Rumor: AJ Styles Reign As WWE Champion

[Jack-Hammer]

As of today, AJ Styles has been on his 2nd run as WWE Champion for 224 days and tomorrow will become the longest reigning champ since CM Punk's 434 day run as champion beginning in late 2011. There are reports/rumors going about that Styles' run as champion isn't expected to end any time soon.

There's talk that one of the reasons why Styles is still WWE Champion and will likely remain WWE Champion for quite a while is due to him being the cover star on WWE 2K19. Given that the video game is going to hit stores in time for the holiday season, Styles is going to be heavily promoted by the company and hyped just as all the past cover stars have been. It's not the only reason as officials, including Vince McMahon, are extremely high on Styles, the quality of his work, his attitude and his work ethic.

As a result of all this, the reports further state that Styles is poised to pass the 1 year mark as WWE Champion and might hold the title all the way to WrestleMania XXXV next year. If Styles holds the title until WrestleMania next year, which is on April 7th, he'll have been champ for 515 days; this will break CM Punk's record and give Styles the longest single World Championship run in WWE since Hulk Hogan's first run began in 1984.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

Cue the idiotic remarks that make this all about CM Punk from the people who refuse to let him go. At least this one will actually have merit, unlike the last thread about it. Either way, it makes sense for WWE if he's going to be on the cover of the new game. Plus he's easily the best thing they have right now anyway.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

Hell yeah! Jugding from what happened in Smackdown last year, Styles should have gotten the belt back from Cena anyway and should have been champion until now. Anyway, I'm all for this.

 

[Psykohurricane55]

So now that's it been reported by somebody, AJ's will drop the belt to Rusev at extreme rules or lose it at summerslam. This reminds me of what happened with Naomi last year. The was a report that she was supposed to keep the title for a while since they wanted to market the glowing title belt and sell tell in stores and online and the following month she drop the belt.

Like i said before, their a reason why AJ Styles is on top of Smackdown and they don't move him of the brand and it's the same reason that Reigns is in the position he's in, they are the top sellers of their respective brand and Vince react to that. Plus if they have a good attitude and good work attics, it helps them in keeping those top spot. Personally, i would have him drop the belt to somebody by summerslam because you really don't need him being the champ to promote videogames.

The game will sell by himself as proven with past edition. It's mostly the Bonus DLC character that sell the game more then the cover guy. Anyway, will see what happened when it happens.

 

[GOOZEKING]

The only reason I don't 100% believe the report is because last year when Rollins was on the cover, WWE treated him like an afterthought on raw and ppv's while in the tag division. Plus, Samoa Joe deserves a WWE title run and I would love for him to get one

 

[HeenanGorilla]

I've seen several threads lately referencing Punk's "record", whether it be Brock's reign or Styles'. The common theory is that WWE wants someone to break Punk's record. My question is...what record?

When Cal Ripken played in his 2,131st consecutive game, he broke Lou Gehrig's record of 2,130, because that was the longest streak to that point. When Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run, he broke Babe Ruth's record, because Ruth's 714 was the high total to that point. But when Barry Bonds later hit his 715th home run, he didn't "break Babe Ruth's record". He passed Babe Ruth's total. (I'm hoping in a pro wrestling forum, of all places, we can sidestep any steroid-related nonsense; but, just in case, please don't bring that up here. It's irrelevant to this point.)

Punk had a very long title reign. It was not the longest title reign at that time or now, so why is it referred to as "Punk's record"? At WrestleMania IX, Yokozuna beat Bret for the title and held it for a couple of minutes before losing it to Hogan. I don't know the exact number of minutes, but let's say it was 10. Does someone who wins the title and holds it for 15 minutes "break Yokozuna's record"?

And, not to throw water on pro wrestling--I loved it in the past and still spend time speaking about it now, so obviously I am not one of those people who go around saying "it's fake"--but are a lot of these records important to people? Maybe they are. I am honestly asking. To me, I never got wrapped up in wrestling records. Professional sports records, Olympic records, certain types or entertainment or voting-type records...those are accomplishments based on the person or team's effort and performance. Pro wrestling records are simply a decision made by the powers that be. A fairly recent example would be Roman Reigns breaking the record for Rumble eliminations. So, Vince made the decision to have Roman eliminate more people than anyone else had in a single Rumble and then Roman went out and did that. ...congratulations?? Again, I'm not trying to come across as someone who is breaking news that these matches have predetermined outcomes. We all know that. But SINCE we all know that, why do records matter? Now, there are certain records that show more than a simple backstage decision. New Day (apparently) beat Demolition's record not too far back. (I say "apparently" because I didn't know Demolition's record. I was a Demolition fan. I knew they held the title longer than anyone I had seen. But to pretend like their number of days was some well-known number like Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak is ridiculous) But, my point is, New Day can feel a sense of accomplishment by beating that record. It means they stayed relevant for a very long time in an era that doesn't lend itself to long title reigns. They were popular, they were amazing at crowd involvement, they sold tons of merchandise--they earned a long reign with the belts (not that they needed the belts, but that's another conversation) My point is that while it was Vince's decision to have them win the belt when they did, hold it for as long as they did, and lose it when they did, New Day did themselves a favor by staying relevant. Now, could Vince have started to think about taking the belts off of them a little earlier and then thought "Actually, if I hold off for a couple more weeks, I can take the record away from Demolition, who are currently suing me." Sure! He's human. People take shots against those who wrong them when they can. But Vince is also a businessman and wouldn't keep the belts on New Day for over a year for the sole purpose of taking away Demolition's record. It made business sense AND allowed him to take his shot. Much like, to address a current rumor, Vince isn't keeping the big belt off of TV with Brock to beat a Punk record that isn't even a record!

