AJ Styles has revealed he plans to keep his WWE Hall of Fame induction speech short and sweet, saying he does not want to become one of those inductees who test the patience of the crowd and the audience at home. Speaking on The Phenomenally Retro Podcast, Styles addressed his upcoming induction.
“I’m gonna try not to piss everybody off who has come there to see all the other inductions,” Styles said. “There’s some guys that we’ve watched in the past, and you’re going, holy cow. Everybody’s thinking the same thing, like, alright man, that was good, that was great. So I’m gonna try to make sure that I stay within the guidelines of that and not make people hate AJ Styles based on his Hall of Fame induction speech.”
Styles said he has not yet determined the specifics of what he will say but knows the general shape of what he wants to convey. “Short and sweet, I think, is the best way to do it,” Styles said. “I don’t know exactly how it’s gonna be or what I’m gonna say, but I know I’ve got a lot of people that I need to thank. I’m gonna try to do that and tell the fans how much I appreciate them for getting me this far because, listen, I look at me in the mirror and I know I never should have made it. So the fact that I did, that’s a testament to the kind of fans that are out there.”
Styles was retired by GUNTHER at the Royal Rumble in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in January, losing a career-ending stipulation match to the man known as the Career Killer. The defeat brought the curtain down on a nearly three-decade career that took Styles from the independent circuit to the top of WWE, TNA, ROH, NJPW, and virtually every major promotion in the world. He was later announced as part of the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2026 alongside Dennis Rodman, Demolition, and Stephanie McMahon.
Since his retirement, Styles has taken on a new role within WWE as a scout, attending independent shows to evaluate emerging talent. According to FightfulSelect.com, Styles was recently at a Georgia independent show run by ROAR, where he was advising talent as part of his new backstage responsibilities.
WrestleMania 42 and the Hall of Fame ceremony take place the weekend of April 18 and 19 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit The Phenomenally Retro Podcast with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.