WWE: AJ Styles wants 'special' match with Randy Orton
Phenomenal One says John Cena has made him better performer
Last Updated: 01/02/17 11:43am
AJ Styles says he and Randy Orton will create "something special" if they ever go one-on-one.
Smackdown stars Styles and Orton were on the same side at Survivor Series in November as their brand battled a team from Monday Night Raw, but they are yet to face each other in a WWE ring.
Styles will secure a WrestleMania bout against Orton if he regains the WWE Title inside the Elimination Chamber later this month, with The Viper winning January's Royal Rumble in San Antonio.
"I think there's that one person that everybody would like to see me work with, and that's Randy Orton," the 39-year-old, who joined WWE in early 2016, told The Chad Dukes Wrestling Show.
"Randy and I have yet to even touch in the ring, I don't think I've hit him with anything, or he's hit me. None of that's ever happened. I think that's gonna be something special when it does."
Styles' greatest rival since he made his WWE debut in last year's Royal Rumble Match has been John Cena, the man who ended his 140-day championship reign on Sunday night.
Styles beat the 16-time world champion in one-on-one bouts at Money in the Bank and SummerSlam in 2016, before losing a 25-minute classic inside San Antonio's Alamodome at the weekend.
"John Cena has made AJ Styles a better performer, there's no doubt about that," he said.
"When you're in there with someone like John Cena, he knows how to capture a crowd, no matter what they feel about him, and he finds a way to get them behind what he's doing and saying."
"[I have] learned a lot from being in WWE, but I think the thing that I've had the opportunity to do more in WWE is actually mic work. I've certainly gotten better at getting in the ring and speaking."
Styles receives booming ovations from most WWE crowds, even though many victories during his world-title reign were earned through questionable tactics, including when he cracked Dean Ambrose with a low blow while winning the belt at the Backlash event last September.
The Phenomenal One thinks his size - he stands at 5ft 11ins and weighs in at 218 pounds - makes him someone fans can relate to.
"I kind of feel like maybe the audience thinks, 'he's not this gigantic man, he's like one of us'," added Styles. "I feel like that's the reason there's a connection.
"This guy didn't go through the process of the WWE - he debuted after being in the business for 16 years.
"The fact of the matter is I just feel like people think, 'he's one of us and no matter what he does sometimes, we're not gonna boo him'."
Watch Styles attempt to regain the WWE Title - and book a WrestleMania showdown with Randy Orton - at Elimination Chamber, live on Sky Sports Box Office on Sunday, February 12.
