Add as a preferred source on Google AJ Styles admitted that one of his biggest dream matches will never happen. The “Phenomenal One” revealed he would have liked to face Kenny Omega, but made it clear that possibility is completely off the table.
On his podcast Phenomenally Retro, Styles said the two went their separate ways and that time simply ran out.
“I would have liked to have had a match with him anywhere, but it didn’t happen. I got too old and we went different places. It is what it is, it just wasn’t meant to be. It’s never going to happen. Just throwing that out there, it’s never going to happen. Never going to happen.”
Although they never had a major singles rivalry, Styles and Omega share a connection in Bullet Club history. At New Year Dash 2016, held by NJPW, Omega turned on Styles and took over leadership of the group, shortly before the “Phenomenal One” left for WWE.
Omega, for his part, has publicly acknowledged Styles’ importance to his own career. In an interview, the AEW wrestler said Styles’ departure from Bullet Club ended up helping form The Elite, the group that later became instrumental in the creation of AEW.
Today, the situation makes the match even more unlikely. Styles put his career on the line against Gunther at Royal Rumble 2026, in a bout WWE billed as decisive for his future in the ring.
Omega, on the other hand, remains active in AEW, though he has dealt with serious physical issues in recent years. In other words, the showdown between the two will remain just one of the great matches pro wrestling never got to deliver.