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Q&A with WWE World Heavyweight Champion AJ Styles

Posted: Dec 6th 2016 By: Amarillo.com

The state of Texas has a legendary history in the sport of professional wrestling, dating back to the days of the Sportatorium in Dallas and the time of Terry and Dory Funk here in the Texas Panhandle.

The WWE knows the history of the state and often tours through the Lone Star State, because the passion of the fans has never ceased throughout the years.

On Sunday night, the pay-per-view WWE TLC was held at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, while the Royal Rumble will be in San Antonio at the Alamodome for the first time in 20 years.

It was recently announced the 2017 edition of Surivivor Series will occur at the Toyota Center in Houston.

Pay-per-views aren’t the only shows that WWE holds in Texas, however. On average, close to 10 Raw and Smackdown Live shows are broadcasted from the numerous arenas across Texas, in addition to countless house shows not on television, including a usual summer stop right here in Amarillo.

The reigning WWE World Heavyweight Champion, A. J. Styles, was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule last week to discuss what performing in front of the Texas crowds means to him, as well as who some of the top guys he wants to compete against in WWE are and much more.

Q: With TLC in Dallas and the Royal Rumble in San Antonio and the recently announced Survivor Series coming to Houston next year, can you talk to us about performing in front of the Texas crowds with all the rich history in the state?

A: “The reason why we go there so often and do so many big shows there, obviously is the fans are unbelievable. Wrestlemania did attract more than 100,000 people, so it just goes to show they love wrestling in Texas and always have. It’s always exciting to get there and wrestle in front of that crowd.”

Q: Is there anyone that you haven’t faced yet in WWE that you’re looking forward to facing?

A: “I think as far as one-on-one matches, I’d like the opportunity to face Seth Rollins. I’ve heard that as a dream match. There’s Randy Orton, because I have not been in the ring with him at all. There’s still a couple matchups. I haven’t really been in a one-on-one match with Bray Wyatt. There’s a lot of guys that I’ve yet to have these one-on-one matches with that I think would be great, and again, I think
it’s probably some of those dream matches that I think people want to see.”

Q: Tell me how it’s been so far in your first year in WWE? You’ve had a great run, so tell me about that:

A: “I don’t think I could say a negative thing about my run here so far. I’ve had the opportunity to be in the ring with some great guys, from Chris Jericho to Roman Reigns and now, Dean Ambrose and John Cena as well. I’ve had a great year, and to have my first year go this well is unbelievable. It started at the Royal Rumble and I guess that set the tone for how my year was going to be.”

Q: A lot of sports entertainment enthusiasts have you on a short list of guys who could win Superstar of the Year, what does it mean to you to be on that list in your first year?

A: “It’s huge. The fact that I never thought I’d be in WWE and then on top of that doing really well here and given the opportunity to do well. There’s a lot of fantastic entertainers on our roster and there’s not one guy that I feel like I can’t have a great match with. It’s a pretty awesome honor to be considered for Superstar of the Year and only being here less than a year at this point. It’s pretty unbelievable.”

Q: Do you have a favorite match or feud since you’ve come to WWE?

A: “It’s hard to pick a favorite, because I’ve had so many. Chris Jericho, John Cena and now Ambrose, and even Reigns on top of that. I think the one that sticks out in most people’s mind is John Cena. It seems like everywhere I go people are telling me to beat up John Cena, so that must have got over pretty well with the WWE Universe, and it probably got the most attention as well.”

Q: Any thoughts on the SummerSlam match versus John Cena winning Match of the Year?

A: “I’d say it definitely has a great chance. It was a great match. New York seemed pretty pleased with it. I’ve seen some YouTube videos where the fans were pretty excited about it themselves. That’s what we want, and that’s what we try to do. It’s to entertain, and the fact that they’re entertained makes me really happy.”

Q: You’ve won championships everywhere you’ve been throughout your career. How does holding the WWE World Title compare to holding the other championships in Japan and everywhere else?

A: “I’ve always held the championships with honor. For the fact that I’m the guy that they saw who could butts in the seats, I try to be a good representative of wherever I am. But the question always comes when I have the belt with me, and I tell them (who I represent) and they always go like
‘oh, like WWE.’ Now, it’s a lot nicer when they see that championship, and they know exactly what it is. It’s the most prestigious title in the world. It’s a global championship that everybody recognizes and understands when they see it.”

Q: How many countries have you wrestled in?

A: “There’s too many to remember. I’ve wrestled in a lot. Unfortunately, I haven’t kept up because we move along so fast without any time to explore or anything like that. I have no idea how many countries I’ve been in but it’s quite a few.”

Q: Of anyone, all-time, anywhere, what would your dream match be?

A: “The thing is, I don’t really have that dream match. The older I’ve gotten, the more I realized that it’s not up to me. There’s been a lot of dream matches that people wanted to see and have gotten them since I’ve been in the WWE. There’s some more of the dream matches that are yet to happen, and there’s some more that never will happen in people’s eyes. I don’t think that’s a question for me, I think that dreams are for the WWE Universe or fans in general. Like, who do you want to see AJ Styles wrestle? Who would you like to see him mix it up with at some point in the ring? Everybody has different reasons why, so there’s definitely a couple matches out there that would be dream matches.”