• AJ Styles Makes Big Business Decision Before Career-Threatening Match
As AJ Styles prepares for a high-stakes career-threatening showdown with Gunther this Saturday at the Royal Rumble in Riyadh, the former WWE Champion is making significant moves to protect his legacy outside the ring.
In a move that could hint at his plans for life after a potential loss, the wrestler—under his real name, Allen Jones—has filed two major trademark applications with the USPTO. Rather than letting WWE control his branding, Styles is personally laying claim to his most famous assets: the name “The Phenomenal AJ Styles” and the iconic “P1” stylized logo.
The timing is critical. While WWE usually owns the names of its performers, Styles is leveraging his history to keep control of his brand.
His filing for the “Phenomenal” name dates its first use back to December 2000, long before he ever stepped foot in a WWE ring. Similarly, the “P1” logo filing references a first use in 2011, protecting his right to sell shirts, hats, and sweatshirts independently.
Whether he wins on Saturday or is forced into retirement, AJ Styles is officially taking his business into his own hands.
• WWE Makes Gunther’s New Gimmick Official
WWE is making sure no one else can claim the most dangerous nickname in the business. On January 26, the company officially filed to trademark “Career Killer,” the moniker currently being used to define Gunther’s path of destruction on the main roster.
This legal move is a strategic play to lock down Gunther’s branding across every possible platform. The filing covers a massive range of “entertainment services,” ensuring WWE has exclusive rights to the title for live wrestling performances, television broadcasts, internet media, and even fan club merchandise.
The timing of the filing is noticeably significant. With Gunther retiring Goldberg and John Cena in 2025, and now preparing for a career-threatening match against AJ Styles at the Royal Rumble this Saturday, the “Career Killer” label has become the central theme of his character.
By securing the trademark now, WWE is signaling that this isn’t just a temporary catchphrase, it’s the cornerstone of Gunther’s identity as the ultimate final boss of the modern era.
• “I know the IWC is gonna rip all that apart” – The Undertaker Explains Why He Doesn’t Like WWE Unreal
On his Six Feet Under podcast, The Undertaker explained why he doesn’t like WWE Unreal:
“From my aspect and my end of the business, I don’t like it. Everybody’s gonna say, ‘Oh my God, it’s an old school guy trying to protect kayfabe.’ Look, I don’t care if it’s 2025, it’s 1990, or it’s 1984. Everybody understands what wrestling is. Ain’t no big veil been lifted.
I don’t wanna go and see a magician and know how he’s doing everything. I understand that there’s a huge part that’s like, ‘Oh, that’s interesting, I wanna do that.’ Everybody knows what we do. Right? But when I’m in the ring, my whole goal, my motivation, is to get one person, just one person to think, ‘Wow. Undertaker just clocked him.’
I don’t care what everybody else is doing. That right there, that was the real thing. So there’s always the doubt. Right? And again, I know there’s the IWC and the kids out there, they’re gonna rip all that apart and I don’t really care.
I don’t think we have to throw it in people’s faces. I think we’ve got too comfortable. I think we’re too comfortable now in talking about our business. And I struggle on these podcasts too. It’s hard to talk and tell stories without lifting it up a little bit. But I think we’ve gone too far.
And again, I understand everyone knows what it is, what we do, but there’s gotta be a little bit of mystery.”
Also Read: Champion Refused To Be Part Of WWE Unreal Season 2
• Possible Spoiler On Who’s Behind The Mystery Phone Call With Adam Pearce
Brock Lesnar will be involved in WWE programming in the near future, with signs pointing toward a significant role as the company moves deeper into Royal Rumble and WrestleMania season.
On WrestleVotes Live on Fightful Select, Lesnar’s return at the Royal Rumble will position him for a return to the top of the card. The expectation is that his involvement will not be minor or isolated, but instead tied to a broader, high-level storyline that carries through WrestleMania 42.
There was also discussion connecting Lesnar to the ongoing Adam Pearce and Paul Heyman mystery phone call angle, with the belief that The Beast could be revealed as the individual behind it. If that proves to be the case, it would place Lesnar directly into a central storyline almost immediately upon his return.