I realize I went off of my original point which was "Punk doesn't hold the record, who cares if someone 'breaks' it?". I guess I just wanted to give my perspective on records in general. I think certain things are a result of the wrestlers' effort and performance--merch sales, etc.--but many things are simply the decision of one man. And in cases where the record is simply in place because that man made a decision on paper, how can you get wrapped up in the record itself or the moment that record is broken?

Again, I don't want that to come off as rhetorical. I would be interested in your responses.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

Let me just say that I am so happy for AJ Styles right now. Here's a guy who 13 years ago us fans, columnists, and even people in the WWE would say AJ Styles may never make it to the WWE much less become a main event or top talent. Fast forward to now and, not only, is he in the WWE he's also a 2 time WWE Champion and is now the cover guy for their WWE game. If that isn't a success feel good story I don't know what is.

As for his title reign I am all for a long title reign but I do hope he gets some quality opponents to defend his title against. Sure I Rusev is great, as well as Nakamura, but I would like him to have some successful title defenses with the likes of Chris Jericho, John Cena, Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan, and the like.

As for any conspiracy that WWE just wants Punk's title reign off the record books. Well Lesnar already broke it and yes the Universal title is not the same as the WWE title but this didn't change Randy Orton being the "youngest World Champion" after winning the World Heavyweight Championship.

Also the suspicion of records being broken usually has to do with the circumstances of the title reign (I explained and given examples in another thread so I don't need to say it again).

 

[Radical]

Yes, it is indeed possible WWE officials are planning to have Styles hold the title for a long while and that may coincide with breaking CM Punk's WWE Title record.

Yes, AJ Styles is great, or as he would say - phenomenal! And he does seem like he's very deserving of a long title run like that.

The only problem is ... it's pretty hard to make that work in the modern era. They did it with Punk fairly well, but it was getting quite boring near the end. With the Jericho feud, as much as I like Jericho, it was lacking something because it was painfully obvious they brought in a guy to just job to Punk.

So I wonder if WWE could make it less painfully obvious this time, if that's what they are doing. Certainly some false title changes could help, ramp up the challengers to Styles but then give Styles some backup so he doesn't always have to fight alone. Get some team wars going ... The Club with Styles vs Other Teams or Factions.

Whatever they do.

Make it interesting!

 

[Jack-Hammer]

As far as a conspiracy regarding Styles breaking Punk's record, so what? Nobody can say with any degree of legitimacy that Styles doesn't have the ability and thereby isn't deserving enough to do it. Is it being done out of spite? Truth is, I don't care because, as I alluded to, Styles is someone worthy of becoming the longest reigning champion of the modern era. If it was some straight up corporate pick who didn't have the ability, like Roman Reigns or Jinder Mahal, then I think it'd suck.

Of course, there's no guarantee that any of this is true but if it is, then at least it'll be someone like Styles rather than some corporate guy that's been shoved down people's throats whether they want it or not.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

Just fuck CM Punk, who the hell cares. Punk had a great title run no doubt about it and was the most interesting part of RAW from 2011 up until the day he lost to The Undertaker. But that's in the past.

As someone else said, Punk being "the longest reigning WWE Champion of the modern era" isn't a record. Bruno Sammartino has the longest WWE Championship reign and Hogan follows him. Facts.

Also another fact. Punk was an afterthought in his whole run and the only reason he kept the belt was so that he could drop it to The Rock. He said himself "you either turn heel or you drop the belt to Bryan". So he just happened to be there, WWE never really believed in him, but that's a different discussion.

I want the top guys to hold the top championships, like New Japan does. I love the fact that Lesnar is the undisputed Universal Champion, I just wish he would defend it more. And I want Lesnar to drop the belt to someone who is a real main event talent.

The same goes for Styles and unfortunately on SD, the only other real main event talents are Bryan and Orton. Facts. Miz and Joe have potential to become one. But until Miz and Joe get to Styles' level or near it, then Styles shouldn't drop the title to anybody not named Daniel Bryan.

 

[Messiah]

He will break CM Punk's title reign.. not his record, because he currently doesn't have a record.. "modern era" is not a record..

