'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAGAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFQABAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABgf/2gAIAQEAAAAAn6T/xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAE/9oACAECEAAAAFf/xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAE/9oACAEDEAAAAF//xAAfEAACAgEEAwAAAAAAAAAAAAABAgMEBQAHEiExgbL/2gAIAQEAAT8A2uzD4nEV5o5bLWBZkCByGjDDiPHvS7yZl1DvLKHbs8GYL9a//8QAGhEAAgIDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAgMAAQQh4f/aAAgBAgEBPwBOKlg0Rjvtz//EABkRAQACAwAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAAwIxwf/aAAgBAwEBPwDK+xUXTwn/2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
AJ Styles was a leading contender to be named Superstar of the Year in both 2016 and 2017 and he has quickly established himself as one of WWE’s most popular performers during his two years with the company.
However, at the age of 40, Styles has spent half of his life wrestling all over the world and reports in November 2017 claimed that he could retire from in-ring competition after WrestleMania 34.
While those reports proved to be false, with the man himself confirming that he has no plans to retire anytime soon, it’s safe to say that he has fewer years left as a WWE performer than many of his colleagues.
In this article, we take a look at five things that the “The Phenomenal One” should do in WWE before he calls time on his career.
#5 Become the face of Monday Night Raw
SmackDown Live is, and always will be, known as “the house that AJ Styles built”. However, there’s no getting away from the fact that Monday Night Raw is WWE’s flagship show and it’s the one that Vince McMahon cares about the most.
Styles was a key figure on Monday nights when he joined WWE in January 2016, feuding with Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns, and John Cena, before he switched to the blue brand following the brand split in July 2016.
Over the last 18 months, AJ’s stock has risen higher than ever and the majority of main-event storylines on SmackDown Live revolve around him and whoever he is feuding with.
As great as that is and as much as SmackDown has improved since the rosters split, Raw will always be the ‘A’ show, and for Styles to truly rival Roman Reigns as the main man in WWE, he needs to be the face of the company’s biggest weekly show.
#4 Win the Tag Team titles
Forgive us for including this in almost every ‘5 things X should do before their career ends’ article, but it would be great to see AJ Styles hold a Raw or SmackDown Live Tag Team Championship before his in-ring days are over.
Shortly after joining WWE in January 2016, he was part of a short-lived team with Chris Jericho (remember the Y2AJ shirts that lasted one week?!) but he has not had a regular tag-team partner since their split in the lead up to WrestleMania 32.
AJ is a huge star on his own and while he doesn’t need to have a tag partner now or at any time in the future, WWE regularly tries to elevate up-and-coming Superstars by pairing them with an established member of the roster.
We’ve seen recently how Seth Rollins winning tag titles has helped legitimise Jason Jordan on Raw, and Styles would be able to do the same with just about anyone on SmackDown. As for potential partners to win gold with, how about Chad Gable or NXT’s Johnny Gargano?
#3 Compete in a Bullet Club Triple Threat
The realistic dream match for AJ Styles right now is against Shinsuke Nakamura. The two have largely been kept apart since “The King of Strong Style” joined SmackDown Live in April 2017 and they’re yet to meet one-on-one in a WWE ring.
However, if we allow ourselves to think outlandishly for a moment, is it really out of the question that we could see NJPW star Kenny Omega in WWE sometime in the next 2-3 years?
“The Cleaner” was previously signed to a WWE development contract between 2005 and 2006 and he has turned down four approaches to rejoin the company in recent years. Despite that, speculation has never gone away about one day competing for WWE.
If it ever happens, then a Triple Threat match between the three main leaders in Bullet Club history – Omega, Styles and Finn Balor – would be many fans’ idea of a dream match. While it may seem unlikely at the time of writing, you can never rule these things out!
#2 Face Kurt Angle
If AJ Styles vs. Kenny Omega vs. Finn Balor is a little too audacious, then how about Styles vs. Kurt Angle? The two have feuded before during their time in Impact Wrestling but they have not met since Angle returned to WWE as Raw General Manager in April 2017.
Speaking shortly after his comeback, the Olympic Gold medallist mentioned how he would love to face Daniel Bryan before the end of his career and that, despite previously facing Styles, his dream match would be against “The Phenomenal One” in the main event of WrestleMania.
With both men on separate brands right now, it’s unlikely that we’ll see this match happen anytime soon. However, whether it’s on a WrestleMania stage or not, it’s safe to say we’ll probably see the two men battle in WWE at some point.
#1 Headline WrestleMania
It’s universally accepted by just about every WWE fan that AJ Styles is the best in-ring performer on either Raw or SmackDown Live, yet he hasn’t headlined WrestleMania or SummerSlam during his two years with the company.
Being in the last match on the card doesn’t mean as much to some Superstars as it does to others (CM Punk, for example), but it’s still a sign that WWE has faith in a performer to deliver the best match of the night to close the show.
You only have to look at the list of WWE’s top 25 matches of 2017, in which Styles appears more than anybody else (6 times), to see that “The Phenomenal One” isn’t just a nickname and that he puts on great matches time and time again.
The chances of AJ’s match going on last at WrestleMania in 2018 are slim-to-none, but there’s no reason why he won’t main-event the show in 2019 or 2020.
