After spending the better part of a week hyping up that Tony Khan had a very special gift for Sting on Dynamite after announcing his retirement from wrestling the previous week, fans wondered what the CEO of AEW had in store.

Would the promotion be announcing a Sting Memorial Trophy a la the Owen Hart Cup? Or maybe an annual match a la WWE's Andre The Giant Battle Royal? Could Sting be afforded a Money in the Bank-style open contract for any title in the promotion in order to take one final shot at a singles title?

Well, after sharing his thoughts with the AEW fans in North Philadelphia, Tony Schiavone let it be known that his surprise wasn't so much a thing as a person: A “Nature Boy,” to be exact.

“You know, you know that in life, there are moments that are magical; they are few and far between, and that's the magic of the chemistry of whatever you do in life, that makes you the best,” Ric Flair announced as the crowd went wild. “35 years ago, this gentleman and I made history on TBS, the first Clash of Champions against WrestleMania and brother, I told him this before I induted him in the Hall of Fame, if you go 55 minutes in a match 35 years ago or tonight, is hard. He never took a deep breath, he lived up to all of the potential, and he is not only one of the greatest wrestlers in the history of our business or one of the biggest celebrities, but d**nit, he's probably the nicest guy I've ever known. So when I got an invitation, and I'm saying this from the bottom of my heart, when I got an invitation from Tony, Mr. Khan, to be a part of this, man, I want to be a part of this all the way until March I guess. D**nit, time flies, brother, if you'll have me, I'd love to ride the wagon with you, man. Woo!”

You know, you can say a lot about Ric Flair, about his past, about his present, and about what he should be doing in the future, but at this point, seeing the septuagenarian honor his long-time friend in the AEW ring was a pretty incredible sight, especially when you consider that the roads both men have traveled through the industry. Unfortunately, his time in the ring was pre-empted by a man who knows all too well that the “Nature Boy” is a fatherless free agent who can hardly take a chop.

Call the cops, Christian Cage just buried Ric Flair in front of Sting.

Marching out to his theme song, Christian Cage, Nick Wayne, and Luchasaurus decided to cut the babyface assembly down to size, with “Captain Charisma” letting Ric Flair, in particular, know that he isn't too fond of Tony Khan's gift to Sting.

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“So Tony Khan is a billionaire, and this is the gift that he gives to Sting for his retirement, huh? This is the gift. So Tony, basically he gave you a suit, some gold chains, and a black liver; great gift. But I've gotta say, Ric, it's really impressive how you're moving around out here; I don't feel like I'm watching Weekend at Bernie's at all. You can't even see the puppet strings, you look great. Relax people, relax, I know Ric Flair is not dead; relax. I also know that there isn't a good, because if there was a God, Ric Flair would have been dead 20 years ago,” Christian Cage said as the crowd cursed him out.

“Now, the real reason why I'm out here is because last week, Sting and Darby Allin decided to stick their nose in my business yet again. Darby, how's your arm feeling? You still have some sour grapes that I beat you in your hometown, huh? Well, I'll give you one more chance in Philadelphia, it's something that your Phillies couldn't get done either. So go ahead and look at something that you will never be: A Champion. Now, it's obvious that this situation isn't going to go away until I make it go away, so this is my proposition to you two: Now I know, Sting, that you have this beautiful dream in your head that you want to make it to Revolution because you started with AEW at Revolution in 2021. You've got this beautiful picture painted for yourself, but I see it painted a little bit differently; you see, I don't want to have to wait until Revolution for you to be gone, I want you gone right now! So I'm saying, there's three of us, and when I look in that ring, I see the two of you, and I see Ric Flair, hey, you can take Ric Flair as a partner if you want, he's one superkick away from his pacemaker kicking out and him turning to dust, but hey, I'm saying, at Full Gear, get yourselves a partner and your retirement is gonna come early. And it's not gonna be a celebration; it's gonna be more like a funeral.”

Despite a series of absolutely incredible takedowns at the “Nature Boy's” feet, it was Sting who picked up the microphone to respond, letting Cage know that he's down to put on a show in Orlando.

“Hold on, hold on *achoo* I'm sorry, I'm allergic to jacka**es,” Sting declared. “First of all, Darby and I are going to find a partner, and second of all, we accept your challenge: See you there.”

Welp, there you go, folks; whether it's Adam Copeland or it's Andrade, Flair's son-in-law, it looks like five of the most interesting members of the AEW roster will be duking it out at Full Gear, and Ric Flair will likely be in their corner for the proceedings.