yeah.' [I got] goosebumps."
After their backstage face-painting session, Ray and Sting geared up to face Ace And Eights' Devon and DOC — aka Luke Gallows — in a tables match. With Ray already decorated in Sting-like facepaint, Sting returned the favor by donning one of Ray's TNA t-shirts. Ray later shared a photograph of their entrance on X (formerly Twitter), where the two can be seen hyping up the crowd ahead of their match.
"It's such a perfect moment in time," Ray said. "You could see the excitement in my eyes and on my face to be able to be standing next to this guy doing our entrance together."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.