TNA Star Won’t Re-Watch AJ Styles Segment

A TNA star was left stunned by AJ Styles.

At TNA Bound For Glory, Leon Slater will defend his X-Division Championship against NXT stand-out Je’Von Evans. Both Slater and Evans have long been pegged as the future of the industry, and expectations around their match are high.

The match also represents another eye-catching moment during an impressive 2025 for Slater that saw him come face-to-face with TNA royalty at Slammiversary when he was met in the ring by AJ Styles.

On the show, Styles came to the ring after Slater defeated Moose to claim the X-Division Championship. The veteran heaped praise on the young star and reflected fondly on his own time in TNA.

Since then, Styles has repeatedly been linked with one more match in TNA, but it’s yet to come to pass.

Leon Slater Won’t Watch Back AJ Styles’ Moment

In a new interview with WhatCulture Wrestling ahead of his date with Je’Von Evans, Slater reflected on that moment with AJ Styles. He explained that it was true he had no idea the TNA icon would be coming out, before revealing that he hasn’t, and won’t, watch the moment back on video.

“1,000% true. I had absolutely zero clue. Obviously, AJ was announced, and I saw him backstage, so he signed and said hello. But even on the run sheet that we have backstage, there was no AJ Styles appearance scheduled, you know what I mean?

So when I was in the ring, I’d shaken Carlos’ hand, I’d had the belt from Moose, I’d given my family a hug because they were in the crowd, which is, again, another super cool moment. I was just taking it all in. I remember like looking around at the people and then all of a sudden I hear the drums like, Get Ready To Fly, and I lost my mind, bro. You could see it, right? I was jumping around. I was sprinting. After like a 20 minute match, I was exhausted, but the adrenaline pumped all the way back up, you know?

So again, I’ve said it a couple of times before, but for him to share that moment with me and that moment being his first moment in the company that he helped build in like 10 years plus, you know what I mean, was so, so special, and I still haven’t watched it back because I feel like moments like that, I want to preserve the first-person memory.

I feel like as soon as I watch the footage on these things, whether it’s a match or a promo, that memory gets turned to a third-person memory, you know what I mean? So everything about that night at Slammiversary, I can still remember living in full colour in first-person perspective, which I think is a super cool memory to hold, you know?”

At WWE Crown Jewel, AJ Styles was defeated by John Cena in arguably his biggest match of 2025. The bout, one of Cena’s final three, has been described as the pair’s ‘love letter to wrestling’ after they both used moves from some of their greatest rivals.

While Cena will bow out at Saturday Night’s Main Event on December 13, ahead of their match, Styles announced that he plans to retire in 2026. Styles has been open about his desire to compete at one more WrestleMania before then stepping away from the ring.

H/t to Fightful

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