Former WWE Champion Returns On SmackDown

Injured superstar returns, immediately gets drafted to a new brand.

by Scott Carlson
AJ Styles
WWE.com

The WWE Draft often contains at least a couple of surprise picks, whether it's NXT callups or a forgotten superstar returning to make a splash. The first night of the 2023 edition of the draft on Friday night contained both types, but it was a 4-for-1 pick in the third round that produced a pleasant surprise.

SmackDown picked the OC, including AJ Styles alongside Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows & Mia Yim. Styles has not been seen on WWE programming since going down with a broken ankle in late December.

The two-time WWE Champion later appeared in person with the rest of the OC, but they were immediately confronted by the Viking Raiders and Valhalla. AJ bowed out and allowed the Good Brothers and Michin to take out the trio before declaring that they were "just getting started" on SmackDown.

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Then, just to show he wasn't still hobbled, Styles hit Ivar with a Phenomenal Forearm, laying him out.

Styles returning is almost a 3-for-1 for WWE: Gallows & Anderson have been almost entirely absent on WWE television the past four months, competing once on Raw in a January tag team turmoil #1 contender's match, and then last month in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on WrestleMania SmackDown.

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The reunited OC could also be a boon for Yim, who has been somewhat directionless, bouncing around in singles matches and teaming with Candice LeRae.

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Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.