AJ Styles Remembers John Cena Trying To Learn Who He Was Before Their First Match

AJ Styles has looked back on his rivalry with John Cena and whether the 17-time World Champion was familiar with the former AEW and NJPW star’s work.

Styles famously made his shock WWE debut at the 2016 Royal Rumble to the delight of fans in attendance and around the world. While many were familiar with Styles’ work prior to WWE, a large portion of the fanbase may not have seen The Phenomenal One in action up until this point.

Following WrestleMania 32, Styles entered his rivalry with Cena, a match that many never thought would be possible given the performers’ loyalty to their respective companies. According to Styles, there was some uncertainty over what Cena knew about his career.

Speaking with Justin Barasso for Undisputed, Styles admitted that it is hard to keep up with wrestling inside the WWE bubble, noting that Cena struggled to find a lot about him before their first interaction:

“When you’re in the WWE bubble, it’s very difficult to keep up with anything else, so I wondered how familiar he was with it,” said Styles. “My thinking is that, over time, he heard more and did more research. Before our first match, he told me that he was trying to find stuff on me to cut a promo, but he couldn’t really find much. I’m assuming a lot of his research came from the Bullet Club, and that’s what he knew about it.”

AJ Styles And John Cena Bring Rivalry To Epic Conclusion

The Hollywood star and The Phenomenal One went to war one final time at Crown Jewel in Perth, Australia. In what was seen by many as a love letter to wrestling, the match was filled with tributes and references to both of their biggest rivalries, and also saw Cena write a custom intro for Styles that paid homage to his TNA and Bullet Club past.

While Cena is nearing the end of his own farewell tour, Styles recently revealed when he plans to call time on his own in-ring career.

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