What's the story?
According to Cageside Seats, AJ Styles will only be in the United States title picture until Randy Orton concludes his feud with Bray Wyatt.
In case you didn't know...
In the main event of the latest episode SmackDown LIVE, AJ Styles defeated Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin in a Triple Threat Match to become the #1 contender for Kevin Owens' US Championship.
The heart of the matter
Before this past Monday's Superstar Shakeup, many speculated that Styles might end up joining the RAW roster. However, the face that runs the place was allowed to stay on the blue brand. On the April 4th edition of SmackDown, Styles informed Shane McMahon, that he didn’t want to move to RAW, so that could have played a role in Styles staying on SmackDown.
John Cena’s post-WrestleMania hiatus may also have been one of the reasons for Styles not being moved to RAW.
What's next?
Kevin Owens will defend his US Championship against Chris Jericho on April 30th at Payback with the winner of that match joining SmackDown. The winner of this match is also expected to defend his title against AJ Styles as of now.
Author's take
Styles never invoked his rematch clause after losing the World Title to John Cena at Royal Rumble. Instead, he was put in a program with Shane McMahon. Thus, reinserting him into the World Title picture seems like a sensible idea.
Also, with Bray Wyatt drafted to RAW, his chances of winning the World Championship seem slim, and with him out of the title picture, Styles seems like the perfect opponent for Randy Orton.
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