AJ Styles Says He’ll Continue to Work With WWE & Nurture Younger Talents

AJ Styles may have retired from in-ring competition, but he has made it clear that he will continue to contribute to the business by working with WWE as a backstage mentor.

Styles delivered a farewell message to fans during an emotional tribute segment this past Monday night on WWE RAW and subsequently left his gloves and jacket in the ring, effectively confirming his retirement. He was subsequently announced as the latest member of the Class of 2026 WWE Hall of Fame.

Last night, The Phenomenal One appeared on the Talk N Shop Podcast, where he shut down the speculations that he would join All Elite Wrestling in the future and continue to wrestle. AJ announced that while he is done with in-ring action, he will continue to work with WWE in a backstage role and nurture and shape the younger talents into future stars.

“I’m still going to be working with WWE. That’s not going to change. I’ve these dreams and aspirations of helping out younger talents and helping them get ready. And if somebody is not ready once they get there, it’s my job to hopefully help them get to that point where they can do it; they are confident when they step into a WWE ring. That they have the ability and the talent to… they are one of the boys or one of the girls, you know, that they belong. And being able to help with that is a blessing. So I’m excited about it,” AJ said.

Check out AJ Styles’ comments [from 54:20 onward] below:

Please credit the Talk N Shop Podcast and give an H/T to 411Mania for the transcription if you take quotes from this article.