Story byAJ Styles and Hangman Page - WWE and AEW/Lee SouthSam PalmerSat, February 14, 2026 at 3:00 PM UTC·7 min readThe career of "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles came to an end at the hands of Gunther at WWE Royal Rumble 2026 in Saudi Arabia, with "The Ring General" forcing Styles to pass out in his patented Sleeper Hold. There have been a lot of high profile retirements throughout the world of wrestling in recent years, and Styles is the latest modern legend to hang up his boots... or has he?Unlike the likes of Sting, John Cena, or Hiroshi Tanahashi, no one seems to believe that Styles is actually retiring for good, especially since he was going to leave his signature gloves in the ring after his loss to Gunther, only to put them back on and pose for the fans one more time. Naturally, this has led to a lot of speculation surrounding Styles' future and where he might go next if he isn't actually retired.