Host of WWE’s Backstage show on FOX and former RAW commentator Renee Young appeared on Lillian Garcia’s ‘Chasing Glory‘ podcast this week. Young discussed a number of topics with Garcia, including how WWE officials reacted to her following her husband Jon Moxley joining All Elite Wrestling.

Renee “bracing for impact”

“I was sort of like bracing for that impact” Renee began, “I was expecting…I mean at that time I’m doing commentary, I’m sitting in production meetings and all the news breaks about him [Moxley] going to AEW. And [I’m] like, what’s gonna happen?”

Renee Young would then confirm that, to her surprise, nothing day to day changed for her in WWE. “Nothing changed for me. No one treated me differently. No, not really. I mean other than the ‘boys,’ wanting to know how he was doing and what not, but other than that I was never pulled aside and was like ‘oh my god Jon’s doing his thing, and you’re doing this and we got to keep things separate’ like that conversation never happened.”

Travel Schedule

Young would elaborate further, talking about how her travel schedule changed without Moxley/Dean Ambrose on the road with her. “It sucked for me not having him on the road with me, my biggest issue was like ‘damn we don’t get to travel together? Like you’re not in the hotel room when we finish the show?’ You know I miss having those moments.”

Moxley in Japan

Renee finished by saying just how unhappy Moxley was before his WWE depature. “So he wants to go off and go do something else. I mean I’m not gonna dig in and ‘oh my god you’re not on the road with me now!? You’ve busted your ass since you were a kid to achieve this, like gigantic dream. Don’t sit around and meet me in catering after the show. You go do the thing that you need to do like go knock on those doors go to Japan.’ I mean when the hardest part was when he went to go to the G1 [Climax] in Japan, he was gone for four or five weeks. I was like, Oh my God. But I was in Toronto, I was like with my friends and family and stuff so it was, it’s fine. But yeah it really wasn’t that because when he came to me and said that he wanted to leave I was like, sure. Yeah, I mean, when you know you know.”

You can check out Chasing Glory every week via Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Player FM

Jon Moxley is the new AEW World Champion. He defeated Chris Jericho for the title at AEW Revolution last night from Chicago’s Wintrust Arena. Moxley spoke to reporters following last night’s event and spoke about what the win means to him.

“I’m feeling pretty f***ing about it, to be honest with you,” Moxley said when asked about his decision to come to AEW to kick off the scrum.

“That feeling of satisfaction of piece of work, that artistic satisfaction. 8 weeks of beginning to end, a piece of work. It’s like popping f***ing bubble wrap, it’s so satisfying. It’s why we do this and to be standing there in an arena full of thousands of of people and they’re so happy. They’ve been on the ride, they’ve been on the journey. It’s like a painting I can hang on my wall and always look at.”

Moxley also spoke about conversations he had a year ago discussing what the goal of AEW was to be.

“Pro-wrestling, I’m telling you it works. It’s like Mac and Cheese, it always works, it’s always good and we’ve brought that back to the people.”

Moxley also suggested during the interview that he might not want Cody to adhere to the stipulation that he can never challenge for the world title again.

“I’m not playing that game, I’m not going to live in a world where ‘oh you beat everybody except for Cody because he had the thing with MJF.’ If he feels he can beat me, he better damn sure expect to get in the ring with me and we’re going to wave the little rule.”

“If he thinks he can beat me, I insist that he give it a try.”

Moxley’s full media scrum can be viewed in the player below:

Jon Moxley is the top star of All Elite Wrestling, joining the company after working for WWE for almost a decade. As Dean Ambrose, he was also at the top of the game in WWE too and achieved a lot of success.

Moxley has been very vocal about the creative process in WWE and how much frustrated he was with the company regarding this. Especially in the final years of his WWE tenure, Moxley was done with the company’s system and wanted to get out.

In a recent interview with Sportskeeda, Jon Moxley talked about the creative freedom AEW offers its wrestlers. There’s no bookers or writers writing scripts, everyone is allowed to be themselves which means the characters feel more genuine.

“Best thing about AEW is that guys are just allowed to be themselves. You know I don’t have anybody writing scripts for me. I don’t have anybody putting words in my mouth. I don’t have to wonder what my motivations are or be confused about – ‘what are we even doing here? This doesn’t make any sense.’ It’s whatever I want it to be,” said Moxley.

