Watch: AJ Styles Does Amazing 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin Impression
AJ Styles gave the SmackDown Live fans in attendance a special treat on Tuesday night during his [...]
AJ Styles gave the SmackDown Live fans in attendance a special treat on Tuesday night during his dark match with WWE Champion Daniel Bryan.
During their bout after the live show was off the air, Styles grabbed the mic and gave his best impression of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Needless to say, the impression was spot-on.
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"See if this reminds you of anything. If you want to see me give Daniel Bryan a Phenomenal Forearm, give me a hell yeah!" Styles said, nailing Austin's cadence and deep voice.
Styles has been in a bitter feud with Bryan ever since their WWE Championship match on an episode of SmackDown Live in late November. Styles was originally set to take on Universal Champion Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series, but wound up deciding to give Bryan one more shot at the WWE Championship a few days before the show. During the match Styles almost nailed the referee with a Phenomenal Forearm, which would up giving Bryan to opening to hit Styles with a low blow and knock him out with a Running Knee to win the title.
In the following weeks Bryan would explain his heel turn, saying that he was the "New Daniel Bryan" and that he would stop at nothing to keep his dreams of being WWE Champion alive. The two had a rematch at TLC, which Bryan won via a roll-up. With automatic rematch clauses now no longer apart of WWE booking, Styles had to earn another shot by beating Samoa Joe, Rey Mysterio, Randy Orton and Mustafa Ali in a fatal five-way match on an episode of SmackDown. The two will face off once again with the title on the line at the Royal Rumble.
While he's been a dastardly heel on television, Bryan has continued to be a big supporter to other wrestlers backstage. Ali, who was previously on the 205 Live roster, credited Bryan with him getting called up to the Blue Brand.
"There is so, and I'll never put words in anyone's mouth, but there is so many inclinations that I'm having that he's got more to say about it than he's letting on." Ali said on an episode of the Talk is Jericho podcast. "I mean just for a guy to get plucked out of 205 and get put with him in a program and then attacked [by Daniel] backstage after my third week on SmackDown. It's all him, you know what I mean? And man, what a guy to learn from. I can't say enough good things about him, but yeah, he'll never come out and say it. I have a strong feeling he's more involved than he's letting on."