Summary

AJ Styles said he preferred working SmackDown over Raw during much of his WWE run because the blue brand's two-hour format kept the night moving.

Speaking on The Phenomenally Retro Podcast, Styles said Raw's old three-hour structure often left talent waiting around for long stretches before going out, while SmackDown felt more immediate. Earlier this year, Styles retired after his Royal Rumble match against Gunther, and he was later inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in April.

Quote from AJ Styles

"Well, you know, for the longest time, SmackDownwas two hours while Raw was three. So I would rather be on SmackDown because 3 hours is a lot to sit through, I think. So they’re pretty tired after 3 hours. Two was perfect. Two hours was perfect amount. You weren’t like… I felt like at Raw you were [in a] hurry up and waiting kind of thing. It was like, I’m ready but we still got an hour before you’re going on. Because it was so long where SmackDown was like, ‘Oh gosh, we’re already about to go out.’ You kind of want that. You don’t want to be waiting all night to do your job. So I’d prefer SmackDown at the time because of the hours. But then we get to Netflix and you’re not going as long as you used to."

AJ Styles on the difference between Raw and SmackDown

AJ Styles framed the split as less about branding and more about rhythm. For a wrestler working live television, the shorter SmackDown format meant less downtime and a tighter show, while Raw's longer runtime could turn the night into a waiting game.

That also gives fans a clearer look at why some wrestlers have long talked about the practical difference between the two brands. Styles was discussing the feel of the workday itself, not just where his character fit best on screen.

Elsewhere in the same podcast appearance, Styles also discussed why Fatal Influence's SmackDown debut stood out to him.

What Netflix-era Raw changes for AJ Styles' point

Styles also noted that Raw no longer runs as long as it once did. That matters because his main criticism centered on the drag of the old three-hour format, so a shorter version of Raw would naturally remove part of what made SmackDown more appealing to him in the first place.

Sources

AJ Styles on The Phenomenally Retro Podcast