AJ Styles spoke with Inside the Ropes for a new interview. The highlights are below:
On being jealous of those who came up in NXT: “Well I gotta tell you, I’m very jealous of the performers who’ve come up through NXT. They are like family. They know each other by their given names, their birth names. And so when they talk about each other I’m like ‘Who is that? Who are you talking to?’ So I’m like ‘Don’t call them by their birth name, call them by their WWE name.’ So I’m jealous of that, they have that family atmosphere, that’s the great thing about NXT. And I’ve said this also, back in – you know, way back then, years and years ago, there were people getting stabbed in the back so others can climb to the top. That’s not the way it’s done in NXT because you can actually care about the guy across from you. You know them, you know what they went through, you see them train, you’ve seen how hard they work. So you have a passion for each other and love man, so you want to see them do well. They love each other, and I think that’s the most important thing in the WWE right now. I’ve seen guys work so hard together because they love each other like family. They see how hard each other has worked through NXT and made their way finally to the main roster. I think that’s really important. For WWE alone. When you got some of the guys I care about most in this business, my best friends, are the guys I have the best matches with. That hopefully never changes in the WWE, because of NXT.”
On his reaction to Great Balls Of Fire: “Do we really have a pay-per-view called Great Balls Of Fire? Wow. Is there gonna be a piano? Is there gonna be a hardcore match with pianos – that’s all I can think of is pianos when I hear Great Balls Of Fire.”
On wrestling in the UK: “Yeah, they’re always great. Fans here always want to see the WWE so they’re always happy to see us, we’re happy to see them, and we’re ready to put on a show, they’re ready to be entertained. That’s what you want.”
