Shortly after, Styles started a feud with Royal Rumble winner Shinsuke Nakamura. At WrestleMania 34 on April 8, Styles defeated Nakamura to retain the WWE Championship, and after the match, Styles was subjected to a classless assault by Nakamura, heating up their feud. Styles would go on to retain his title against Nakamura on three different events: Greatest Royal Rumble by double countout, Backlash in a no disqualification match, that ended in a no contest, and Money in the Bank, where Styles ended the feud after winning a Last Man Standing match. After a successful defense against Rusev at Extreme Rules in July, Styles became the longest-reigning WWE Champion in SmackDown history on August 14, surpassing the 280-day record set by John "Bradshaw" Layfield.