What If: 2001....and AJ Styles

[Madico_Fs]

My first in a hopefully a series depending on how this goes, I would like to note that is is in the WWE section because it is in reguards to a a then Free Agent who could have signed with WWE so if in the wrong spot sorry admin

in 2001, AJ was offered a WWF Devolopment Contract....What do you think he would have been today if he had taken the offer from when WCW went out of business?

In this what championships do you think he would have held?

Considering since he has been in TNA since 2002 he has held the following Championships and titles:

NWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times)

NWA World Tag Team Championship (4 times) – with Jerry Lynn (1), Abyss (1), and Christopher Daniels (2)

TNA Legends/Global/Television Championship (2 times)

TNA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

TNA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tomko

TNA X Division Championship (6 times)

First TNA Triple Crown Champion (4 times)

First TNA Grand Slam Champion (2 times)

Mr. TNA (2003–2005)

TNA Match of the Year (2006) with Christopher Daniels vs. Homicide and Hernandez at No Surrender, September 24, 2006

TNA Match of the Year (2009) vs. Sting at Bound for Glory, October 18, 2009
TNA Tag Team of the Year (2006) with Christopher Daniels


Personally I do beleve that in WWE he wouldnt have had the same type of career, maybe slightly better than Evan "Air" Bourne.

Over To You Guys....

 

[I_Like_All_Wrestling]

I'd hate to say it, but probably nothing. It's possible that he could have been given the Daniel Bryan and Evan Bourne treatment since he's actually better than them, but even that has only happened recently. He'd probably be stuck in developmental, won the cruiserweight title when it was around. He's absolutely not a Vince guy. He's pretty small and he has awful awful mic skills. His southern drawl definitely doesn't help him. On top of that, if he were in WWE developmental, we wouldn't have seen all the feuds that showcased his incredible skills.

 

[ROCKY VS CENA OMG]

No he wouldn't have. AJ would have similar career to Bourne and Hardy's first run. As much as I love AJ I just don't think he would be pushed.

 

[Shawn]

in honesty i think A.J. Styles would have been buried as quick as he got there by WWE Creative. In that time if you was not a big, strong, muscular guy you wasnt exactly looked upon as Main Event Material. Dont get me wrong Styles has everything it takes in my opinion. He can put on a heck of a match and his mic work (especially as a heel) is awesome. Speaking of his mic work as a heel he can do a great job and reminds kinda like Jerichos. I believe (dare i say it) he has learned a lot from ric flair backstage and in the ring....just sayin. Anyways, if WWE had the oppurtunity i believe they would do anything the could just to get him because his talent in TNA. The only problem is that he is loyal to TNA but TNA now holds him back because lets face it TNA is not even close to WWE (and until the quit with the crapy creativity) They never will be close but oh well. Thats my thoughts on AJ Styles of what he would have been and what he could be today.

 

[The Chosen One of WZ]

He would have been buried quick after winning the cruiserweight title one time. Wouldn't be seen as anything special. But if he came right now he would easly be in the main event due to how hes proven himself in TNA, but he'll probably never leave sadly :/

 

[wushady]

I don't think he would have had as much success as he has in TNA. There's no doubt he's very talented maybe more talented than many current and former top WWE stars. I just don't believe WWE would have giving him the opportunity to be the Phenomenal One that he is today. Unless the crowd really got behind him he probably would have been lower to upper mid card at best, but never WWE or World champion.

Back then they still had the cruiserweight title I'm sure he would have held that title. Who knows he may have made that division more relevant than it was. He would have had some classic matches with the likes of Rey Mysterio, Jamie Noble, Hurricane, Chavo Guerrero to name a few.

If he were to sign with WWE now which I don't think will ever happen. I think he would have a better chance at being a top star. Probably not a world champion, but at least a US or IC title reign.

 

[goldbergiswrestling]

A high flying Jamie Noble. as stated hes not a "vince guy" he doesnt have the look vince likes. and he has a southern drawl, vince would notice that and capitalize on that and u would get "The Phenomanal Redneck" AJ Styles

 

[EastCoastFan]

I hate to say it, but I don't think AJ would have been a major player in WWF/E. Vince would have regarded him as nothing but a cruiserweight, given his preference for big guys with huge muscles and ripped physiques. AJ's a great "pro wrestler" but he lacked the personality to be a "sports entertainer". He would have made more money in WWE, but I don't know if he would have been happier.

 

[DeathClutch]

Go back to 2001 and his stint in WCW he showed epic talent so taking the WWF contract in short term might of been a drag, a year later between April-June 2002 WWE introduced 4 big time players Batista, Lesnar, Cena and Orton all of whom were pretty much wet behind the ears then you had AJ who was exceptional at that point.

