AJ Styles Was Surprised His WWE Debut Didn't Leak

For many fans, there's little doubt that AJ Styles' debut during the 2016 Royal Rumble match was the highlight of WWE's marquee PLE, and arguably the highlight of 2016 for the promotion in general. And given Styles' status at the time as one of the biggest stars to never work for WWE, many would've thought a debut like that would've leaked ahead of time. But according to Styles during the latest episode of "The Phenomenally Retro Podcast," while there was certainly buzz about him coming in, the news never was officially leaked out. And it never leaked out despite the fact that Styles' debut wasn't a closely locked secret.

"I had to go and be in the meeting at the Royal Rumble meeting with everybody else," Styles said. "So kudos to those guys who didn't say anything, you know? That's awesome. Instead of flying into Orlando, I flew into Tampa, Florida, and drove up in a car, so there was that. It was really cool. I'm surprised it didn't get out. I knew it would, but it never did. So I guess that goes to say a lot about the guys that I was working with."

Entering at #3 in the Rumble, Styles would remain in the match for nearly a half an hour before he was eliminated by Kevin Owens. Despite not winning, the surprise debut would instantly make Styles a major player in WWE, and he would go on to wrestle another ten years for the promotion in what turned out to be a Hall of Fame run, winning the WWE Championship twice, the WWE Intercontinental and United States Championships a combined four times, and the WWE Tag Team Championships twice with Omos and Dragon Lee.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Phenomenally Retro Podcast" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription