AJ Styles rules out ever wrestling in TNA again after 2025 return

AJ Styles shut the door on ever stepping back into TNA on Thursday, confirming his one-off return at Slammiversary 2025 marked the end of any chance he’d lace up for the company again.

What happened at Slammiversary 2025

On 18 June 2025, Styles walked TNA’s Slammiversary stage for a single in-ring segment with Leon Slater, then the X Division Champion. During a sit-down with Chris Van Vliet, Styles said TNA only asked him to show up and share a moment with Slater, not to wrestle. The segment spotlighted Slater’s record as the youngest X Division Champion in TNA history.

Why AJ Styles says a TNA match never happened

Styles was asked point-blank if he ever saw himself returning to the ring for TNA. His answer was decisive. “I don’t think there was ever a possibility of me having a match in TNA,” he told Van Vliet. The moment crystallized for him after Chelsea Green approached him backstage and floated the idea of a Styles match in TNA. “Once you open that door, it’s open now,” Styles explained. “People are going to want to do it.”

The Chelsea Green factor

Green’s comment wasn’t criticism-she simply said she’d love to see Styles back in action there, Styles recalled. That offhand remark convinced him a return bout would never materialize. “I knew that it never happened,” he said. The episode underscores how a single backstage exchange can shift a superstar’s calculus on future bookings.

What comes next for AJ Styles

Styles also fielded questions about a potential return from retirement during the same interview. He didn’t close the door on another comeback, but he made clear TNA won’t be part of it. For now, Styles remains focused on his current WWE commitments and any future opportunities outside the old TNA landscape.