On the August 20 episode of "Impact!", Styles was talked out of retiring by Sting, who said he had chosen Styles to carry the torch after him. At No Surrender, Styles won the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in a five-way match against Matt Morgan, Sting, Hernandez and defending champion Kurt Angle. At Bound for Glory, Styles retained the title against Sting, ending his undefeated streak at Bound for Glory in the process. Styles was mysteriously attacked by an anonymous assailant backstage leading him to believe it was Samoa Joe or Christopher Daniels, both of whom he faced the following month at Turning Point to retain the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Styles continued to successfully defend the title against Desmond Wolfe on the December 10 episode of "Impact!", against Daniels at Final Resolution, against Angle on the January 4, 2010 episode of "Impact!" and against Tomko, who had been revealed as his mystery attacker, on the January 14 episode of "Impact!".