Welcome to a new series on the website, called Rating The Champ. This will follow my prior World Title Series, where I reviewed each and every WWE Heavyweight Champion in history from Hulk Hogan’s first title win in 1984 all the way to the current days. Money in the Bank cash-ins will not be included for obvious reasons, unless it was a proper match (ie: Rob Van Dam at One Night Stand 2006). Royal Rumble and battle royales won’t be included as well.
In this new series, I will rate all the PPV matches from each and every WWF/E Heavyweight Champion in history. To be fair, since this is the WWF/E title, I’ll only rate their PPV matches in the WWF/E. In this edition, we’ll be looking back at the PPV career of the one and only, former WWE Champion, AJ Styles.
2016
- Vs. Chris Jericho (Fastlane) ****
- Vs. Chris Jericho (WrestleMania 32) ***1/2
- Vs. Roman Reigns – WWE World Heavyweight Championship (Payback) ****
- Extreme Rules: Vs. Roman Reigns – WWE World Heavyweight Championship (Extreme Rules) ****1/2
- Vs. John Cena (Money in the Bank) ***3/4
- W/ The Club vs. John Cena, Enzo & Cass (Battleground) ***1/4
- Vs. John Cena (SummerSlam) *****
- Vs. Dean Ambrose – WWE World Championship (Backlash) ****1/4
- Vs. John Cena vs. Dean Ambrose – WWE World Championship (No Mercy) ****
- W/ Team SmackDown vs. Team RAW (Survivor Series) ****1/2
- TLC: Vs. AJ Styles – WWE World Championship (TLC) ****1/2
2017
- Vs. John Cena – WWE Championship (Royal Rumble) *****
- Elimination Chamber Match – WWE Championship (Elimination Chamber) ****1/2
- Vs. Shane McMahon (WrestleMania 33) ***1/2
- Vs. Kevin Owens – WWE United States Championship (Backlash) ***1/2
- Money in the Bank Ladder Match (Money in the Bank) ****1/4
- Vs. Kevin Owens – WWE United States Championship (Battleground) ***
- Vs. Kevin Owens – WWE United States Championship (SummerSlam) ***3/4
- Vs. Baron Corbin vs. Tye Dillinger – WWE United States Championship (Hell in a Cell) ***1/2
- Vs. Finn Bálor (TLC) ****1/4
- Vs. Brock Lesnar (Survivor Series) ****1/2
- Vs. Jinder Mahal – WWE Championship (Clash of Champions) **3/4
2018
- Handicap: Vs. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn – WWE Championship (Royal Rumble) ***
- Six Pack Challenge – WWE Championship (Fastlane) ****1/4
- Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – WWE Championship (WrestleMania 34) ***1/2
- Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – WWE Championship (Greatest Royal Rumble) ***
- Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – WWE Championship (Backlash) ***
- Last Man Standing: Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – WWE Championship (Money in the Bank) ****1/4
- Vs. Rusev – WWE Championship (Extreme Rules) ****
- Vs. Samoa Joe – WWE Championship (SummerSlam) ****1/4
- Vs. Samoa Joe – WWE Championship (Hell in a Cell) ****
- Vs. Samoa Joe – WWE Championship (Super ShowDown) ***3/4
- Vs. Samoa Joe – WWE Championship (Crown Jewel) ***
- Vs. Daniel Bryan – WWE Championship (TLC) ****3/4
2019
- Vs. Daniel Bryan – WWE Championship (Royal Rumble) ***
- Elimination Chamber Match – WWE Championship (Elimination Chamber) ****1/2
- Vs. Randy Orton (WrestleMania 35) ***1/2
- Vs. Seth Rollins – WWE Universal Championship (Money in the Bank) ****1/4
- Vs. Ricochet – WWE United States Championship (Extreme Rules) ***3/4
- Vs. Ricochet – WWE United States Championship (SummerSlam) ***
- W/ The OC vs. Braun Strowman, Erik & Ivar (Hell in a Cell) *
- Vs. Humberto Carrillo – WWE United States Championship (Crown Jewel) **3/4
- Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Roderick Strong (Survivor Series) ***1/4
2020
- Gauntlet Match (Super ShowDown) *1/2
- No DQ: Vs. Aleister Black (Elimination Chamber) ***1/4
- Boneyard: Vs. The Undertaker (WrestleMania 36) N/R (not rated)
TOP FIVE
5. Roman Reigns (Extreme Rules 2016)
The art of pro wrestling is to make not only one character look better than they did coming into the match, but both characters involved in it.
That was exactly what this program accomplished, making Roman Reigns look better than ever as champion in some of the best matches of his career, while launching AJ into a feud with John Cena and eventually the main-event scene.
AJ Styles was booked to lose this match, but in reality it was one of his first real victories in his WWE career.
4. Brock Lesnar (Survivor Series 2017)
Fast forward to eighteen months later, and AJ Styles just wasn’t the same as a babyface. His match with Shane McMahon, despite being “good”, really hurt the character in the long run. He desperately needed something, especially after having won the WWE Title out of nowhere just a week earlier. He wouldn’t have to wait long.
The match was unique, featured some inovative sequences and reversals – I’d argue Lesnar blocking the Calf Crusher was the most memorable – but, most importantly, the way Brock Lesnar sold for AJ Styles instantly made him look and feel like a big deal again.
3. Daniel Bryan (TLC 2018)
After more than a year as champion, AJ dropped the gold to ‘The New’ Daniel Bryan in November, challenging him for the belt at TLC.
The two wrestled a spectacular match, with AJ viciously going after Bryan’s legs once Bryan tried to play mind games with Styles to start, while Bryan focused on AJ’s ribs.
Bryan ultimately used the ref as a shield out of desperation, stopping AJ and rolling him up for the win to retain. A tremendous wrestling match.
2. John Cena (Royal Rumble 2017)
One year after making his WWE debut, AJ Styles had already been the WWE Champion for four months. At the Royal Rumble, he put his gold on the line against John Cena.
The two had a classic, with the motivated Cena using his strength to avoid Styles’ quickness. The ending saw Styles go for the same sequence that beat Cena at SummerSlam, only for Cena to catch him with the AA followed by a second one for his seventeenth title.
1. John Cena (SummerSlam 2016)
This was without any question the most important match in AJ Styles’ career. He was getting more and more over, had recently turned heel and this needed to work.
To say it worked wouldn’t do the match justice, as the two not only had a classic, but also created a star out of AJ Styles. A month later he won the WWE Championship, and it couldn’t have happened at a better time.
Overall average rating
3.46/5
Don’t miss the next article here on Rating The Champ, where I’ll be looking back at the PPV career of former WWE & Universal Champion, Roman Reigns.