Austin Aries v. AJ Styles at BFG 2012?

[Cereal Killer]

So we all know this years BFG main event: Aries V Hardy. But wouldn't you prefer to see AA vs AJ?

If Styles won the series this year, he would have gotten some momentum after that BS story line with Lynch/Daniels/Kaz. He would have gotten back in the World Title picture and we could have seen Styles pass the torch to AA. It would have been TNA's first face of the company; AJ Styles vs today's face: Austin Aries (I think it's pretty obvious Styles hasn't been the face of the company since Jan 4 2010)

The only reason Hardy v AA is happening is because of their popularity. Yes both of them are great high flyers but Styles is a much better wrestler than Jeff and he could have had a great match. Lets be honest, Hardy's mic skills aren't all that and Styles would have made the build up to BFG better.

A couple of months back, there was a battle royal where AA and Styles were the final 2. That was a great moment and I thought that these two need to have a match sooner or later. BFG was a chance but I guess the "systems" just want a match based on the high popular guys. Did anyone even think that Jeff would have won the series?

So would you want to see Styles v Aries for the TNA world championship or Hardy v Aries?

EDIT: I am not anti-Hardy. He's great but I would rather see Styles in this years main event.

 

[AjStyles]

Honestly I would much rather see Aj Styles vs Austin Aries at Bound For Glory then Hardy vs Aries.
From all the rumors and stuff thats being said on the internet,it seems Hardy is considering returning to the WWE and that his contract will be expiring sooner if not later.

If thats true then that would explain why Hardy is now in the main event at BFG for the world title.TNA would be stupid not to try to keep Jeff Hardy.He has a huge fanbase no matter where he wrestles and him leaving would affect TNA sales alot for quite some time.

Now I'm not a huge fan of Hardy,but I do respect his accomplishments though.But Aj Styles vs Austin Aries for the first time for the world title at BFG would definately be be the match I would want to see.

 

[Rayne]

AJ Styles is a talented wrestler. That being said, he just isn't the kind of guy you base a company around.

TNA has tried to give him the ball before. Thinking he was weak on the mic (true), they paired him up with the best microphone worker alive, Ric Flair, and based the main event picture around him. He bombed. He'll always have a cult following. He has a spot in TNA that's as permanent as he wants it to be. He has a Bret Hartian talent for making shit wrestlers look great.

But professional wrestling isn't prizefighting. There are more roles in a professional wrestling company besides "World Champion" and "Future World Champion". You need strong performers who can carry a card without sitting at the top. Would anyone give a shit about Daniels/Kaz if they weren't working alongside Kurt and AJ? I doubt it. That's AJ's role these days. He doesn't make himself look good, he makes the whole program better by supporting others.

Jeff Hardy- and I freely admit I'm anti-Jeff Hardy, it takes a lot more for me to forget about someone fucking up a PPV by being unable to stay off the pills for a few hours than a feel good redemption storyline- sells. He puts asses in seats. I don't understand it, but he still does. If it works, don't screw with it. BFG is TNA's WrestleMania- you pull out all the stops and give the best card you can think of. Whether I like it or not, Jeff Hardy's at the top of that list when it comes to top performers. AJ hasn't been in a while.

 

[IHW]

No.

Jeff Hardy deserves the Main Event spot. He has earned it. He worked his way from the bottom of the barrel many times. Would I like to see Austin Aries vs. AJ Styles, yes. But, not at this years BFG. I am nearly sold on the currently planned match. Hardy is also more over than anybody else in TNA. So, it makes since to have him in the Main Event.

 

[fafa1021]

I think there are a lot of good points here. I think TNA was in a win/win situation with Styles or Hardy as the World Title contender. Both would of put on a good match with AA. I think Hardy is clearly the choice based on name recognition and draw.

The big problem is the focus has been on Hogan/Aces and Eights and Roode/Storm. I fear that the title match is going to be the 3rd priority on this card and it's because they haven't made Aries a bigger priority and the storyline with Hardy as of right now has NO SUBSTANCE. I'm going to withold judgement as they make the build to the PPV and hopefully they will add some kind of an element to this because other than the potenital for a great wrestling match, there is no storyline interest in Hardy/Aries.

 

[das1234]

as you pointed out, when aries and styles were the last two guys left it felt like foreshadowing for the ultimate faceoff between the two most showstealing guys tna has.
i would have liked styles more in that position because of that, but styles can have daniels for some payoff at least, if there will be any.
also i personally would never put a title on hardy again for obvious reasons. i have nothing against him personally and i really think he changed, but IF he didnt and IF they put their title on him it will make tna look like an irrelevant company managed by ignorant children, having to depend on broken down addicts for main eventers.
whether you like hardy or not, there's really no arguing that, and whether its possible for him to fall again only he knows really. because of that, hardy DESERVES really nothing except severely reduced paychecks, but im sure others have discussed this stuff out previously.

for these reasons mainly i would have preferred styles in that position, hardy just doesnt fit into the title picture right now. i would have been perfectly happy with him beating robbie e and robbie t in a handycap match at bfg and then move into the title picture after the bfg "season" was over.

while ill be the first one to say that im a huge aj fan (he is my favorite wrestler), i agree that he is the wrong guy for the title right now. still the match would have been beyond amazing and i feel that the stakes would have been higher by default.

 

[dman1373]

fact is hardy is a star. He is the biggest star tna has. Aj styles just isn't a star. Aj styles also has no momentum since hes coming off the worst abortion of a storyline. If aj styles faced double a then it would almost be like the miz vs cena without the rock. Or not even, it would be an up and comer vs a mid carder. Cause as good as aries is, hes still just establishing himself, and without an established guy facing him aries will never get to that level.

