It might be hard to imagine AJ Styles having a beef with anybody as not only does he seem to be universally respected across the wrestling landscape, but he carries himself with an aura of classic southern charm, is said to not drink or smoke, rarely curses, and is a devout family man. In fact, as Ken Anderson once told "Rewind Recap Relive," Styles is generally held in such high regard that nobody wants to ever let him down. "AJ doesn't get mad," Anderson said. "He doesn't swear ever. I think he allows himself two curse words a year or something like that. He's such a great human being too [so] you don't want to disappoint him."
Of course, things do happen, especially in wrestling, to cause contention between huge personalities in a business that is often said to be incredibly selfish. And while arguments, misunderstandings, and grudges may be commonplace for certain more salty individuals, the man who several have called "Uncle Allen," for the most part, steers clear. Hell, even after making it his mission, for quite some time, to "beat up John Cena," at their instant classic at Crown Jewel, Cena went out of his way to pay tribute to Styles, prompting ring announcer Alicia Taylor to call him both "the definition of total nonstop action" and "the ace and undisputed boss of Bullet Club.
Still, there have been a few occasions where Styles has found himself in conflict with some pretty big wrestling personalities. Whether that's not being the boss' favorite, or having a distinct opinion about one of wrestling's all-time most controversial figures, or lashing out after apparently being lied to, when AJ Styles does clash with others, it's worth documenting.
After a debut at the 2016 Royal Rumble, largely considered one of the best for a talent arriving from another company of all time, AJ Styles' WWE run was off to a red hot start. The only problem, according to Styles himself, is that then-CEO and chairman Vince McMahon didn't know who he was. Further, there were little-to-no follow-up creative plans for Styles, who wasn't even supposed to be at "WWE Raw" the next night. "I'm not sure how I snuck in there," he told Mark Andrews on an episode of "My Love Letter to Wrestling," before hypothesizing that perhaps his involvement with Bullet Club in New Japan Pro-Wrestling might have helped. "Maybe some of the writers asked, 'What do you think about AJ Styles?' But I can tell you this, Vince McMahon had no idea who I was. There's no way because he had no plans for me after the Royal Rumble. I wasn't supposed to be at 'Raw' the next day. Yeah, so he thought it was a fluke that I got the pop that I did in Orlando."
McMahon changed his plans, as he was wont to do, and booked Styles in a match with Chris Jericho on the ensuing "Raw," though Styles called it "basic" and a test to see his prowess as a babyface. Following the match, McMahon told Styles that he had plenty of talent on the roster that could "do what he does" and he needed to see Styles "pull the pitbull out of him" for him to thrive in WWE.
Something clicked for both men, clearly, as from there, Styles shot to the top of the card, wrestling Jericho at WrestleMania, working a program with John Cena, and even winning his first WWE Championship at Backlash.
While AJ Styles and CM Punk have never had a one-on-one match in WWE, the pair did clash several times in Ring of Honor, TNA, and several independent promotions. In 2020, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, civil unrest, and other societal woes, Punk tweeted about celebrities being outed for their beliefs, stating, "Lotta people snitching on themselves. When people tell you who they are, believe it. Might be unfortunate and disappointing if you're a fan of that person, or if it's your grandmother, but f*** 'em. Good bye! (I yield my time, f*** you.)" While this was a general expression, a fan responded by announcing that they'd unfollowed Styles' gaming stream for his lack of commentary on political matters, such as the George Floyd protests, to which Punk responded (in a now-deleted tweet), "Well. Come on. That one has been obvious for years."
Styles apparently saw the tweet before it was taken down and said he'd rather not respond, telling The Times of India, "I will not react at all coming from a guy like that I don't respect anyway." Fast forward a few months and, when asked about the possibility of ever working with Punk again, Styles quickly shot it down. "Nope. That will never happen," he said. "I don't have to go into detail about that one. I think it's pretty obvious where things stand. I'm not a fan."
Time may not heal all but it can at least smooth things over, and after Punk returned to WWE in 2023, Styles addressed both their past and a possible future in an interview with The Ringer Wrestling Show. "I mean, if you know anything about AJ Styles and CM Punk, you would know that we really don't care for each other," he said. "Past performance predicts future behavior, right? Some over at AEW are my best friendslove 'em, trust 'em, know 'em. And I was expecting a problem when [Punk] came hereand I was wrong. The guy looks like he's happy to be here. He looks like a guy that I'd want to step in the ring with and tear the house down with."
AJ Styles, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows go back a long way, and The Good Brothers have been with "The Phenomenal One" across the globe, be it in Bullet Club, The Club, The OC, or whatever you want to call the faction across WWE, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Ring of Honor, or maybe as just legitimate close friends in real life. So, with all that in mind, it stands to reason that Styles would get Anderson's and Gallows' backs and vice versa through thick and thin. Such was the case, apparently, when during one round of 2020's WWE releases, Gallows and Anderson got got, as they say, after it Heyman apparently told him he'd have their backs.
On Styles' Twitch stream at the time, he said, "I found out that my guys were getting released, I was upset. I wanted to go talk to Vince, but it's [already in motion]. Paul Heyman pulls me into his office and tells me he had nothing to do with it and knew nothing about it. If he knew Gallows and Anderson were getting released, he would have fought for them and that's why they didn't tell him they were getting released. I said, 'Okay, I appreciate that, it makes a lot of sense.'"
Later on, Styles caught wind of a different narrative, relaying on the same stream that he was later told that his Bullet Club compatriots weren't on any initial list but that Heyman spoke out against them. "'We gotta get these guys out of here,'" Styles recalled hearing of the supposed Heyman mandate. "'We don't need them, they're getting paid too much.'"
Eventually, things would subside, as Heyman denied his part in the releases of Gallows and Anderson, and they'd end up rehired and let go once more anyway. These days, it seems as though any beef has subsided. Ultimately, with Styles' career nearing its end, that's probably all for the better, as two wrestling dignitaries of their calibre are better off sharing the limelight than quarreling beneath it.
