AJ Styles to put career on line at WWE Royal Rumble

AJ Styles is set to retire at some point in 2026 — and that could potentially happen as soon as the Royal Rumble.

WWE has announced that Gunther vs. Styles will take place at the Saturday, January 31 PLE in Saudi Arabia. It’s a career-threatening match where Styles will retire if he loses. He agreed to the stipulation after it was proposed by Gunther as the only way that Gunther would accept another match after how things ended on Raw last week.

The January 12 Raw episode was headlined by Gunther defeating Styles after hitting a low blow and powerbomb. Gunther had tricked Styles into thinking the match was over by tapping out in a Calf Crusher behind the referee’s back. With Styles letting go of the hold, Gunther was able to pick up the victory soon after.

A promo segment then opened Raw today with Styles attempting to goad Gunther into a rematch by calling him scared. Gunther would not give in, saying there was no incentive for him to face Styles again. But he then came up with the idea for Styles to put his career on the line. He gave Styles the rest of the show to think about his answer. After talking it over with his wife, Styles revealed his decision.

“She said exactly what I was thinking — kick his ass,” Styles said as the matchup was made official.

Gunther has already retired Goldberg and John Cena and will now be looking to do the same to Styles. In their storyline, Styles has taken exception to how Gunther has acted so disrespectfully after defeating Cena.

The Royal Rumble is being held in Riyadh on January 31 and has a start time of 2 p.m. Eastern. Gunther will be pulling double duty on the show with him also confirmed as one of the men’s Rumble entrants.

Here is the updated card:

WWE Royal Rumble 2026 —

  • Men’s Royal Rumble match
  • Women’s Royal Rumble match
  • WWE Champion Drew McIntyre defends against either Randy Orton, Damian Priest, Sami Zayn, or Trick Williams (will be determined at Saturday Night’s Main Event on January 24)
  • Gunther vs. AJ Styles (Styles forced to retire if he loses)
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Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier

Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.

In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.