 

[Wolf Pac]

I'd love to see AJ vs. Aries but not at BFG. If you wanna bring in the big bucks then you put your biggest attraction in the most important match of the night and that big attraction is Jeff Hardy, it's simple logic. Plus the story behind the match makes this one unpredictable & more exciting - you have Jeff Hardy who's spent over a year working his way back up from scratch after the Victory Road 2011 incident, and winning the title at BFG would complete his year long comeback; and you have Austin Aries, who by beating someone like Jeff Hardy will solidify and estabilish his name & his title reign and make him the very best in the company. Both men have something to prove, hell I'm gonna go out and compare this one a little bit to Austin vs. Rock at WM 17 with Jeff in (Steve) Austin's role & Rock in Aries' role. If it were AJ vs. Austin, I think it would be predictable that Austin would retain and the story behind the match wouldn't be as big/good as it is in Hardy vs. Aries since AJ would be coming off that horrible Daniels/Lynch storyline.

Like I said, I'd still love to see AJ vs. Aries though somewhere down the road, and after 1 or 2 matches between the two, I'd like to see them blow off their feud for the World Title in an Ultimate X match. It's never been done before and Ultimate X usually wouldn't work in World Title matches but Aries & AJ would make it work, and not only would it be interesting but it would make a bit of history for the UX match as it'd be the only match to be contested for the big 3, World, Tag & X-Division Titles.

 

[slodgeball]

AJ vs AA would be a much better option, Jeff Hardy doesn't deserve a World title match on TNA's best PPV of the year.
Jeff Hardy was only given the opportunity because his contract is about to expire with TNA and they don't want him to leave to another Brand i.e. WWE.
If I were to pick the No.1 Contender out of the final 4 in the BFG series, it would be either Samoa Joe or Bully Ray. I would love to see Samoa Joe and Austin Aries again, I loved their match at Slammiversary.

 

[Uncle Sam]

I think AJ Styles is underrated. Well, by certain people anyway. The people who claim he's the best thing since sliced God, has a fifteen inch cock and the power to heal lepers-- obviously they couldn't underrate him if they tried. And yes, it's widely recognised that he's one of the best in-ring performers in the world. I know - I'm quickly undermining my own position here.

It's in terms of charisma, of microphone skills, of - to be as general as possible - out-of-ring skills that I think he's underrated. See, I don't think he's weak on the microphone at all. I think Prince AJ was one of the best realised characters in wrestling in, I dunno, an arbitrary number of years. One thousand years. That was when AJ revealed he could be one of the most overtly charismatic wrestlers out there. He's maybe not reached those heights since - and I don't think turning him heel, pairing him with Ric Flair and putting him in a literally ill-fitting suit was exactly the best way to bring it out - but I don't think he's been anything less than good.

In a company where his rivals for a main event spot are the likes of Austin Aries, Mr. Anderson, Bully Ray, Samoa Joe, James Storm and Robert Roode, I think AJ's a more than credible choice. Unfortunately, I think Jeff Hardy is the only guy on the roster where I would say, "Yeah, it makes much more sense for him to be in the main event than AJ." But if Jeff leaves for WWE, or gets put in prison, or takes too many dizzy pills before a match? Sure, put AJ in there instead.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I'd like to see this feud at some point but, from a business perspective, it makes no sense for it to happen at BFG.

After all, AJ Styles has been firmly entrenched within the tag team or mid-card picture throughout this entire year. Even as a BFG Series entrant, nobody really though he had a shot at winning it. In my opinion, I do think that TNA has kind of wasted Styles through much of this year by keeping him in a tired and stale feud against guys that he's wrestled so often that it's just no longer interesting. Not that they don't put on good matches but they're not as good as they once were in my eyes.

In terms of the bottom line, namely money, Jeff Hardy brings more to the table than AJ Styles. AJ has been given the ball a lot of times by TNA but he's never gotten them over the hump. Neither has anyone else for that matter but I don't think Styles can touch Hardy when it comes to overall popularity. When it comes to Styles as a main eventer, I think he's a bit overrated. Not that he's not phenomenal inside the ring, we all know that he is, but Styles has yet to show, at least in my eyes, the charisma & personality to be the face of TNA. It's not as if he hasn't already won everything there is to win in TNA, at least as far as a male wrestler goes.

I think Styles vs. Aries would be the better match as far as the actual wrestling goes. If Aries can carry someone as lousy on the stick as Hardy to a successful feud, which the jury is still out on since the feud only just began, then he'd be able to do the same with Styles. Hell, Styles is The Rock compared to Jeff Hardy on the microphone. Personally, I also still see Jeff Hardy as damaged goods when it comes to being a main eventer. I don't think he really has what it takes either, whether he's sober or not. I'm probably in the minority on that, but it's how I feel.

TNA thinks they can draw more ppv buys with Hardy against Aries than Styles. I don't know how true that is as there's not really a big draw currently on the TNA roster. But compared to what TNA ppvs allegedly draw, having Hardy main eventing probably would jack up the buyrate. He sells more merchendise than anyone in TNA by far, allegedly, so I guess that's reason enough.

Styles vs. Aries will go down at some point in time, but probably not anytime in the near future.

 

[mr.perfect88]

I Aj vs AA would be good. I'd like to see an elimination match ith 6 competitors like the king of the mountain matches.