Like, Rey Mysterio level tiny.

 

Look, I know, it shouldn't matter. He just had a great match on the ROH PPV. He's a great worker and he's in ridiculously good shape.

 

But... even next to Jericho. It's amazingly noticeable. Possibly limiting even in 2016 WWE.

He looked Jericho-size.

Guys now in general are much smaller it seems.

Didn't look out of place next to Roman at all. In some weird fantasy booking life come true they looked like super competitive equals, although maybe that's just how Roman sells for everyone. In a world where Bryan Danielson can headline Wrestlemania, doubt this is a real problem

Styles trying to put Reigns in the Styles Clash looked ridiculous because AJ is so small.

In fairness, he failed at doing so.

 

He definitely looked smaller than Jericho. Which is good, because Jericho looks like an aging pro wrestler and Styles looks like an actual athletic person.

Styles trying to put Reigns in the Styles Clash looked ridiculous because AJ is so small.

Yeah that looked goofy. Might have to save that for the Ambrose size dudes and below. AJ's got like 5 finishers anyway, I think he'll get by just fine

Possible they had him doing the Clash on purpose to help mute any possibility that the fans would push him through like they did for Daniel Bryan. Thinking they would think he looked absurd next to a real pro wrestler. *Takes off tin foil hat*

Looked fine to me.

He's two inches taller than Eddie Guerrero was, and the exact same height as Daniel Bryan. He'll be fine.

I noticed he looked super small too... but I didn't think it mattered. Rey Mysterio, Jr. is a former world champion. Daniel Bryan was really the last big, over star that they had. I just think it's an antiquated mentality anymore... because all the best nowadays are super small.

 

But yeah, Roman dwarfed him. And Roman wasn't even near the biggest guy in the Rumble.

I have no idea why this is an issue, or a thread.

 

Headliners have never been able to be smaller than they are now, and AJ looked fine.

It's all about projection. Eddie Guerrero was larger than life. Daniel Bryan was too, with the beard, "YES" and arm movements. Even Rey was, with his colorful mask, outfits, and flashy array of high-flying moves. AJ Styles is not larger than life. I'm as happy as anyone that he's finally in the WWE - he deserves it - but yeah, he looked really tiny.

I know it didn't play that way on t.v., but live he got the loudest pop I've ever heard in 30 years of going to live shows. No one cared that he was small.

The biggest active PPV draw on the planet right now, with Ronda on the sidelines, is a man who fights at 145 and 155 pounds.

 

This Vince-ism that casual fans only want to see huge men club each other is not only antiquated, it is also empirically false. Mayweather was 145, I think?

 

Unfortunately, a lot of so called "expert" fans - not here, but on a lot of other sites - parrot that. It is really annoying.

Unfortunately, a lot of so called "expert" fans - not here, but on a lot of other sites - parrot that. It is really annoying.

Agree.

 

I'd also like to hear a solution for what he should do for people who think it's an issue. Retire? Wear lifts? Take what Big John Studd was taking?

Use a different finisher? Daniel Bryan started doing the running knee when his main event push was amped up partly because it was a move he could hit anytime on anyone. Obviously in general Styles's size isn't an issue but that visual was just not that great. They aren't having Rey lift tall guys in finishes either.

Reigns isn't that tall by wrestling standards. Reigns was struggling to not be put in the hold by holding his arms down to the floor, are people really confusing that with AJ being too short to apply his move?

 

AJ has given the move to plenty of people Reigns height or bigger in TNA and in New Japan.

Ok I am willing to give it a pass and see if it was just a bad shot and go from there. But surely in the future they could just have him do the calfkiller submission to avoid more of these bad shots.

Him keeping the name AJ Styles was the biggest surprise to me

I think his big "AJ" tat would have forced their hand a bit there. I also think he's a big enough star to have kept his name, same way Joe has in NXT

I'd also like to hear a solution for what he should do for people who think it's an issue. Retire? Wear lifts? Take what Big John Studd was taking?

 

Nah, no lifts or anything ridiculous like that. But he can start with his ring gear. What he wore during the Rumble was awful. His hair also looks like a rat's nest where the mama rat had babies and they all died. He's never going to be big, but he can still be larger than life. They're two different things IMO.

Why spout the tired WWE mentality that everything needs to be fixed upon arrival? AJ is a great wrestler who has gotten himself over in many contexts. If they give him a decent push, he'll get over again.

Why spout the tired WWE mentality that everything needs to be fixed upon arrival? AJ is a great wrestler who has gotten himself over in many contexts. If they give him a decent push, he'll get over again.

 

Fair enough. He has evolved over the years, so I'm sure he's smart enough to make adjustments as needed. You might respond that he doesn't need to adjust anything, but the fact is, any new environment (whether WWE or otherwise) will require those adjustments. Even Jericho, Bryan, etc. had to go through them when they went to the WWE. Now, you might prefer how they looked, wrestled, etc. before they came to the WWE, and that's fine, but it doesn't change the reality of what the WWE is looking for and expects.

Its not that we think he NEEDS to change as much as it is we know it is the WWE's MO to try to own the new guy by changing everything about him and it surprises when they don't.