Throughout the years, prominent wrestling figures have come and gone. It is with age and injury that these careers often meet their end, and fans are left to say goodbye to their favorites when the time comes.
The WWE season of 2025 is no different; following John Cena’s retirement, AJ Styles, “The Phenomenal One,” has recently announced that his era of wrestling will come to an end in 2026.
During the Oct. 10 Crown Jewel Event Kickoff, Styles explained his intention to retire: “There comes a time in a man’s life when he has to take care of business, but when business is done, it’s time to take care of his family. I need to spend time with my family.”
At 48 years old, Styles has been caring for his family for more than two decades, fathering three sons and a daughter. It is one of the things that he often uploads on his personal Instagram, sharing the feats and memories made with his family while boasting about their upcoming careers, such as their oldest son’s future professional career in baseball.
A Look Into The Phenomenal Career
“AJ Styles & Air Paris vs. The Boogie Knights: WCW Thunder, Feb. 21, 2001”. AJ Styles in WCW. WWE. Feb. 21, 2001.
Styles made his wrestling debut in 1998, but his first major television broadcast debut for wrestling was in 2001 with World Championship Wrestling (WCW). The match consisted of a team-up fight with Styles (In red shorts, photo.) paired up with Air Paris against The Boogie Knights during the WCW Thunder fight
The Boogie Knights were a popular pair in the early 2000’s, consisting of Disco Inferno and Alex Wright, known for their dance ritual before and after matches.
While his first match resulted in a loss, Styles would soon leave the major wrestling scene after WCW was acquired by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) just one month right after his debut, refusing their contract offer in 2002 in order to focus on and support his wife’s dream of finishing college.
Eventually, Styles joined both Total Nonstop Action (TNA) and Ring of Honor (ROH) later on in 2002, two smaller wrestling companies that focused more on actual fighting than the performance and drama of WWE.
Through the 2000s, Styles developed a defining career during his years with TNA and ROH, eventually becoming the face of TNA during his 2007 to 2014 era, when he was an exclusive wrestler to TNA.
TNA And The Lone Wolf
Towards the last two years of his contract with TNA, Styles decided to drastically change the wrestling persona he had built during the first decade of his career.
On June 20, 2013, Styles debuted with a new persona, “The Lone Wolf,” which led to one of his most iconic moments in his career: The TNA Impact Lone Wolf Entrance, accompanied by a new brooding personality and dramatic look he carried until the end of his TNA contract almost exactly a year later.
NJPW Heel Faction: Bullet Club
After his career at TNA, Styles joined the New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) company. This led to his eventual promotion in “Bullet Club,” a Heel Faction that Styles joined in 2014.
Factions are groups in the wrestling industry, often formed out of alliance between wrestlers.
Wrestlers are often identified into two types of wrestlers: Heel and Babyface. The former is often the “villain” of the performances/fights, while the latter identifies as the “hero”.
“No Matter What… The Club remains PHENOMENAL.” AJ Styles Facebook Post. July 25, 2016. (Karl Anderson, Left. AJ Styles, Center. Luke Gallows, Right.)
This Heel Faction was a defining moment and the most notable era of his career. It consisted of around eight members during the time that Styles assumed leadership of the faction, including names such as Kenny Omega, Cody Hall, Chase Owens, Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows and the Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson).
During his first year as the leader of Bullet Club, Styles won his first International Wrestling Grand Prix (IWGP) Heavyweight Championship, defeating then-title holder Kazuchika Okada at the NJPW Wrestling Dontaku event in May of 2014. He held the title for 163 days before losing it to Hiroshi Tanahashi.
Style’s second win of the title was after 121 days that Tanahashi held the title, and Styles quickly took it back, making him a two-time IWGP heavyweight champion.
Not long after, Styles would leave NJPW for his debut at WWE in 2016.
The WWE Debut: Royal Rumble
The last decade of his career was spent with WWE. His first appearance on WWE was on Jan. 24, 2016 during the Royal Rumble match. He was Entrant No. 3 in a 30-man elimination match, surprising not only other wrestlers but also the entire wrestling world, given that he came from a more indie-focused scene.
Throwing himself into the big stage, Styles caused a shocking uproar in the community at the time before becoming a dominating figure on the WWE scene at the time. Many fanatics found the debut to be unexpected due to Styles’ legacy in other companies; the assumption was his loyalty would remain to the indie companies rather than joining the “big leagues” a.k.a. WWE.
“Behind the scenes of AJ Styles’ First Night in Madison Square Garden” WWE. Georgiana Dallas. March 25, 2016.
Styles debuted his new persona, “The Phenomenal One” or “The Phenomenal.” He became a global sensation, accumulating an overall 31 major titles across the multiple companies and championships he joined. A few of the title reigns consist of WWE United States Champion, TNA World Heavyweight Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE Champion and other titles.
His success was beyond phenomenal, considering that the fans believed his debut to be surreal. Styles managed to garner a large amount of attention during his WWE era, matching up with bigger names during Wrestlemania such as The Undertaker, Randy Orton and Logan Paul during recent years.
With his wrestling career almost coming to an end as a result of his move towards retirement, Styles explained during his announcement that “I am getting older. The fear of embarrassing myself is getting closer.”
His statement may be in reference to various wrestlers, such as Kurt Angle, who have pushed themselves to their physical limit, causing their careers to be marked by a harsh decline in performance quality.
This sentiment came from his desire to leave his career as glorious as it was since its peak, but saying goodbye to Styles will be difficult for wrestling fans, given that his presence in the wrestling community was strong and notable.
While Styles is not saying goodbye just yet, the cumulation of his achievements and feats is already beyond phenomenal. It will most definitely be an emotional end to the AJ Styles “The Phenomenal” era of wrestling.