Chris Jericho: Creative Freedom Biggest Difference Between WWE & AEW

Moxley says that young talent who started wrestling in AEW have no idea how good they have it in the company. He enjoys the fact that others are able to go out and do the same thing as him, be themselves and love what they’re doing. Moxley likens it to being a free wild animal, as opposed to being one put in a cage.

“It’s great for me to watch these young guys especially, that don’t even understand how good they have it. Don’t even understand the opportunity that they have, because they’ve never been put in a cage or put in a box. They’ve only been free wild animals. They don’t even know about captivity yet,” Moxley said.

Jon Moxley was the wrestler to dethrone Chris Jericho as AEW World Heavyweight Champion. 

Jericho didn’t successfully retain the title over Moxley but rather Moxley ended the reign of Jericho in the headliner of the AEW Revolution pay-per-view event in Chicago, IL from the Sears Center. Up to this point, Moxley had been portrayed as a top star and now he’s a champion.  

AEW set up this contest on the January 22nd episode of Dynamite when Moxley faced off with PAC in the headliner with the winner challenging Jericho for the title at Revolution. Moxley ended up winning the match to earn the opportunity. 

Moxley has been the #1 contender in the men’s rankings for quite some time now and also been feuding with Jericho over the last few months.

In fact, at first, Jericho tried to recruit Moxley to his Inner Circle group. The faction consists of Jake Hager, Sammy Guevara, Santana, Ortiz, and Jeff Cobb.

Jericho became the inaugural AEW World Heavyweight Champion when he beat Hangman Page in the headliner of the All Out pay-per-view event back in August at the Sears Centre Arena in Chicago.

What are your thoughts on Jon Moxley winning the AEW World Heavyweight Title? Was this the right call by AEW officials? Sound off in the comment section.

• Chris Jericho Compares His AEW Promos To His WWE Promos

Jon Moxley has a chance to win the AEW World Championship on Saturday at Revolution from Chris Jericho. Moxley recently commented to Sportskeeda that winning the AEW title would be a better feeling than when he won the WWE Championship in 2016.

“This, I feel, will be a far greater feeling,” Moxley said. “You know this is me, on my own, doing things my way. Totally different situation. Not even a comparable situation – as good as a night as that was.” 

Under the name Dean Ambrose, he won the WWE title at Money in the Bank 2016. He first won the MITB briefcase and then cashed it in later that night on Seth Rollins who had just defeated Roman Reigns for the belt.

“Chris Jericho is arguably hotter than he’s ever been, and that’s really saying something considering Chris Jericho’s career. I think he’s not just trying to be good every week he’s trying to be the greatest of all time. And like I said I’ve been running through competition; killing dudes – You’re getting the best version of Chris Jericho and the best version of Jon Moxley at the same time and something’s gotta give, somebody’s gotta go down,” Moxley said.

The full interview with Jon Moxley can be read here.

Jon Moxley was the first guest on the new official AEW podcast with Tony Schiavone and Aubrey Edwards. During the conversation, Moxley spoke about his early days on WWE’s main roster with the Shield.

“I was really lucky to have a good starting off point being in the Shield,” Moxley said during the podcast.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better start,” he continued. “You can’t ask for a much better start than that.”

“It was a lot harder to break in back then. When we were in development, we had a real chip on our shoulder because we were like we’re as good as anybody up there but we’re stuck down here.”

He continued to say that NXT felt like an island where most people don’t get off.

“Even if you got the chance to go up and get on TV that you would actually break through and be successful was a lesser chance I think,” he continued.

Moxley continued to talk about how that mentality stayed with the members of the Shield when they were brought up to the main roster.

“So, same kind of mentality, when we got this tiny shred of an opportunity, we’re like nobody is taking this away from us,” Moxley said. “It was a real all for one mentality.”

The full podcast can be found here.

New Japan Pro Wrestling have announced that they will be bringing a ‘Wrestle Kingdom’ level event to Madison Square Garden in August. The show will be taking place on August 22nd, which is SummerSlam weekend.

“I could see Marty Scurll possibly being on that New Japan show [in MSG]”

Busted Open Radio co-host Bully Ray was discussing the move for NJPW and the performers who may be able to make some appearances. “I’ll look back to the three shows that New Japan did in in Philly, Boston and New York. That wasn’t a co-promote with Ring of Honor. Every time ROH did their War of the Worlds in those towns they co-promoted with New Japan” Bully began. “So, yeah, you might get a couple of Ring of Honor talents. I could see Marty Scurll possibly being on that New Japan show [in MSG], or maybe like a Briscoes vs Guerrillas of Destiny rematch.”

