Before debuting in WWE, AJ Styles first truly established himself as a pro wrestler in TNA, eventually becoming one of the biggest names in the promotion. While he officially retired in WWE after a ten-year run, Jeff Jarrett believes Styles will always be synonymous with TNA."Do I consider AJ still a TNA guy? ... I didn't give it any conscious thought, but I think, beyond a shadow of a doubt, [I] do," Jarrett opined during an episode of his "My World with Jeff Jarrett" podcast. "It is definitely where he's made his name; it's where he [became] a performer."Jarrett then went off to list all the accolades Styles picked up while he was still signed to TNA: "He is the face of TNA from the very first night. He was on show one, the first X-Division Champion," he recalled. "I knew from, I'd almost say day one, that's the face of the company, that there's going to be a lot of things in time."According to Jarrett, he recently had a conversation with a stranger at the gym about pro wrestling, and he was taken aback by the fan's framing of Styles career. "When you really think about 2026 the modern style of professional wrestling in so many ways, you kind of think about, 'Oh, look at the style now' and in a lot of the ways, it has its roots in the X-Division," Jarrett explained. "So, in a lot of ways, AJ a lot of guys grew up on him that are now wrestling. He is the face of the modern style of wrestling."Because of all this, Jarrett maintains that Styles is still a TNA guy. "Man, oh, man. What a career. I don't think it's over!"If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "My World with Jeff Jarrett" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
