10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (Aug 4)

by Jamie Kennedy

1. Vince McMahon Thought AJ Styles' Debut Reaction Was A Fluke

AJ Styles Chris Jericho
WWE.com

Nobody could have guessed that AJ Styles would go on to become WWE Champion and one of the best workers in the promotion when he made his debut way back at the 2016 Royal Rumble. Sure, long time supporters may have wanted Styles to succeed, but there were never any guarantees that Vince McMahon would take to him.

On Edge and Christian's podcast, AJ discussed a meeting with McMahon that changed the course of his WWE career. Vince wanted to see if the crowd reaction to Styles at the Rumble was a one-off fluke, so he challenged his new employee to show a more aggressive side. That was music to AJ's ears, because he had wanted to be more than an underdog babyface.

Following one "typical babyface match" (AJ's words), McMahon said he didn't want to see that from Styles. After AJ beat up The Miz on an episode of Miz TV, the boss was pleased and realised that he might have something special on his hands.

Vince McMahon was worried that AJ Styles, one of the best wrestlers on the planet, was a flash in the pan and wouldn't connect with WWE's casual fan base.

What other big wrestling facts did you learn this week? Let us know down in the comments section below!

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Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.