WWE: AJ Styles Injury Update, AOP, A-Kid Signing, Shinsuke Nakamura on Career Future

AJ Styles Injury Status Update

As noted before, AJ Styles is currently dealing with a shoulder injury stated by Styles to be a simple case of wear-and-tear and him needing some time off for rest.

Dave Meltzer reported in this Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Styles is currently expected to be out of action for at least one month and WWE still has plans for his feud with Seth Rollins for the Universal Championship to continue shortly after his return.

Another Update on Authors of Pain Current Status

As noted before, AOP’s Akam reportedly was recently medically cleared to return to in-ring action but WWE’s original plans for the team’s return were put on hold due to issues with the new Wild Card rule.

PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported that WWE officials currently have plans for AOP to return next month for the SmackDown Live brand. It was reported that the team is currently scheduled to compete in SmackDown’s set of live events for the month of June and would be the first live events for the team since Akam’s injury in January of this year.

A-Kid Reportedly Expected to Sign New Contract with WWE

Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that A-Kid is currently expected to be signing a contract with WWE for their NXT U.K. brand, assuming the deal has not already been signed.

A-Kid made his debut for WWE at last month’s NXT UK television tapings and made his official on-air debut during this week’s episode of NXT UK. A-Kid teamed with Carlos Romo in a losing effort against Gallus’ Mark Coffey and Wolfgang.

Shinsuke Nakamura Comments on the Future of His Career

Singapore newspaper The Strait Times held a recent interview with Shinsuke Nakamura and one of the topics discussed included the future of his wrestling career and potential retirement plans.

“I want to wrestle at least five more years. I’m 39 now. (Former MLB) baseball player Ichiro Suzuki retired at 45 and he was such an influence for Japanese sportsmen, especially those who lived in other countries. And so I need to wrestle until I’m 45 years old.”