A.J. Styles (Allen Neal Jones) is a professional wrestler from the United States. He has demonstrated his wrestling prowess in practically every major American wrestling organization. He is currently signed to WWE and performs on the Smackdown brand. Although he does not have as many titles wins as other WWE legends, this does not suggest that he is less revered. Styles, who is known for a rare combination of speed and strength, is a beast in the ring and has won the WWE Championship title in 2016. Before joining WWE, Styles competed in TNA, Ring of Honor, and New Japanese Pro*Wrestling, where he established himself as one of the top wrestlers of the modern era. He has won the TNA World Heavyweight Championship four times and the NWA World Heavyweight Championship three times. Styles has also won multiple titles in the indie wrestling circuit, establishing himself as a professional wrestler. He became one of only three wrestlers in history to hold both the WWE and NWA World Heavyweight Championships at the same time after winning the WWE Championship in 2016.
Childhood and Adolescence
Allen Neal Jones, better known as A.J. Styles, was born on June 2, 1977, in North Carolina, United States. Styles, who grew up in poverty with an alcoholic father, characterizes his childhood as “worse than hell” and says that he initially despised his father because of his aggressive behavior.
Styles enrolled in a wrestling school while still in high school, just for the joy of it, because his friends were doing it. He didn’t enjoy it at first, but wrestling grew on him over time, and he began to take it more seriously.
Styles obtained a wrestling scholarship and attended a college in South Carolina after graduating from Johnson High School in Georgia. To make ends meet throughout the early stages of his career, Styles worked odd jobs such as driving and delivering water to residences.
The Career of Styles
Styles received his big break at the 1998 National Championship wrestling in Georgia, where he was taught by superstar Rick Michaels but lost his first singles match.
He did, however, win the Promotional Tour’s Television championship in 1999. Styles subsequently went on to compete in a number of independent wrestling competitions both in the United States and abroad.
Styles debuted in the WWA’s Australian promotion in February 2002, winning his first championship, the WWA International Cruiserweight Championship, after defeating Jerry Lynn. Styles wrestled for the East Coast Wrestling Association, Frontier Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation on two occasions (WWF).
In mid-2002, Styles joined TNA wrestling, where he won the inaugural TNA X Division Championship and went on to win the Tag Team Championship as well.
He lost the X Division Championship to Low Ki a few months later and tried unsuccessfully to reclaim it. In October, he reclaimed the title, only to lose it again a few weeks later.
Styles immediately rose through the ranks of Ring of Honor, becoming the show’s main event wrestler and losing his first title chance for the ROH World Championship, only to later become the number one contender for the belt. In 2003, he set his sights on the ROH Tag Team Championship, teaming up with Amazing Red to defeat The Prophecies to win the title.
After defeating a number of wrestlers in a one-night event, including CM Punk, Styles was crowned ROH Pure Wrestling Champion. When his contract with ROH expired in 2004, the belt became vacant. When he returned to ROH in 2005, he tried unsuccessfully multiple times to win the ROH World Championship.
Styles and Tomko won the TNA World Tag Team Championship in 2007, which they lost in 2008. Styles and Samoa Joe formed TNA Front Line, a youthful team that took on The Main Event Mafia, which included huge names like Booker T and Kurt Angle.
Styles’ battle with the then-World Champion, Sting, began, and he eventually lost multiple fights for a shot at the championship. He did, however, defeat Booker T to win the Legends Championship.
In 2009, Styles defeated Matt Morgan, Sting, Kurt Angle, and Hernandez in a five-way grand match to win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.
He successfully defended his championship multiple times, eventually becoming a storyline villain as a result of his cheating in which he used Ric Flair’s assistance in the matches. Rob Van Dam, on the other hand, put an end to Style’s Reign in 2010. Styles tried several times to reclaim the title but to no avail.
Styles defeated Terry in July 2010 to win the Global Championship, which he lost shortly thereafter. In 2012, he formed a tag team with Kurt Angle and defeated Daniels and Kazarian to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship, which they lost a few weeks later to the same team, and he went on to challenge the tag team champions a few times without success.
Styles returned to Ring of Honor in 2014, defeating Roderick Strong in his debut bout and immediately establishing himself as the first challenger for the ROH World Heavyweight Championship, although he was defeated by champion Jay Lethal in the match.
In January 2016, WWE officials confirmed that Styles was joining the company, and in his first title defense at the Royal Rumble Match, he was eliminated in under 30 minutes, losing the title, and igniting a long-running feud with Chris Jericho, who was enraged that Styles had lost a tag team match in which they had fought together.
Styles didn’t waste any time in becoming the number one contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, and he was recruited to Smackdown on July 19. Styles defeated Ambrose to win the WWE World Championship in September 2016 and defended the title against John Cena and Ambrose in a three-way match.
However, he lost the WWE Championship to John Cena at the Royal Rumble, and at the start of 2017, he was eyeing the WWE Championship. Styles became the first contender for the United States Championship in April, however, he was defeated by Kevin Owens for the championship.
Styles has also been a part of the New Japan Pro Wrestling organization, where he won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. He was also the Bullet Club’s leader. PWG World Championship and RPW British Heavyweight Championship are two of his previous independent circuit victories.
His Personal Experiences
Wendy, A.J. Styles’ high school girlfriend, and a school teacher married him in 2000. Ajay Covell Jones, Avery Jones, and Albey Jones are his sons, while Anney Jones is his daughter. Styles loves his children so much that he got a large tattoo of all of his children’s birth dates.
Styles previously stated in an interview that his family was so poor that they couldn’t afford a television when he was a kid, so he used to go to his friends’ houses to watch wrestling events.
Estimated Net Worth
As of 2021, AJ Styles’ net worth is projected to be around $6 million. WWE pays him a base salary of $1 million each year. Styles also makes money from item sales and appearances on pay-per-view television.