10 Wrestlers That Shouldn't Have Lost Their WrestleMania Debuts

4. AJ Styles

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WWE.com

AJ Styles' long awaited WWE debut had been rumored for the Royal Rumble dating back to the first week of 2016, but that didn't make the moment any less special. The Orlando crowd came unglued for the former face of TNA and he has only flourished in the months since in his ruthless rivalry with Chris Jericho.

There is always the fear among fans that stars such as Styles won't be as well utilized by WWE as they should be, but that has been far from the case with The Phenomenal One. He has already contested a number of Match of the Year candidates against the likes of Jericho, Kevin Owens and The New Day and the best has yet to come for him.

A renewal of his rivalry with Y2J at WrestleMania was a logical addition to the stacked card. Slotted second on the show, they put on a wrestling clinic that was among the best bouts at the event. A victory for Styles in his premier WrestleMania seemed predictable, which is why his loss to Y2J came as a surprise to many viewers.

Although he rebounded in a big way the next night on Raw by becoming the new No. 1 contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, the record books will forever show that Styles came up short in his first WrestleMania match.

Contributor
Contributor

Since 2008, Graham has been a diehard pro wrestling fan and, in 2010, he combined his passions for WWE and writing when he joined Bleacher Report. Equipped with a master's in journalism, Graham has contributed to WhatCulture, FanSided's Daily DDT, Sports Betting Dime, and GateHouse Media. Along the way, he has conducted interviews with wrestling superstars like Chris Jericho, Edge, Goldberg, Christian, Diamond Dallas Page, Jim Ross, Adam Cole, Tessa Blanchard, Ryback, and Nick Aldis among others.