Paul Heyman enjoys significant backstage respect and wielded authority over Monday Night RAW several years ago, maintaining his backstage influence. However, his power dynamics once led to real-life conflicts with top WWE talent, AJ Styles.
On April 15, 2020, WWE implemented severe budget cuts, leading to job losses, including prominent stars Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. Despite contract renewals, they were released due to financial constraints. Their successful stint in Impact Wrestling followed, with three World Tag Team Championships, before their triumphant WWE return orchestrated by Triple H.
Paul Heyman gets into a confrontation with AJ Styles on SmackDown
AJ Styles has publicly expressed his dislike for Paul Heyman in the past. Over the past couple of weeks, he has engaged in confrontations with The Wiseman of The Bloodline.
Looks like Jimmy @WWEUsos still has The Bloodline's back! 😳@HeymanHustle @AJStylesOrg #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/U6LY3JQlIa
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) September 9, 2023
On SmackDown this week, Jimmy Uso approached Paul Heyman, who told him to take care of AJ Styles in the main event of the night, while The Wiseman worked on getting The Bloodline back together. Heyman then bumped into The Phenomenal One. Luckily, Jimmy Uso was there to attack Styles and save Heyman. After that, Heyman told his voice assistant to call Roman Reigns, which shows that he was interested in bringing Jimmy back into the group.
The feud between The Bloodline and Styles started last week when Solo Sikoa faced off against The Phenomenal One in the main event. Jimmy assisted his cousin in winning the match and subsequently delivered a superkick to Styles afterward. This week, Styles returned the favor by defeating Solo Sikoa and pinning Jimmy in their match. However, he faced a beatdown from Sikoa after his victory.
AJ Styles once revealed he had real-life issues with Paul Heyman
When Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson were released by WWE in 2020, AJ Styles placed the blame on Paul Heyman, who was the Executive Director/Creative Head of Monday Night RAW at the time. Styles accused Heyman of failing to retain his friends with the company during the pandemic budget cuts.
Dave Meltzer revealed on the Wrestling Observer Forum that AJ Styles blamed Paul Heyman for WWE firing Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. Styles was reportedly 'furious' that Gallows and Anderson were released and he felt Paul Heyman didn't fight for his former OC stablemates. pic.twitter.com/S5ztkzI4su
— Juanito’s Wrestling Vlog & MORE (@juanitosvlog) June 14, 2020
Three years ago, Styles made an appearance on Talking Smack, where he incorporated his real-life feud with The Wiseman of The Bloodline. During this segment, he confidently declared his intention to win the Royal Rumble, challenge Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship, defeat him, and subsequently cause Paul Heyman to lose his job as the group’s wiseman. Although this scenario didn’t come to fruition, it was intriguing to witness AJ Styles channelling his real-life animosity with Paul Heyman on WWE TV.
“Let’s just say I choose to go after the Universal championship, and I beat Roman Reigns at WrestleMania, and he’s no longer sitting at the head of the table. He’s no longer the alpha. What that means, ultimately, is that you would be out of a job. And nothing would make me happier then to see you out of a job”, said AJ Styles.
However, this was 3 years ago and Styles had confirmed it on his Twitch stream that he doesn’t hold any grudges anymore and that it was “water under the bridge” for the two men.