I know he declined due to the $500 a week contract but had he of biten the bullet he would of made up for it within no time.

For starters I think he could of been a member of Evolution (5th member) with Flair sticking to a mangers role more than wrestling, I believe he might of won the Cruiserweight title and maybe the European title before it was retired just to get his name out there; a Tag Team Championships run would of been a given. World titles I'm not sure it all depends how the WWE fans took to him really either way I doubt he'll ever go to the WWE.

In TNA he's a big fish in a pond, in WWE he'd big a small fish in the ocean and the politics of WWE could prevent him becoming more than an mid card/fringe main eventer.

 

[Alastor]

Who is to say he will develop the in same way as he has now to become one of the better wrestlers if he was in the WWE machine? He could be better he could be worse. But judging by how WWE handled similar wrestlers he would most probably end up in a tag team if he were to sign on with the WWE. London and Kendrick was formed a few years after WCW was bought. He could have taken London's spot in the 'high-flying tag team to replace the Hardys'. I can see him being a challenger for mid card titles but not actually winning. It is difficult to predict what might have happened. It is harder to stand out in WWE during that time because there were numerous cruiserweights that were ahead of Styles at that time.

 

[Decarow]

You're talking about 2001, right? Back when small guys didn't really matter? Back where awesome spots were only there to sell seats and didn't win you anything? He would have been an after thought. However, this is a "what-if game". Nobody is right nor wrong.

And just as a side note, those accomplishments don't impress me. He won the NWA title when it was on a show that was only available on PPV, or bringing in .5 ratings. Match of the year by TNA standards. If he's not making it in the big leagues, I could care less what he's doing in the minors. He's a modern day Jeff Jarrett.

 

[Papa Pillman]

Honestly his career may not have ended up being alot different as far as accomplishments- due to the fact that he probably wouldn't have made it past the developmental level with the WWE before being cut or willingly moving on for a better opportunity then being stuck on the OVW midcard. In turn, he would have soon made his way to TNA where he likely would have commenced acquiring his reputation and belts. No matter how "phenomenal"(sorry, i had to) AJ is, he just IS NOT a "Mcmahon guy".

 

[The Black Death]

To everyone saying AJ Styles wouldn't have succeded because Vince doesn't like smaller wrestlers and AJ isn't that big please explain how Shawn Michaels is considered the best wrestler ever or guys like Chris Jericho, Brett Hart,Cm Punk and the likes have become huge success despite not being any bigger then Styles.

To me the hole "small guys can't succeed" thing is a cop out, people can't come up with a good arguement to why a guy won't have success so they say he's to small to succeed.

In my opinion, Aj Styles would have made an impact in the WWE because his talent speaks for itself if guys like Rey Mstyerio can win championships then I have no doubt Aj world have done the same if he had signed with the WWE.

 

[Papa Pillman]

To everyone saying AJ Styles wouldn't have succeded because Vince doesn't like smaller wrestlers and AJ isn't that big please explain how Shawn Michaels is considered the best wrestler ever or guys like Chris Jericho, Brett Hart,Cm Punk and the likes have become huge success despite not being any bigger then Styles.

To me the hole "small guys can't succeed" thing is a cop out, people can't come up with a good arguement to why a guy won't have success so they say he's to small to succeed.

In my opinion, Aj Styles would have made an impact in the WWE because his talent speaks for itself if guys like Rey Mstyerio can win championships then I have no doubt Aj world have done the same if he had signed with the WWE.

It's not just about size, AJ's accent and early career limitations on the mic would've been his main hindrance. That was never a drawback for guys like HBK, Punk, or Jericho; quite the contrary, there strength as speakers rival there wrestling prowess. As for guys like Eddie or Benoit, they were already made into over stars before joining WWE. And Rey's pushes and stature are directly related to his percieved ability to draw mexican/hispanic fans, as well as his ability to be marketed prosperously to children.

If AJ were to go to WWE right now, given the current environment, as well as his standing in the industry, I have no doubt he could be quite successful. But a young, much less proven AJ Styles, at a different time in the wrestling landscape, would have had a much tougher road to WWE stardom.

 

[The Black Death]

It's not just about size, AJ's accent and early career limitations on the mic would've been his main hindrance. That was never a drawback for guys like HBK, Punk, or Jericho; quite the contrary, there strength as speakers rival there wrestling prowess. As for guys like Eddie or Benoit, they were already made into over stars before joining WWE. And Rey's pushes and stature are directly related to his percieved ability to draw mexican/hispanic fans, as well as his ability to be marketed prosperously to children.

If AJ were to go to WWE right now, given the current environment, as well as his standing in the industry, I have no doubt he could be quite successful. But a young, much less proven AJ Styles, at a different time in the wrestling landscape, would have had a much tougher road to WWE stardom.

