CM Punk On AJ Styles: “He’s A Guy That You Never Thought Would Be In WWE”

A lot has been heard about it by now, but AJ Styles is retiring next year. He’s been active in the pro-wrestling scene since the late 90s and has made a name for himself in promotions such as Impact Wrestling and WWE.

WWE recently did a two-show event in Japan, where Styles wrestled stars like Kofi Kingston and El Grande Americano. WWE recently uploaded a CM Punk vlog on YouTube, where someone asked him to share his thoughts on AJ Styles. Here’s what The Cult of Personality said.

CM Punk Says AJ Styles Exceeded His Expectations

Credit: IMAGO / Future Image

There’s no doubt that AJ Styles has been an influential wrestler for this generation. He’s been giving standout performances consistently for decades now. And Punk has a lot of respect for him for this. He said:

“I love it when the fans chant, you know, thank you, AJ. What he means to me is he’s a guy that started around the same time as I did in a different part of the country, paid his dues, did things his way. He’s very influential and he’s a guy that you never thought would be in WWE, let alone make it in WWE. We kind of have that in common. He exceeded his expectations, just like I did.” (H/T Fightful)

It’s not just CM Punk who feels this way about Styles. Over the years, many wrestlers have heaped praise on the Phenomenal One. When WWE finished its SuperShow Japan event in October, the locker room came out to pay tribute to him, as this was Styles’ last time working in Japan.

CM Punk & AJ Styles Weren’t Always On The Best Of Terms

It’s not a secret that Punk has had beef with many wrestlers in his career. In AEW, it was The Elite and Adam Page. He also got into a fight with Jungle Boy, which ultimately led to his release. Punk faced a lot of backlash at that time. Some people even went so far as to call him a “cancer” in the locker room. 

Even in WWE, Punk ended friendships with wrestlers like Corey Graves and The Miz after leaving the company. There were also rumors that Styles and Punk didn’t like each other from their ROH days, but not much is known about this.

But a few years back, Punk called out those people who didn’t speak up during the Black Lives Matter movement. One fan brought up AJ Styles, who hadn’t said anything about this subject, and said they had to unfollow him. Punk responded by saying, “Well. Come on. That one has been obvious for years.”

When Styles was asked to respond to Punk’s comments on X, The Phenomenal One said it’s not worth his time because he doesn’t respect the latter. He said:

“I will not react at all coming from a guy like that [who] I don’t respect anyway. It doesn’t really matter. Look, my job as a performer is to perform and get [fans’] minds off all the things that have happened throughout the world. I’m not going to react to people saying ridiculous and stupid things.” (H/T Wrestlezone)

When Punk first returned to WWE at Survivor Series 2023, there was skepticism among fans that he wouldn’t be a great addition to the locker room. Many were proven wrong, including AJ Styles. Both stars have seemingly buried their hatchet and have publicly shown respect to each other many times.