He can hold it until WrestleMania, the fans love him, he's one of the most talented guys they have.. Just don't let him get stale as champion and keep finding new opponents for him.

 

[Vintage Punk]

I could see WWE having AJ be the champ until late in the year or so and having him beat the likes of Rusev, Joe, until maybe facing Daniel Bryan. Who knows maybe down the line, they have Bryan feud with AJ and be close to winning and get fucked over by Miz which would be a great way to start their long awaited feud. Really right now on Smackdown, the only big names to feud for the title right now would be Joe, Bryan, Miz, and Rusev who's doing so now.

 

[Spencesc11]

I think ultimately the year long title runs are bad for the product. Need fresh champions and fresh feuds. Title shouldn't remain on the same guy for more than 6 months tops. I would like to see WWE do this with the WWE Title....

Joe defeats Styles at Summerslam
Daniel Bryan defeats Joe at Royal Rumble
Miz wins Rumble
Bryan vs. Miz (World Title at Mania)

This would keep the product fresh.

Also maybe a US Title reign for Rusev & Nakamura as well.

Styles can still be beast without the Title as he has earned heavy cred. I would also consider moving him to Raw on the next Shakeup as well.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I’d been fine with AJ holding the belt for a long time to come. He consistently performs and can work with anyone. He more than deserves the accolade of being the longest running title holder, and who else is there who’s even on his level these days? If WWE want to beat Punk’s record then there is no better choice at this time than styles. All for it.

 

[Starkist]

I love the fact Aj Styles has had such a long title reign in the WWE. However, is it really worth it right now? His feud is about being kicked in the nuts by a dude formerly known as the King of Strong Style. The storyline is plain silly which is devaluing his title reign while in my eyes also hurting Nakamura. Does this really make it worth having the belt for so long when you walk down memory lane and say "Hey, you remember Aj Styles held that belt for 545 days?" "Yeah, I think so. That is dude who became the second best wrestler in the world during 2017/18 to Kenny Omega due to feuding with that guy who once the King of Strong Style where they were enjoying hitting each other in the nuts?" "Um, yeah that one." Not a good way to be remembered in my honest. However, put that stigma behind us as it is Aj freaking Styles and I am truly happy he has even got the hold the belt not once, but twice! That's all that matters and he is somewhat that truly deserves all the success he has had regardless of how anyone remembers Aj Styles run in the WWE.

 

[Ceen]

I think Daniel Bryan renewing his contract is the big question. If he does, Miz vs Bryan for the title is obvious, so AJ should lose it.
If he doesn’t, AJ vs Joe is the program

 

[blueskyy]

I love the fact Aj Styles has had such a long title reign in the WWE. However, is it really worth it right now? His feud is about being kicked in the nuts by a dude formerly known as the King of Strong Style. The storyline is plain silly which is devaluing his title reign while in my eyes also hurting Nakamura. Does this really make it worth having the belt for so long when you walk down memory lane and say "Hey, you remember Aj Styles held that belt for 545 days?" "Yeah, I think so. That is dude who became the second best wrestler in the world during 2017/18 to Kenny Omega due to feuding with that guy who once the King of Strong Style where they were enjoying hitting each other in the nuts?" "Um, yeah that one." Not a good way to be remembered in my honest. However, put that stigma behind us as it is Aj freaking Styles and I am truly happy he has even got the hold the belt not once, but twice! That's all that matters and he is somewhat that truly deserves all the success he has had regardless of how anyone remembers Aj Styles run in the WWE.

I don't know about you, but for me, myself personally, every since Shinsuke Nakamura turned heel, his matches with AJ Styles had kicked up quite a few notches in terms of match quality. And the story telling when they were in the ring together had been excellent, back and forth progressively, until the final outcome. I dislike low blows anymore than you do, but this feud currently is 10 times better than when Shinsuke Nakamura was a face.

I'm all for AJ Styles having a long reign, as long as WWE can make it entertaining.

 

[Starkist]

I don't know about you, but for me, myself personally, every since Shinsuke Nakamura turned heel, his matches with AJ Styles had kicked up quite a few notches in terms of match quality. And the story telling when they were in the ring together had been excellent, back and forth progressively, until the final outcome. I dislike low blows anymore than you do, but this feud currently is 10 times better than when Shinsuke Nakamura was a face.

I'm all for AJ Styles having a long reign, as long as WWE can make it entertaining.

Yes, the in ring work will always be there. It is just upsetting that WWE couldn't just push this as a face feud to truly see who is the better man. Nakamura turning has helped the in ring product it just to me makes the storyline silly still. Match quality has improved but now where does Nak go and who is left to face Aj, if he is to go on to have a 500+ title reign?

Still, even though I find it silly along with upsetting for both men, it is great Aj ia getting these two runs. He is truly phenomenal and more-than-likely just going with the flow which is what makes Aj Styles respectable in all ways.

Only thing that makes me wonder is if he will lose the title quicker now like someone else mentioned in a few post ago.