I can see where you're comming from the likes of Jericho, Punk and HBK certainly have/had better mic skills then Styles but I believe that had Styles signed with the WWE he would have been given a legit shot at improving on the mic and in the ring they wouldn't have released him just because he has a southern accent or needed improvement on the mic.

Clearly they saw something in Styles to offer him a contract if they didn't or thought he was too small or not proven enough they wouldn't have bothered.

Oh I completly agree that if he were to leave Tna now and sign with the big company he would have a better chance of succeeding now then if he signed in 2001. I was just pointing out that it's not a certainty that he would of failed if he had signed with the WWE instead of working with ROH and TNA.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I think that Styles made the right decision in rejecting the developmental contract and then signing with TNA. He has been pushed as a star since day 1 in TNA and rightfully so, the man is a truly phenomenal talent.

In WWE in 2001, Styles would have been completely underutilised. He would have been lost in the shuffle as WWE had just inherited/purchased the contracts of so many former WCW and ECW wrestlers that Styles would have received absolutely no focus.

The fact that all the attention was spent on pushing already established talents and newly signed wrestlers rather than looking at developing the young talent WWE already had on its books is probably one of the reasons why they are struggling for established main event talent now, and Styles would just be another casualty of this. He would have spent his time in the developmentals working with rookies rather than wrestling talents such as Jerry Lynn and Low-Ki in TNA.

After acheiving precisly nothing in WWE for a couple of years, WWE may have brought him to the roster and significantly restricted his moveset, therefore preventing him from getting over with the fans as easily, and as Styles is limited on the mic that would also have stopped him being a success. He would then have been released with his name value not having increased at all since signing with WWE.

If Styles signed now, I do believe he would have been a success but in the overcrowded new-talent boat in WWE in 2001, he wouldnt have done much. It would have been a case of right place wrong time in 2001. Styles has done much more in TNA than he could ever have hoped for in WWE had he joined the company in 2001

 

[willross]

AJ is not as good as Danielson first of all. AJ would of been midcard because one thing WWE does not do that ECW and TNA do is guide their wrestlers by the hand and force them to be over. Thats why all the ECW and TNA guys get EXPOSED when they go to WWE(minus RVD).

If he hung around the right people who could help him with psychology and mic skills(which he lacks greatly in both categories) than he would of been fine. But spot monkeys don't make it in WWE, plain and simple, and they shouldn't. Spot Monkeys are not Artists and WWE views the business as an Art Form.

All in all, his attitude would of determined his success, as it did for Jeff Hardy and RVD. Patience.

 

[Papa Pillman]

AJ is not as good as Danielson first of all. AJ would of been midcard because one thing WWE does not do that ECW and TNA do is guide their wrestlers by the hand and force them to be over. Thats why all the ECW and TNA guys get EXPOSED when they go to WWE(minus RVD).

If he hung around the right people who could help him with psychology and mic skills(which he lacks greatly in both categories) than he would of been fine. But spot monkeys don't make it in WWE, plain and simple, and they shouldn't. Spot Monkeys are not Artists and WWE views the business as an Art Form.

All in all, his attitude would of determined his success, as it did for Jeff Hardy and RVD. Patience.

Saying AJ isn't as good as Bryan is like saying the '00 Ravens Defense wasn't as good as the '85 Bears Defense, or Resovoir Dogs isn't as good as Pulp Fiction, or the Rolling Stones weren't as good as The Beatles- saying one is better than the other is in no way criticizing or downgrading the lesser of the two, due to both being so great.

As for your assertion that AJ has "no psychology" or is merely a "spot monkey", you obviously have ZERO CLUE what you are talking about! Is your only exposure to AJ a handful of short Impact! matches that you half-heartedly tuned into during the last few months??

AJ is as much of an "artist" in the ring as anyone who has made there mark in the last 10 years.

If AJ is simply a spot monkey with no psychology then please give examples to support this ridiculous claim. I implore you.

 

[Tech N9ne]

I don't think he would have had anything remotely close to a big push. Look at the guys that WWE had, and also guys that were set to debut...

WWE was running the invasion storyline. So, they still had many of the WCW guys under contract and what not. Also, guys like Brock Lesnar and others were set to debut over the next year or 2.

I think since he has made an okay name for himself in TNA. Now would be the time that he might get a push in WWE. But even then, I am not sure. For whatever reason, A.J. just doesn't seem like a guy WWE would push. Especially now with his TNA ties. I think WWE would probably bury A.J. on purpose at this point, just to show the rest of the wrestling world what they think of TNA.

A.J. does have some popularity, not to the extent of WWE's best guys. But I think there could be a small chance A.J. would get pushed far in WWE.