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AJ Styles addresses AEW rumors & WWE future: ‘I am retired from wrestling in the ring’

Posted: Feb 27th 2026 By: Shounak Chakrabarti - F4WOnline.com

AJ Styles has opened up and addressed the ongoing speculation around a possible jump to AEW for a final run after a decade-long run with WWE.

At Royal Rumble 2026, 10 years after his debut, Gunther defeated Styles to retire him from in-ring action. A few weeks later on Raw, Styles was presented with a tribute by WWE before being inducted into the 2026 class of the Hall of Fame.

Speaking on Talk N Shop Live!, Styles addressed the rumors of WWE possibly inducting him into the Hall of Fame to stop him from joining AEW:

“Let me give you something to talk about. So, everybody wants to say, ‘Oh, WWE put him [AJ Styles] in the Hall of Fame so that he couldn’t go to AEW.’ Guys, I am retired from wrestling in the ring. Like, that’s all this is. I make my own choices, I make my own decisions. I was ready.”

He further explained that he was on the verge of staying on the “table for too long” and wanted to beat the house, which he did by hanging up his boots.

Styles, 48, stepped down from a decades long pro-wrestling career that began in 1998 and has now finished in 2026.

Styles noted that he would still be working with WWE in the future, shutting down rumors about his AEW jump:

“I am still going to be working with WWE. That’s not going to change. I have these dreams of helping out young talent. If somebody is not ready once they get there, it’s my job to hopefully help them get to that point to where they can do it, and they are confident when they step into a WWE ring. Being able to help with that is a blessing.”