The Awful AJ Styles And Claire Lynch Storyline, Explained

Despite being one of the greatest wrestlers in the world, and one of the greatest TNA stars of all time, AJ Styles isn't immune to terrible storylines, and during his time in the promotion now dubbed Impact Wrestling, he was involved in one of the worst stories in the history of the company.

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Back in 2012, Styles was, and still is, considered one of the best wrestlers on the planet, and he was one of the biggest names TNA had on the roster, but he found himself in one of the promotion's worst-ever storylines when Claire Lynch debuted as a recovering drug addict that he may or may not have had been having an affair with... yikes.

With Dixie Carter heavily involved, false pregnancies, and even matches over possible DNA tests, the feud was an absolute disaster, and surprisingly wasn't around for long before it was canned off, and TNA tried to quickly move on and pretend it never happened.

His run in TNA as a whole was quite an impressive one, and what he has gone on to do since he left the promotion really solidified his status as one of the best wrestlers in the world, but just for a brief moment he was involved in one of the most embarrassing storylines in wrestling.

It Started With Accusations Of An Affair Between Styles And Dixie Carter

While the two would eventually feud resulting in Styles' exit from TNA, rumors were running rampant in 2012 that the Phenomenal one and Dixie Carter were embarking on a secret affair. In one of the more ridiculous accusations in wrestling, the pair were accused by Bad Influence, with photos of them meeting at hotels being shown to audiences.

It was a ridiculous concept, which somehow managed to get worse as the storyline unfolded, but TNA even had Dixie's real-life husband appear on television to confront Styles about the apparent affair. It was cringe-inducing, and way below anything the Phenomenal One should have been doing at the time.

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Eventually, the pair came clean and revealed to everyone that they weren't having an affair, but were in fact actually helping a recovering, pregnant drug addict, and somehow the story managed to get even worse.

Claire Lynch Was Apparently Pregnant With AJ's Baby

It was a rough summer for AJ, and after it was clear he wasn't having an affair with Dixie, he was instead accused of having an affair with the recovering drug addict Claire Lynch and had even gotten her pregnant.

Lynch immediately turned heel and claimed the rumors were true, announcing she was in fact pregnant with AJ's child. She would then begin harassing him for weeks. It was really laughable television, and it was clear TNA soon realized this as it was quickly brought to an end with Lynch's attorney simply revealing that the pregnancy was completely fabricated, and she was never seen again.

Styles Had To Wrestle For The Right To A Paternity Test

If the storyline wasn't ridiculous already, it certainly was by the time TNA decided to have AJ face Christopher Daniels in a match where the pre-match stipulations stated a victory would earn him the right to get a paternity test on Lynch's baby. It was cringe-inducing, and seeing wrestlers as talented as Styles and Daniels, who have had such a historic rivalry over the years with some truly fantastic matches, having to face off over the right to a paternity test was outrageous.

It was an embarrassing stipulation and could have really done long-term damage to the wrestlers involved if they weren't as talented as Styles, Daniels, and Kazarian all were. The eventual reveal that Bad Influence had been behind the lies all along, intent on blackmailing Styles, and somehow damaging his reputation also fell really flat, and TNA was wise to quickly move on from the situation.

Styles' time in TNA was a bit of a mixed bag, and while he is one of the greatest talents to ever work for the promotion, he was often not treated as such, and this was a prime example of him being included in something way below where he should have been. Eventually, he would leave the promotion, going on to enjoy a short reign in New Japan, before becoming a global superstar in WWE, winning multiple world championships, and solidifying his place as one of the greatest wrestlers in the world.

It's safe to say his career has never sunk to the depths it was dragged down to during the horrendous Claire Lynch storyline ever again.