AJ Styles was planned to be squashed in a major world title match, according to former WWE Champion
Former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam (RVD) recently revealed the original plans for his TNA World Title match against AJ Styles in 2010.
RVD made his way over to TNA Wrestling at the turn of the 2010s, where he was presented as a main-event player until 2013. The ECW legend won the TNA World Heavyweight Championship less than two months after his debut. Van Dam defeated The Phenomenal AJ Styles to win his first major title in TNA.
Speaking on his One Of A Kind podcast, RVD recalled how former Executive Producer of TNA, Eric Bischoff, wanted him to squash AJ Styles during their TNA title match, as the former WWE RAW GM didn't seem too impressed by the Phenomenal One.
“Eric Bischoff didn’t seem too impressed with AJ [Styles]. Before going out there, I just remember Eric saying, 'Just make it really short and quick; a five-star frog splash [in the] middle of the ring!' It sounded like he wanted me to squash the dude, which, of course, I didn’t want to do. AJ’s very talented, and we had a lot of matches together that were really good!'' recounted RVD. [H/T:EWrestlingnews]
RVD recently spoke about Paul Heyman getting inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame
Legendary promoter and manager Paul Heyman will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this weekend.
During a recent edition of One Of A Kind, former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam opened up about who should induct Paul Heyman into the Hall of Fame.
"Well, I have never thought about that, you know, till this moment. And I guess, he must do it in a way where all the pieces are put together in their own balance, or I just think of Paul as being Paul. And I'm looking individually and comparing him [Paul Heyman] to Lou Albano, or comparing him to Freddie Blassie, and it's not something that I find, like, you know, ridiculous to say, but at the same time you know, I just think of him as being unique!" he said. [3:53-4:35]
Paul Heyman is considered one of the greatest managers in professional wrestling. The veteran has managed several decorated names such as Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, and CM Punk. It will be interesting to see who Heyman manages in the WWE after the end of The Bloodline storyline.