This year’s WrestleMania will see “The Phenomenal One”, AJ Styles, face off against SmackDown LIVE Commissioner, Shane McMahon. It’s a match that WWE is going to great lengths to present as a big deal, and it will be Styles’ second consecutive high-profile WrestleMania match. A section of people feels that this is not the most efficient use of Styles' talents and that he should be involved in the WWE title picture. However, a win over Shane McMahon at the biggest stage of the year will do him a world of good. Whether he wins or loses at WrestleMania, the stage is surely set for Styles to enter a massive programme following the event.
But where can he go after the collision with Shane O Mac? Of course, the logical next step for Styles depends upon the outcome of his WrestleMania match. At present, the options seem to be almost never ending, although there are a few directions that would certainly make a lot more sense than others. In storyline terms, AJ is still technically owed a one-on-one rematch for the WWE Championship, as he never received one after John Cena defeated him at the Royal Rumble. So it makes sense that he would be inserted straight back into the title picture after WrestleMania, but the possibilities certainly don’t end there.
Let’s start by stating the obvious, that if Styles is triumphant at WrestleMania, he’ll be in a far better position coming out of the event, therefore is more likely to leap straight back into main event storylines. Assuming an AJ Styles victory, one option would be to throw him straight into a feud with the winner of Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Title. We caught a glimpse of what Orton and Styles could do together when they battled on SmackDown LIVE recently, and it was something special. Styles vs. Wyatt would be an equally fresh and exciting feud, in the closing stages of the main event at Elimination Chamber showing us that the pair certainly has great in-ring chemistry. However, it is far more likely that the Orton vs. Wyatt programme won’t end at WrestleMania, with a rematch between the two likely to take place at Backlash on May 21st. This being the case, Styles may find himself out of the title picture at least until then.
That wouldn’t necessarily mean that AJ would just be treading water until the conclusion of Wyatt and Orton’s feud.
Also read: AJ Styles expected to be back in the WWE title picture after WrestleMania
If Styles has to wait until after Backlash for his WWE Title opportunity, this gives him a little under two months to sink his teeth into something else. Perhaps a short term feud with Baron Corbin would be an option to consider? It is looking highly likely that Corbin will defeat Dean Ambrose for the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania, and he’ll be in need of a talented opponent to make his first title defence against. Styles has proven on multiple occasions that he can work a good or great match with virtually anybody, so a programme with Corbin would be almost guaranteed to deliver in the ring.
The one problem would be not only that Styles would need to lose this match, but if he is to re-enter the WWE Title picture afterwards immediately, he’d need to lose in a way that protects him. Luckily, with Corbin being the much larger of the two and a very credible threat to AJ, it would be fairly easy to come up with a finish where AJ is slightly distracted, and Corbin takes full advantage to score the win.
And if Styles loses at Mania? Well, the above plans would surely be out of the window, as losing to Shane McMahon followed up by failing to win the Intercontinental Title is not a logical path back to the WWE Title.
In this case, AJ would need to simply steamroll through any opponent set in front of him on SmackDown! Live. Every week, have Daniel Bryan bring out somebody to face Styles, and every week, AJ will dispatch them in emphatic fashion, making it clear that he is the man who needs to challenge for the WWE Championship. Dolph Ziggler, Apollo Crews and Luke Harper are just a few names who could be brought out, challenge Styles and be defeated. If this storyline is featured on every episode of SmackDown LIVE between WrestleMania and Backlash, it would significantly add to the narrative that despite his attitude, AJ Styles is the best and will continue to prove it until he gets what he deserves, which to his mind is a shot at the WWE Title.
Either way, it is clear that AJ will eventually end up back in contention for the WWE Title. He is simply far too talented and popular for this not to happen. However, what happens at WrestleMania will have an enormous impact on how he arrives at this point. Of course, there is always the possibility that AJ Styles moves over to Monday Night RAW, in which case the possibilities would open up even more. But that’s a story for another day; in the meantime, we can summarise that despite the multitude of possible programmes for Styles to enter into in the immediate aftermath of WrestleMania, they will all ultimately lead back to one thing: the WWE Title.
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