AJ Styles is not interested in scoring cheap points by trashing AEW, and he has now explained exactly why.
While speaking on The Phenomenally Retro Podcast, Styles was asked whether Kenny Omega could ever leave AEW and make the jump to WWE. Styles questioned why Omega would walk away from a company he helped build. Omega has served as an executive vice president and poured years of work into AEW, making his connection to the promotion much deeper than another wrestling contract.
“Why would you? He’s on the board when it comes to AEW. He’s put his heart and soul into it.”
Styles compared Omega’s loyalty to AEW with his own commitment to WWE. He does not see himself constantly searching for another promotion because he believes in giving everything to the company he currently represents. Styles said his responsibility is simple: do the best possible job for the promotion employing him.
“It’s like me. Would we ever see AJ Styles in AEW? Why? I like the company that I work for, despite what everybody else thinks.”
“My job is to do the best for the company that I’m working for. No matter which company I work for, my job is to do the best for it. I’m going to do that. That’s just who I am.”
That loyalty is also why Styles pushes back when WWE talent gets attacked. He made it clear that he is not blindly protecting the company itself. He is defending the wrestlers and coworkers putting in the work behind the scenes.
“I’ve said this before: it’s not me protecting WWE. It’s me protecting the people that work for WWE, my peers and the guys that I care about, the women that I care about who are there.”
Styles knows how much effort goes into producing a wrestling show, and that is why he refuses to dismiss the people doing the work. That same logic is exactly why Styles will not bash AEW. He sees wrestlers there doing the same thing WWE talent does every week: working hard, taking risks and trying to deliver something fans will enjoy.
“I will defend them because I know they’re busting their tail to put on a great show.”
“I’m not going to bash AEW because those guys are doing the exact same thing. They’re trying to be different and doing all these things. I get it.”
Styles has no issue with fans liking WWE more than AEW or choosing AEW over WWE. His problem is when that preference turns into nonstop attacks against the wrestlers themselves.
“To each their own. If you like one and don’t like the other, good. Good. But there’s no reason to just bash them because they’re different shows. I’m not going to do that.”
Styles has worked for WWE, TNA, New Japan and promotions across the world, so he understands that wrestlers are trying to succeed regardless of which company logo is hanging above the ring. That is why he will not join the WWE-versus-AEW war. Styles may defend his own locker room, but he is not going to tear down another group of wrestlers who are working just as hard.
Do you agree with AJ Styles’ reason for refusing to bash AEW? Leave your feedback in the comments.
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