AJ Styles lost a career-threatening match against Gunther at the 2026 Royal Rumble. The Phenomenal One couldn’t overcome The Austrian Anomaly and passed out to the Sleeper Hold. Following his untimely retirement, Kairi Sane sent an emotional message to Styles.
Taking to X, the former NXT Women’s Champion and three-time Women’s Tag Team Champion, posted a video where Styles can be seen assisting her to land an Insane Elbow on Raquel Rodriguez. The clip was from the July 28, 2025, episode of RAW, where the veteran teamed up with The Kabuki Warriors to defeat Dominik Mysterio, Roxanne Perez, and Raquel Rodriguez.
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Kairi Sane wrote that she would always remember the abovementioned moment. She also shared a couple of pictures with the two-time WWE Champion and wrote that it was her dream to work with him.
“It was always my dream to work together with you in the ring, and I was truly happy that it came true. I will never forget this moment. Thank you so much, @AJStylesOrg. #ThankYouAj #Respect. 💪🏻”
AJ Styles was unable to part with his gloves
After John Cena lost his final match to Gunther, he removed his wrist bands and shoes in the ring. But when AJ Styles tried to do the same, he was unable to let go of his gloves. The Phenomenal One did remove them, but ended up putting them back on and posing for the fans in attendance.
The final moments of the match saw Styles almost escaping The Ring General’s Sleeper Hold twice. But he eventually got caught and passed out, prompting the referee to signal for the bell to ring.
The former TNA star had said that he wanted to give fans a year-long retirement tour. But he was forced to conclude his in-ring career this past Saturday. It will be interesting to see what lies ahead for Styles and Gunther.
Edited by Pratik Singh