5 reasons why AJ Styles lost the title to Daniel Bryan
AJ Styles, shockingly, lost the WWE Championship to Daniel Bryan on this week's SmackDown Live, after holding the title for 371 days since winning it back on November 7, 2017 when he defeated Jinder Mahal.
Bryan's win on SmackDown against Styles - which is also his first title in WWE since his return to the ring, means that Bryan will now face Brock Lesnar on Sunday at Survivor Series, in a match between the Universal Champion and the WWE Champion.
Here, we look at the 5 reasons why AJ Styles lost the title to Daniel Bryan:
#1 To turn Bryan heel
Since returning to in-ring action earlier this year, Daniel Bryan has been one of the most popular Superstars and babyfaces on WWE television. The former SmackDown GM gets a huge pop whenever he enters the ring and was super over with the fans... until this week on SmackDown.
WWE teased a Bryan heel turn last week when he attacked Samoa Joe, The Miz, as well as Shane McMahon to end SmackDown Live. Bryan looked angry and had a wickedness about him that hinted at a heel turn.
It makes little sense why Bryan turned heel, considering there are many good heels on SmackDown, namely The Miz, Samoa Joe, Randy Orton, and Shinsuke Nakamura, to name a few.
Bryan is one of a few top babyfaces on the blue brand, but WWE have decided to turn him heel, and the best way to do so was to cheat his way to a victory against a top babyface in WWE television, and someone who has held the title for as long as Styles has. Screwing over Styles has ensured that Bryan will have nuclear heat the next time he makes his way to a SmackDown ring.
Perhaps WWE want to set-up a feud between Styles and Bryan which will extend till Royal Rumble, and having a face vs heel dynamic makes things more interesting than a face vs face rivalry, despite both wrestlers being great in-ring performers.