AJ Styles has long been a staple of the wrestling fraternity, and since he made his professional debut way back in 1998, the now 44-year-old has etched his name into the history books as one of the greatest wrestlers of his generation. And the career of the superstar doesn’t appear to be winding down any time soon; he is still one of the favorites to take out the WWE Men’s Royal Rumble, the odds for which you can find on the best betting apps, after recently signing a huge deal to remain with WWE for a pretty hefty sum.

Known in the wrestling world as “The Phenomenal One”, Styles has no shortage of accolades next to his name. He is a three-time winner of the United States Championship, and has also claimed the Raw Tag Team Championship and Intercontinental Championship on one occasion apiece. In total, Styles has been victorious a huge 31 times, included among which are nine world titles. Clearly, he has been a major force on the world wrestling circuit for a long time, so it’s no surprise that his employers in WWE were eager to secure his signature.

Styles stands at just 5’11”, and though he weighs in at 99 kilograms there were some concerns when he returned to the WWE five years ago that he would struggle given his size, as well as the fact that the bulk of his success had been enjoyed in other promotions, notably Impact Wrestling and New Japanese Pro Wrestling (NJPW). However, throughout the course of his current stint with the company, he has comprehensively dispelled any doubts about his ability to compete at a high level in the WWE.

The new contract will continue a partnership which has now been running for in excess of five years, with Styles having initially made the move from NJPW for WWE at the beginning of 2016. Throughout that time, the man from Gainesville, Georgia has been voted the PWI Wrestler of the year twice (in 2016 and 2018), and was voted Wrestler of the Decade in 2020, so it’s safe to say that it’s been a fruitful partnership for both parties.

The contract will continue it for an undisclosed period of time, with news outlets only revealing that it would be a multi-year deal, though there have been some suggestions that it is in the range of three to five years. It’s also set to be a particularly financially profitable signing for Styles; reports suggest that it is valued at more than three million dollars per year, which will mean that he is among the top earners in the current WWE roster. On top of that, he’ll be gifted private bus travel while on the road; certainly nothing significant compared to the in excess of three million dollars that he’ll be earning, but a nice perk nonetheless.

The signing, though significant, doesn’t come as a major surprise to a lot of experts despite the number of potential suitors which the champion wrestler had. By signing him to such a lucrative deal before he became a free agent, WWE essentially prevented any of their competitors from having a chance to sign him up, though there were unsurprisingly still some fairly significant potential offers put in front of him, at least according to Dave Meltzer. Regardless, it seems as though Styles’ preference was to stay where he is. It has on numerous occasions been noted that he has enjoyed his time in the company, and even that he would be happy to continue his work for WWE even after he hangs up his professional costume.

The new contract marks a strong period of signings for WWE, with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn having also recently put pen to paper for the company. Those two names, like Styles, have made multiple references to their satisfaction working for WWE, so clearly the company is doing something right, and Styles’ new contract – by the end of which he will have been with them for up to a decade – only serves to confirm that.