WWE Payback 2016: 10 Things WWE Got Right

2. Choosing AJ Styles As Top Title Challenger

AJ Styles Calf Crusher Roman Reigns Payback.jpg
wwe.com

WWE were vindicated at Payback by choosing AJ Styles to work a main event with Roman Reigns.

Much more athletic than Triple H, Styles bumped around admirably for the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. His work looked awesome, and in turn helped change the match from a boo-fest aimed at Reigns into a genuinely heated contest.

Credit must go to the announcers too. Michael Cole, JBL and Byron Saxton did everything to put across the fact that Styles - a world-travelled star - had earned his way into the WWE Title picture.

It was a good thing they did, since claiming he didn't belong there (akin to Daniel Bryan) would have hurt the match.

Styles entered a silky smooth performance, and he worked very well with the more power-based Reigns. The champion has that classic main event brawling style to his bouts, but that was aided by AJ's more independent flavours that stand out from the crowd in WWE.

Styles vs. Reigns was just a great match, it's really as simple as that. AJ was the perfect challenger after WrestleMania.

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.