AEW has had “Lights Out” matches, Parking Lot Brawls, and various other forms of hardcore matches. This Sunday at Revolution, Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley will wrestle in arguably the most hardcore match type ever invented. The two will face off in an Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match.
In a recent interview with NY Post, Kenny Omega spoke about why AEW does not shy away from hardcore match types.
“I still very much look at pro wrestling as an art form. I still like to consider myself the utmost professional. People like to dumb down matches with a violent stipulation. They kind of like just defer to those as garbage wrestling or that maybe we lack a certain area of expertise or talent, which is why we’re going there,” Omega said. “For me, it’s the complete opposite. I want to be considered as one of the best well-around athletes in professional wrestling. And I want to test myself in all avenues this sport has to offer.”
Omega also said he needs to test himself in this style of match against another wrestler who has a knack for hardcore bouts.
“For me to do that and do that effectively, I have to have some kind of experience in these types of situations. I want to test myself with the type of wrestler who specializes in this type of stuff. And sure, I don’t think Moxley has had an exploding barbed wire deathmatch, but it’s not something out of his wheelhouse to do something very hardcore.”
“I do believe the stars will align and something special will emerge from this,” Omega continued.
The Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match was made famous by Atsushi Onita. He competed against names like Terry Funk and Mr. Pogo in the match type.
Omega also recently revealed the official rules for the match: