Matt Hardy has shared his thoughts on the recent reports that AJ Styles is planning to retire from in-ring competition in 2026. Speaking on his podcast, The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy, the wrestling legend praised Styles as both a performer and a person, and made a strong case for Styles being the single most important figure in the history of TNA Wrestling.
A Great Performer and Human Being
When asked about the news that Styles may be wrapping up his career next year, Hardy expressed that he would miss having him as an active performer in the industry. “I mean, I’ll miss him,” Hardy said. “AJ is great. I love AJ as a performer. I love him as a human being. What a great dude. Very, very proud to call him a friend.” Hardy said he understands the desire for a wrestler to want to go out while they are still performing at a high level.
“Some people, you know, some people want to leave whenever they can, whenever they feel like they might be taking a step back, or they might be getting a little slower, they might be getting a little older. They want to like, you know, they want to leave where they feel like they’re on top. So I get it, and that’s fine, you know, we’ll miss him. We’ll miss an AJ Styles, because he’s a very, very special talent.”
The Most Important Wrestler in TNA History
Hardy also spoke about Styles’ legacy, particularly his foundational role in TNA Wrestling. He stated unequivocally that Styles is the most important wrestler to ever compete for the promotion. “I know in his heart. He’s got a lot of love for TNA, really, when I think about it, he is the most important TNA,” Hardy stated.
“TNA, no doubt about it. I mean, he is the guy that put TNA on the map whenever it first started. So you know, without AJ Styles, TNA isn’t where it is right now.” When discussing a “Mount Rushmore” of TNA, Hardy also mentioned Kurt Angle as another pivotal figure for the company.
Matt Hardy’s podcast drops every Friday at ExtremeHardy.com. If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit ExtremeHardy.com with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
