Allen Neal Jones, known in the professional world of wrestling as A.J. Styles, ranks as the world’s greatest professional wrestler, with his long list of awards supporting his talent, including:
A.J. Styles is currently the WWE World Champion in his first reign, so WWE is lucky to have A.J. Styles signed on the SmackDown brand, considering the triumphant success of his professional wrestling career.
While any wrestling fan will be aware of Styles’ legacy, here are 15 things you might not have known about the professional wrestler.
If you are a loyal fan of A.J. Styles, you probably know all about his legacy, but here are 15 things you probably need to become more familiar with related to the successful wrestler.
1. Aside from being famous as a successful singles wrestler, A.J. Styles has also been wildly successful as a tag team grappler. He scored six tag team championships with six tag team partners, four NWA Tag Team Championships, and two TNA Tag Team Championships. Talk about success after success!
2. A.J. Styles is also known to be the first-ever TNA-contracted wrestler to top Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s annual PWI 500 list, as the magazine ranks top wrestlers of the year.
3. While growing up, Styles faced a difficult childhood, but he was given a chance to attend college and pursue this sport after being awarded a wrestling scholarship. He financially supported himself in training by working unusual jobs such as cutting grass and driving a paramedic's vehicle.
4. At the latest competition, New Japan Pro Wrestling, A.J. Styles had another victory and won the IWGP heavyweight title, which made him the first non-Japanese wrestler to win this title since Brock Lesnar in 2005. Salman Hashimikov, Bob Sapp, Scott Norton, and Vader are the only four other non-Japanese wrestlers who have gained the same title.
5. The wrestler’s first trainer was the original ECW member, Rick Michaels. The same trainer worked and shared his expertise with other wrestlers like Jimmy Rave, Azrael, Sal Rinauro, and Seth Delay.
6. A.J. Styles's torso is tattooed with his initials, and below the initials, there is a sequence of numbers revealing the birthdays of his three boys. This year the wrestler and his wife became proud parents of a baby girl, and her birth date was added to the tattoo.
7. A.J.’s firstborn son was named Ajay Covell Jones, with his middle name given as a sign of respect to fellow wrestler and Styles’ best friend Christopher Daniels, whose real name is Daniel Covell.
8. The famous wrestler is a passionate Christian and has admitted to being a great fan of Christian hip-hop music, including groups K2S, Lil’ Raskull, FTF, and L.G. Wise.
9. A.J. Styles is a devoted video game player who confessed that he isn’t a big fan of WWE SmackDown vs. Raw Games but prefers the classic old-school Nintendo 64 games.
10. Styles declined the offer for a developmental deal by WWE back in 2002 by explaining, “I am not by any means cocky; I am honored that they offered me a contract.” The reason behind the refusal of the offer for the contract was financial, and he also wanted to avoid interference with his wife’s plans for college.
11. A.J. Styles played a central role in determining the main event scene of TNA and in creating the X Division, TNA’s high-flying, high-risk, and fast-paced wrestling style.
12. The wrestler is known for his unbelievable 16 TNA champion titles, one of which he held for a total of 165 days, which is the second longest-held title of any TNA champion.
13. A.J. Styles became the leader of “The Bullet Club,” a top-heel faction in Japan, by replacing Finn Balor; Styles moved from TNA, and
14. In the past, TNA used a six-sided ring but eventually moved on to the traditional four-sided ring. A.J. Styles confessed that, in his opinion, the change was not a good decision as the six-sided ring was the one thing that distinguished TNA from WWE and other TV promotions.
15. The official wrestler’s WWE debut occurred in January 2016 at the ‘Royal Rumble’ pay-per-view happening.
