Best Booking Options for AJ Styles Upon WWE Arrival

WWE is poised to insert surging all-star AJ Styles into its lineup and is flush with intriguing options as to where to plug him in.

Fresh off having the best year of his career, Styles would thrive as a title contender, a foil for the veteran Chris Jericho or as part of an adaptation of a faction-centered storyline. WWE Creative has to be giddy with so many potential promising routes ahead.

Styles' arrival would deepen a roster beset by injuries. WrestleMania instantly becomes far more intriguing with him on the card. And after composing classics for New Japan Pro Wrestling and Ring of Honor, doing so for Vince McMahon would be a dream scenario.

(Note: A potential spoiler follows.)

After all the rumblings and rumors from the past few weeks of Styles signing with WWE, his arrival now looks imminent. PWInsider's Mike Johnson reported, "AJ Styles will begin his tenure with WWE this coming week." Johnson noted that whether Styles will enter the Royal Rumble is unknown but wrote that he "will be making his WWE debut very soon."

With that news, the discussion turns from "What if Styles come to WWE?" to "What's the best use of his talents as part of the sports entertainment giant?"

Of the rumors involving Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson heading to WWE, Jim Ross wrote on his blog, "The key to this matter now is how will WWE introduce these men, as how they are initially presented will go miles into how they are perceived by the fans."

Ross is absolutely right. Treating the longtime TNA marquee star like a major addition will go a long way toward making the WWE fanbase treat him as such. Making him just another guy would be a waste.

The Royal Rumble is a smart way to establish him as a force rather than fodder.

Storm into the Royal Rumble

With the Royal Rumble set to decide the WWE World Heavyweight Championship for the first time since 1992, the 30-man bout is even more significant than usual. Its buzz will be bigger. Its stakes will be higher.

Making his debut on that night—and making a huge impact—would give him plenty of momentum right way.

Have Styles slug it out with Big E, send Stardust flying over the ropes and make it to the final six competitors. Should he last a long stretch in the match or eliminate a good number of opponents, his arrival will certainly leave folks talking.  

Orlando, Florida, host of this year's Royal Rumble, should offer a favorable crowd, considering that city's ties to TNA. John Canton of The Comeback is among those who believe that "his reaction at the Rumble would be amazing."

Plus, with this option, WWE can set up what's ahead for Styles. The 30-man contest is often the catalyst for feuds. If Kevin Owens, for example, is the one to oust him from the battle, building bad blood from there would be easy.

Pursue the Intercontinental Championship

While Styles' biggest fans would love to see him skyrocket to the top and start battling for the world title against the likes of Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, it's hard to go from outsider to the top tier like that. As great as Styles has been at TNA and more recently with NJPW, there will be casual fans who are, at best, vaguely familiar with his work.

Shooting for a midcard belt instead would be more realistic early on.

With Dean Ambrose and Owens comprising the IC title picture, WWE will guarantee itself a number of great matches. Owens vs. Styles is a dream matchup and likely to look a lot like bouts between Sami Zayn and Owens. Ambrose is quite the intriguing opponent as well.

Credit: WWE.com

Styles works much like Seth Rollins, and Ambrose's best WWE work has been against him. A similar blend of brawling and high-flying is sure to make a statement right away.

Nick Gator of The Gator Pit podcast, for one, believes that Styles' insertion into Ambrose vs. Owens is best for business:

The title would be elevated if a guy of Styles' caliber to walk in and immediately focus on the Intercontinental Championship. It would be clear how much that piece of gold is desired all around the world. There would also be a welcome symmetry in that Styles was last battling for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship in Japan.

WWE would have itself quite the IC title match at WrestleMania with Ambrose colliding with Styles, and Owens would move on to Undertaker or Lesnar.

Challenge Chris Jericho

Talk about a dream match. Styles vs. Jericho has show-stealer written all over it. That's a curveball of an option for WWE to add to a WrestleMania that has had to adapt thanks to a series of injuries.

Those two wrestlers are both top-notch in-ring performers with plenty of cache among the diehard fans.

Michael N. Todaro/Getty Images

Pitting them against each other is a smart way to make WrestleMania feel bigger. And along the way, Jericho and Styles' trash-talk sessions are bound to be must-watch. Jericho has been diving into ridiculous territory clashing with The New Day, but opposite Styles, he could return to his best work. That would be especially true if Jericho were to revert to a heel role.

Styles is solid on the mic, but not fantastic. Having someone like Jericho lead the way would be a good way to get him started.

To earn a crack at Y2J, Styles can earn wins against the midcard each week on Raw. After scoring victories against guys like King Barrett and Stardust and then triumphing against a future Hall of Famer like Jericho, Styles would be riding high heading into the summer.

From Bullet Club to Balor Club

The obvious path is to follow up on the Bullet Club storyline from NJPW, but for WWE to make the tale its own.

Finn Balor once led the heel faction, with Gallows, Anderson and others under his command. When Balor left Japan for WWE, Styles took over. There's now plenty to explore should Balor, Gallows, Anderson and Styles all be on the WWE stage.

Rolling Stone's Aaron Oster wrote, "If Styles, Gallows and Anderson end up in NXT, would WWE reform the Bullet Club there? It seems likely, given the fact they're already pushing the "Balor Club.'" 

Balor and Styles could join forces on the main roster. Balor could be Styles' enemy, with the two citing past differences. WWE had Zayn and Owens continue their feud from Ring of Honor at NXT, and doing something similar with Styles would lead to the same built-in chemistry and tension.

In an interview with WhatCulture, Styles said of Balor, "That's one most people would like to see me wrestle."

He's right. That match has potential to be an absolute thrill ride. And that's the kind of collision WWE should be looking to give Styles.

Whether or not he can be a top-of-the-card guy for WWE remains to be seen, but it's clear from his outstanding 2015 and his career as a whole that Styles can churn out classics. Having him face Owens, Ambrose, Jericho or Balor would allow him to just that.