AJ Styles issues clarification after causing online discourse on grounds of his controversial wrestling take
Owing to one of his recent takes hogging the limelight on social media, AJ Styles had to barge in for some damage control.
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AJ Styles (via- WWE)
A veteran like AJ Styles has seen it all inside the squared circle. Whatever he has picked since first bursting onto the scene in 1998 continues to speak volumes for the success he’s had around the globe. The 47-year-old recently joined Chris Van Vliet on the Insight podcast. Upon being asked by the host what has changed between his twenty-years-younger self and today, AJ said it’s the intensity.
The TNA great claimed that flippy-floppy maneuvers help make a match stand out rather than traditional wrestling. Styles said he’s learned over time that the fans remember those flashy spots for way longer than a well-worked bout otherwise. Those comments unsurprisingly didn’t sit well among a section of netizens.
As the discourse intensified, the former two-time WWE Champion had to issue a clarification. Taking to X, The Phenomenal One, out of apparent frustration, asserted that wrestlers like him pull off those over-the-top stunts so that it’d translate into a bigger moment. Which, of course, comprises a wrestling match.
Moments, there are moments in wrestling matches. Why do you think we do these crazy things…. Its for that moment. 🤦🏻♂️
— AJ Styles (@AJStylesOrg) March 8, 2025
The jaw-dropping maneuvers are part and parcel of the bouts, and they aren’t independent entities. Outside of this perennial debate, Styles made a number of revelations in the aforementioned interview. He’ll turn 48 in June. The North Carolina native has promised that he wouldn’t wrestle past 50 years of age, not even at it.
That means he has almost a couple of years remaining as an active in-ring performer. Before hanging it up, The Face That Runs the Place would be absolutely down to having one last match with someone he’s had an iconic rivalry with in the past—John Cena.
When exactly did AJ Styles get over in Vince McMahon’s eyes?
Entering at #3, AJ Styles made his highly anticipated WWE debut at Royal Rumble in 2016. He told Chris Van Vliet that Vince McMahon wasn’t impressed with the thunderous crowd reaction to his arrival.
In fact, McMahon thought it was merely a fluke, and Styles wasn’t even originally scheduled to be at Raw the following night in Miami. However, someone got in Vince’s ear and convinced him to stick with AJ a little longer.
The former WWE Chairman relayed to Styles that he already had a bunch of guys on the roster at par with the in-ring capabilities that Styles possessed. McMahon instead wanted the world-traveled athlete to show the ooze qualities of a Pitbull, if he could.
The next Monday, Styles was a guest on The Miz TV. The former OC member was asked by a couple of WWE higher-ups to lay it in while assaulting the A-Lister in that segment. Though reluctant at first, AJ did exactly what was asked of him. That moment in particular launched him into McMahon’s good books. AJ admitted during the interview that it was a test to check if Styles had that killer instinct.
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