AJ Styles Suffers Injury In WWE SmackDown Return

Fans were excited to see AJ Styles back in a WWE ring after spending several months off television, not appearing since his loss at Clash At The Castle: Scotland when he lost to Cody Rhodes in an “I Quit” match for the Undisputed WWE Championship, though his return bout against Carmelo Hayes on last night’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown didn’t necessarily go as planned. 

During the match, fans noticed Styles taking an awkward landing on his knee after a moonsault, and when hitting Hayes with a backbreaker, his leg and ankle seemed to buckle again also. Whilst Styles is renowned for great selling, this looked concerning, especially since his match with Hayes was halted by a referee. Styles limped to the back on his own, but was shown being checked out by medical personnel backstage. 

There have been no reports as of yet on the severity of the injury or even whether it is a part of a WWE storyline. It was reported in recent weeks that Styles’ contract with WWE was set to expire in the coming months, either by the end of 2024 or at the start of 2025.