AJ Styles is set to defend his WWE Championship against John Cena at the Royal Rumble on Sunday, and if John Cena wins he will become a 16 time World Champion. Cena and Styles have been feuding for quite some time now, but for the past few months AJ Styles has been running the main event scene over on SmackDown, while John Cena has been working on projects outside of WWE.
Although a few members of the SmackDown roster ave been criticizing John Cena for going part-time in promos as of late, AJ Styles recently told FOX Sports that even though he’s a part-timer, John Cena works harder than anyone he’s ever seen.
“Listen, the fact of the matter is, John may be a part-timer – at least sometimes in the WWE – but that guy works harder than anybody I’ve ever seen. i mean, the guy’s on The Today Show in the morning and and comes and does live events, or comes and does SmackDown Live. The guy works hard, I get that.”
AJ Styles kicked off his WWE career in a big way last year when he debuted at the Royal Rumble, and he went on to feud with big stars such as Chris Jericho and Roman Reigns. Styles has had some memorable feuds during his first year with the WWE, but it’s his feud with John Cena that really seemed to push him to the top of the company.
Styles seems to have Cena’s number as he’s beaten him three times, and there aren’t a lot of people who can say that. One thing fans know is that when AJ Styles and John Cena face off, they’re pretty much guaranteed a quality match. But Cena and Styles don’t just have chemistry inside the ring, they also have chemistry on the mic, and according to Styles he feels that working with Cena has made him better.
“And to tell you the truth, I’ve become a better performer because of John Cena, and I like that. But as far as respect goes, I want it all. I don’t just want it from John Cena, I want it from the guy and the girls on The Today Show. I want it from the people who made the Royal Rumble poster.”
With stars such as The Undertaker, Brock Lesnar and Goldberg all returning for the Royal Rumble, it seems that there is an abundance of part-timers in the spotlight right now. As far as part-timers are concerned AJ Styles says that part-time wrestlers don’t bother him, because their absence creates more opportunities for the other people who want to steal the show.
“Well, hey, maybe they need it? If you run these guys into the ground, what good are they going to be to us later? So let them have their time off, let them… they’re still stars. That’s not going to change. It’s more of an opportunity for guys like me to support my family and do well as long as I can. So, am I angry at guys who go part time? Absolutely not. It [means] more opportunities for guys like me.”
Speaking of AJ Styles, he recently took to Twitter to taunt his rival John Cena with a slow motion video ahead of their upcoming match.
These are called Burpees! Try and keep up @JohnCena #RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/LFkB3ewgv4
— AJ Styles (@AJStylesOrg) January 27, 2017
AJ Styles will defend his WWE Championship against John Cena this Sunday at the Royal Rumble in San Antonio, TX. The pay-per-view is set to air live on the WWE Network with a special start time of 7pm EST.
