Ranking the 5 Wildest CM Punk & AJ Styles Retirement-Era Storylines Right Now

From Cody’s paranoia to AJ hanging it up and Punk’s classy Cena pitch, here’s every twist in this stacked stretch, ranked by how much we care.

There’s a lot swirling around WWE’s biggest names this stretch, and a surprising amount of it orbits two veterans in very different places: CM Punk running his mouth and AJ Styles walking away. Throw in tribute pitches, backstage guilt trips, and a paranoid Cody Rhodes, and you’ve got a buffet of storylines worth sorting. So let’s do exactly that — here are the five wildest angles from the current news cycle, ranked by how compelling they actually are.

5. AJ Styles admits he made Triple H feel bad over the GUNTHER spot

This one is pure inside-baseball catnip. According to Styles’ own comments about the awkward position he put Triple H in after his retirement match, there was clearly some emotional weight behind the booking of his final run against GUNTHER. It’s a fascinating peek at how the sausage gets made when a legend decides to hang it up — but it ranks low here only because it’s a story about a story. Great color, not a headline-grabber. The human element is real, though, and that’s what makes AJ AJ.

4. Danhausen takes credit for curses across pro sports

Look, sometimes you need a palate cleanser, and Danhausen bragging that his mystical powers are responsible for championship runs in other sports is exactly that. It’s ridiculous. It’s harmless. It’s completely committed to the bit. In a news cycle heavy on retirement melancholy and legal filings, a demon-clown taking a victory lap over things he had absolutely nothing to do with is a genuine gift. It ranks here because it doesn’t move any needles — but it earns its spot for making us smile.

3. AJ Styles stands by retiring at the Royal Rumble

This is the emotional core of AJ’s exit, and it deserves respect. As Styles explained about why the Rumble mattered so much to him, the setting wasn’t the point — the moment was. And honestly? Good for him. Too many all-time greats hang on three years too long or get shoved off the stage without ceremony. AJ picking his exit on his own terms, at a signature event, is the kind of dignified sendoff the Phenomenal One earned across two decades of being one of the best in-ring performers on the planet. The only reason it’s not higher is that a graceful goodbye, by design, isn’t a cliffhanger.

2. CM Punk’s classy pitch to honor John Cena

Say what you will about Punk — and everyone does — but this is the kind of gesture that reminds you why he’s such a magnetic figure. Punk reportedly floated the idea that he and Cody Rhodes lay their world championships on Cena’s shoulders as a tribute following Cena’s final match. Given the well-documented, decade-plus history between Punk and Cena, that’s a genuinely touching full-circle idea. It’s the sort of symbolic moment WWE loves, and it shows Punk understands the emotional grammar of pro wrestling better than almost anyone. This ranks near the top because it’s both heartfelt and smart — a rare combo.

1. CM Punk says Cody Rhodes is paranoid he’ll turn on him

Of course it’s this one. Nothing else in the cycle has this much live-wire storyline potential. Punk claiming that Cody is convinced a betrayal is coming is the tease that writes itself — and that’s precisely why it’s number one. Punk’s entire mystique is built on the idea that you can never fully trust him, and pairing that with a babyface as earnest as Cody is a slow-burn goldmine. Whether the turn ever actually happens is almost beside the point; the anticipation is the product. Every tag match, every handshake, every backstage segment now carries a loaded gun. That’s storytelling with real forward momentum, and it’s exactly what the top of the card should be doing.

The takeaway

What ties all this together is a shift in energy: the veterans are either bowing out with grace (AJ) or weaponizing their reputations to build tension (Punk). That’s a healthy sign for a roster in transition. The retirements give the moment weight; the mind games give it a future.

So where did we get it wrong? Should Danhausen have topped the list on sheer entertainment value alone? Drop your own ranking in the comments and let us hear it.