Wrestling On FanNation

AJ Styles' WWE Career Was In Legit Jeopardy After He Was Injured Over The Fall

It was a less than phenomenal return to WWE last October for AJ Styles. In fact, it nearly ended his career.
Rick Ucchino|
AJ Styles is back after suffering a severe injury
AJ Styles is back after suffering a severe injury | wwe.com

AJ Styles genuinely did not know if he was going to be able to come back to the ring following his latest injury.

After he was given a lengthy creative hiatus to reset his career, AJ Styles returned to WWE on the October 4 episode of SmackDown in Nashville, Tennessee. He ended up wrestling Carmelo Hayes that night in an exciting first ever match-up. Unfortunately, excitement turned to anger midway through the bout after Styles got caught on a cross body attempt and broke his foot.

Styles was a guest this week on Insight with Chris Van Vliet and went into detail about his big return gone horribly wrong.

"I knew I'd broke it," Styles said having broken that same foot before. "I was like I broke it again, and I'm pissed because now I know how long it's gonna take to get back... little did I know it was much worse." 

In addition to the break, Styles was also dealing with tendon damage in his foot. The severity of which could have potentially ended his in-ring career that very night.

"My doctor, who is also my friend, was like do not look this up. I'm like, I'm gonna look this up, and it's a career-ending injury. It happens in car wrecks and in professional football mostly, That's usually when it happens. And in football, of course, it's one of those things depending how severe it is. I was literally by the skin of my teeth able to [come back]."

There were two recovery options on the table for Styles. He could have undergone corrective surgery, which would have gotten him back in the ring quicker, but there was also a risk of experiencing complications futher down the road.

Option number two, was to endure grueling physical therapy. Which is exactly the path that Styles decided to, well, gingerly walk down. And it worked as he was able to get back in time for last month's Men's Royal Rumble Match.

"Lucky for me, man, I was able to get that therapy that I needed. Wasn't easy. It sucked. It's so crazy that you have to learn how to walk again to a certain extent. Like, how did I forget how to run? Little things like that. 'Cause I was in a boot for six weeks, then I got six weeks in therapy, trying to figure this thing out. It’ll mess with you."

During the interview, Styles made it perfectly clear that he does not blame anyone else for getting hurt. He said it was his mistake in that match against Carmelo that cost him three months of his career.

When it comes to how much time AJ has left as an active competitor, the only definitive answer he could give CVV is that he will not be wrestling anymore once he's 50 years-old. Styles will turn 48 in June.

The Latest On WWE, AEW & More

WWE Raw Results (3/3/25): Seth Rollins And CM Punk Brawl, Sky Wins Championship From Ripley

Rhea Ripley Furious Over Dropping Women's World Championship To IYO SKY On WWE Raw

Seth Rollins And CM Punk Set For Steel Cage Match Next Week On WWE Raw At Madison Square Garden

John Cena, The Rock And Travis Scott Featured In Topps 1/1 Signed Heel Turn Card

Published
Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com

Home/WWE