AJ Styles: WWE Paris crowd reaction ‘will stay with me for the rest of my life’
The support AJ Styles received from WWE’s fans in France last week is something that he’ll cherish for the rest of his life.
On the September 1 edition of Raw in Paris, Styles unsuccessfully challenged Dominik Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship. It still proved to be a memorable night for Styles, though, with the fans in France giving him a huge reception. They sang for him for several minutes before the match even began and never let up their support.
Styles reacted to the moment in a newly released post-match promo from last week. He said that, while the reaction was similar to the one he received at Backlash in Lyon, France last year, he was sure to really take it in and fully appreciate it this time.
“I wasn’t able to absorb it and take it all in [at Backlash 2024], but tonight I got to soak it in, close my eyes, and just take mental images that will stay with me for the rest of my life.
“Man, I didn’t realize how much AJ Styles was loved,” Styles said. “And that means a lot. It’s not just like, ‘Hey, he wrestles for the WWE.’ They appreciate the work that I put in for the past two decades, two and a half decades. And, man, that means a lot. I did something right in this business — not everything, but tonight, it showed me I did what it takes to get the love and support that I need. Need is the key word — I needed that. I needed that love to have a great match with Dominik Mysterio. Not because Dominik Mysterio is not great — because he is — I needed it for me. I needed it for my ego, all these little things that shouldn’t matter but sometimes it does because you just don’t know if you’ve done enough. I needed that.”
The Dominik vs. Styles match ended with Dominik retaining due to interference from El Grande Americano (Ludwig Kaiser), who helped out Dominik while Judgment Day was barred from ringside. Styles said in his post-match promo that he misses having allies like Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, and Omos.
“It’d be nice to have some help, but it’s on me now,” Styles said.
WWE has announced Styles vs. Americano for tonight’s Raw episode in Milwaukee.
