AJ Styles is set to hang up his boots soon. The former WWE Champion announced that he would be retiring in 2026, following the retirememt tour of fellow former champion John Cena. In a new interview with "Busted Open," one of Styles's compatriots from WWE and TNA, Eric Young, had high praise for the former TNA X Division Champion.
"You could argue that he's maybe one of, if not the best, to do it, bell-to-bell, ever," Young said. "And for me, more importantly, he's an unbelievable man, you know? A good person. And he's never changed. He's the exact same AJ Styles that I met in 2004. Smarter. Maybe not quite as athletic or as quick. We're all gonna slow down, AJ. Sorry about that. The guy's got a legacy a mile long."
Young says that AJ has a case to be on a pro wrestling "Mount Rushmore." Young doesn't feel there are many wrestlers who could squeeze Styles out of his top 4 or 5 list.
"Most importantly, he's just an unbelievable human being, and I'm proud to call him my friend," Young gushed.
Styles is set to face John Cena one last time, as the two former WWE Champions will battle in Australia at the upcoming WWE Crown Jewel event. Cena had been paying homage to Styles in his retirement matches, and both men had bemoaned not wrestling each other as a way to gin up fan interest in the match without using up Cena's few remaining appearances.
