Well, I don’t know about that. To me, when I see someone get hurt and they go, ‘Nope, we’re still doing this,’ to me, it makes them a bigger babyface.

Becky Lynch became a super duper star because she got punched in the face. I believe it broke her nose. I could be wrong about this.

She became a bigger star because of that. Like, she became a star because of it. Because that picture of her all bloodied up going, ‘Come on.’ Oh my gosh, that was so freaking awesome. I remember seeing it and going, ‘Wow, that’s a star.'”

I mean, even if it’s to wrestle with my boys, I probably wouldn’t want to do that. I don’t mind being a special guest and, like, a manager kind of thing, but if I do come back, hopefully I’m not 60 and it’s on a big show.

What father wouldn’t want to come back and tag with his sons?

So, I don’t know if that opportunity will come because it depends how long it’s going to take them.”

Cannon: “I have all of the respect in the world for you, AJ. I understand why you’d defend your son, and it is admirable. But the fact remains… He can stay ‘AJ’s kid’, continue to skirt responsibility, & paying dues. Or he can earn the respect of his peers, & stand on his own as Avery.”

Styles: “You don’t ask someone to have dinner at your house and have them do the dishes. He was asked to wrestle at GCW. Although grateful for the opportunity, a vet would have talked to him professionally or at least face to face.”

I was 5 matches in and promoters would fly me in, tell me to hang out at the hotel until call time and when I’d get there the ring would already be set up.

To put it plainly, people treat you differently when you are one of us and it’s not his fault.

There’s a different type of baggage this boy carries, an expectation to live up to his father’s greatness that most will never understand.

I hadn’t set up or tore down a single ring until I got to NXT but yet I’m so glad I started because it taught me a lot about the work that goes into making the magic that is pro wrestling.

I was treated like royalty by everyone in the business until I walked into NXT and the leadership here humbled me and treated me like everyone else.

It’s up to the leadership on the indies to show him the way. He’s putting his body on the line and drawing extra eyes for your show at a young age and you wanna blast him on the internet instead of talking to him in person.

Well guess what Arik? Your tweet didn’t sell any more tickets for the next show but I bet Avery Styles being on the card will…

Because it’s his BIRTHRIGHT ”

Because the outside hasn’t earned the right to know what I know and be where I’ve been. They don’t get the opportunity to get into the ring and hit the ropes as much as they would like to. They shouldn’t get that opportunity.

I paid a price, right? And it’s something that I’m gonna have to deal with for the rest of my life with these injuries that I’ve accumulated, the abuse that I put on my body. And a lot of other guys have done the same.

So, in my old-school opinion, they don’t deserve—they haven’t earned the right to know what goes on, what is said, and all these things. And it’s just my opinion. That’s all it is.

If there’s a way that they can make money off this, they’re going to. And that’s kind of where we’re at in this business. It’s when it comes to WWE and who is owning WWE, it’s all about making money and finding ways to do that. That’s what this is.”

I am biased. Two guys that I’ve known forever in Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin, and then Austin Creed, who I have literally known for over two decades. Like, we go way back. And Kofi is such an awesome dude.”

It’s not just their wrestling—it’s their psychology. They have years of experience with psychology, and they have perfected it in a tag team ring. So, yeah, man, I can’t say enough good things about these four guys. They’re amazing.

I hope they kill it. I mean, because I love these guys. Those are my boys. I freaking want to see them do well.”

Once I got my foot back in order, I was like, man. I’m sure money was a thing, because I didn’t ask for more money, I just wanted to extend it, but then again, they did right by me, paying me well, and so I know that was an issue, but then we finally got that in order, and I was like, all right, here we go.

I’m not saying I didn’t get weird near the end of knowing I was going to retire or leave WWE; I got weird, dude.

[In what way?] I just was questioning everything. A normal, sane AJ Styles would not question this; it would just be what it is.

Even the moment where I found out Gunther was in the Royal Rumble, and I think that it already been explained that he was in the Royal Rumble, and that I got this match, but I was like, what the freak? I think I made Triple H feel awful about, oh man, I didn’t think about that.

When reality is, nobody thought about that; nobody did, nobody cared, even when Gunther came out at the Royal Rumble and got beat. In fact, it should have made more sense that he got beat because he was in the ring with AJ Styles. He got exhausted in that match, of course he’s not going to win the Royal Rumble.

So I just got weird, man. So, my apologies to everyone who I acted that way, and I was just in a weird state of mind.”

Sometimes, getting that motivation, getting that chip back on your shoulder… I get it. Maybe this is what he needed. Not something he wanted, but maybe what he needed.

My biggest fear was that I would be released in some way. Other people think, ‘You’re AJ Styles. Why would you even think that way?’ Because I don’t see myself the way that you see me.

So that was always my biggest fear—that they would release ME. For me, that would be embarrassing, like, ‘Oh, he’s not good enough at his job, so he’s worth losing.’

So I was always worried about that because, even as good as my career went, there was a time where I wasn’t doing much of anything.”