A few weeks ago, AJ Styles made his long-awaited return to WWE television and opened SmackDown with a match against Carmelo Hayes.
The bout ended up being stopped when the Phenomenal One suffered an apparent foot injury; he then limped to the back and a later update from WWE suggested he might have sprained his ankle (it was later reported he'd suffered a mid-foot ligament sprain).
Some believed - and still do - that it was all part of a storyline meant to tie into the idea that Styles' career is winding down. Some outlets even claimed it was an angle, though we've since heard the former WWE Champion suffered a legitimate injury.
Rumour has it Styles' return was meant to kick off a farewell storyline, though it now sounds like he's going to be sidelined for several months.
Taking to X, Styles revealed he's suffered a Lisfranc injury. Those occur if bones in the midfoot are broken or ligaments that support the midfoot are torn. The severity of a Lisfranc injury can vary widely - from a simple injury involving one midfoot joint to a complex injury involving many midfoot joints and broken bones.
A simple Lisfranc injury can be easily mistaken for a sprain (which is what happened in Styles' case), especially if the injury is a result of a straightforward twist and fall. However, injury to the Lisfranc joint is not a simple sprain that should be "walked off" or expected to heal quickly.
Even a simple Lisfranc injury is a severe injury that may take many months to heal and may require surgery to treat.
"He’s really smart and he really cares. That’s what we need," Styles previously said of Triple He being in charge of WWE in place of Vince McMahon. "We need someone who not only wants to put on a great product but cares about the people that are working for him and doing their best. Sometimes we hit a wall and we’re not sure exactly what they want or what they want us to do."
"Just having that communication to say, 'Hey man, this is what I need.' It flips just like that and you understand it. Sometimes we just need time, maybe more time in NXT. I appreciate the fact that he cares about [us] because I’ve seen so much talent that definitely had a right to be in the WWE, but we didn’t give enough time to develop."
"I feel like we kind of ruined their lives to some degree because this is the peak of wrestling and we just said, 'You’re not good enough.' I hate that," Styles continued. "That’s not true mind you, but that’s what we’ve said doing what we were doing and I don’t think Triple H is willing to do that without giving someone a chance."
We wish Styles a speedy recovery and hope that, despite what he's saying below, he isn't "cooked."