AJ Styles wasn’t just watching Tony D’Angelo and Naraku tear the house down on the July 21 episode of WWE NXT—he was one of the people putting the match together behind the scenes.
Speaking on the Phenomenally Retro podcast, Styles revealed that he recently stepped into a producing role for the first-ever NXT Championship Street Fight, helping lay out the bout before admitting he became so caught up in the action that he barely said anything over his headset once the match started.
“It’s funny that you say that because I was able to do, uh, helped with the producing of the Tony D’Angelo and Naraku match… I was one of those people that are still heavily involved in watching the match. So, right while I was on the headset, I did not do a good job of saying anything other than, ‘Yes.’ So I let somebody else handle that part… but we got together and I think we did a good job.”
For Styles, the biggest reward came after the cameras stopped rolling. He said the match unfolded exactly the way he had pictured it, giving full credit to both Tony D’Angelo and Naraku for bringing that vision to life.
“I think those two did an excellent job of… you know, you have something in your head and it came out on television exactly the way I had it. So, kudos to those guys for making that happen… they did it perfectly, man.”
Styles was especially complimentary of Tony D’Angelo, saying the NXT Champion has evolved far beyond his original mafia-inspired character and now looks ready for the next step. He also praised Naraku for the way he completely transforms once the cameras are rolling.
“Tony D, obviously, dude, I think he is on his way. He is the next guy to be taken to the main roster… I really, really like it. I can almost see a little bit of Lone Wolf AJ Styles in the new Tony D now. Naraku, when that light is on, he’s different, man… when that red light comes on, he is that character. And he did such a freaking amazing job of being that character with the mist.”
One moment after the match caught Styles completely off guard. He revealed that Naraku hugged him backstage following the bout—something he said is uncommon given the reserved nature of many Japanese wrestlers.
“Naraku comes through the back and freaking grabs me… I wasn’t ready for that, but I was just so stinking proud of him, man. He did such a great job.”
The NXT Championship Street Fight was already one of the brand’s most talked-about matches of the summer, especially after Mike Santana made his debut after D’Angelo retained the title. Now fans know AJ Styles played a major role in making it happen—and by his own admission, it couldn’t have gone much closer to plan.
What did you think of Tony D’Angelo vs. Naraku, and would you like to see AJ Styles produce more matches in NXT? Let us know in the comments below.