“‘Hey, let’s go for the Grand Slam let’s see if we can do the garden on our own.”

Bully then discussed the idea of the show not being co-promoted with ROH. “As far as a co-promote? if I’m New Japan, I don’t know if I’m going down that road. Because you’ve already sold out three of the major northeast cities on your own. ‘Hey, let’s go for the Grand Slam let’s see if we can do the garden on our own.'”

“Do you need Jon Moxley and Chris Jericho on that show? Sure as hell doesn’t hurt”

Ray’s co-host Dave LeGreca then asked if there’s a chance that Jon Moxley and Chris Jericho could be part of the NJPW show. “You know why the answer is yes?” Bully began. “Because it’s pro wrestling, anything is possible. And everything is negotiable. Do you need Jon Moxley and Chris Jericho on that show? Sure as hell doesn’t hurt.” Ray would also go on to say that whilst he does not have the specifics of their contracts with AEW he believes that Chris Jericho has ‘carte blanche’ and that Moxley may have to ask AEW President Tony Khan for his blessing to appear on the show. There were issues back at last year’s G1 Climax show where it was believed that Moxley could not appear at the United States show due to his AEW contract.

Today, New Japan Pro-Wrestling presents The New Beginning in Osaka 2020. This event will be held at Osaka-jo Hall in Osaka, Japan. This event will be available to watch on their live streaming service, NJPW World. English and Japanese commentary are available.

Live stream links:

• NJPW World (English Commentary)
• NJPW World (Japanese Commentary)
• Fite TV

Start times:

• Pacific USA: February 8th, 11PM
• Eastern USA: February 9th, 2AM
• UK: February 9th, 7AM
• Japan: February 9th, 4PM
• East Australia: February 9th, 6PM

The New Beginning in Osaka 2020 Card

Manabu Nakanishi, Yuji Nagata, Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan def. Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, Toa Henare & Ryusuke Taguchi
This match was dubbed “Manabu Nakanishi Final in Osaka-jo Hall” and indeed, this will be the last big arena show of Nakanishi’s 27-year career. To be honest, it looked to be about time for him. His lariats were slow and his chops were lethargic, but nevertheless, the crowd popped for everything he did. Nevertheless, the crowd was with him, especially when he climbed to the top rope for perhaps the last time ever. Nakanishi delivered a top rope brain chop to Tomoaki Honma, setting up Satoshi Kojima to deliver the lariat and get the pin. (7:08)

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: Roppongi 3K (SHO & YOH) (c) def. Suzuki-gun (El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
Roppongi 3K attacked Suzuki-gun before the bell to remove the possibility that they would receive that treatment themselves. After getting into a gnarly slap fight with El Desperado, YOH tagged in SHO, but both members of Suzuki-gun cut SHO off and began assaulting his knee. Kanemaru held him in a long figure four leglock but SHO was able to make the rope break. Kanemaru hit the Deep Impact on SHO, who kicked out at two. As Rocky Romero rallied the capacity crowd, SHO rallied with heavy lariats. Roppongi 3K went for their 3K finish, but El Desperado was in to break it up. SHO hit the Shock Arrow on Kanemaru for a near fall. Finally, Roppongi 3K hit the dropkick and Shock Arrow combination known as Strong X for SHO to get the pinfall on Kanemaru and make their first championship defense. (16:22)

After the match, as Roppongi 3K celebrated in the ring, Ryusuke Taguchi entered the ring, with a basketball and a rugby helmet on. He told Rocky Romero that he was not only the manager of SHO and YOH, but a great wrestler in his own right. Taguchi stated that he and Rocky, as The Mega Coaches, should challenge Roppongi 3K for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships. He threw his basketball to Rocky and made a hoop with his arms. Despite RPG 3K’s assistance otherwise, Rocky shot the ball into Taguchi’s hoop, signifying his agreement to challenge for the Championships.

Juice Robinson, David Finlay, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kota Ibushi def. Bullet Club (Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi)
This matched Kota Ibushi’s return to the ring following a short absence due to a bout of influenza. One wouldn’t have known that he was running a 104 degree fever within the last two weeks, due to some superhuman healing factor. The factor that was of greatest note in this match was the appearance of Tanahashi and Juice. Tanahashi had a very fluffy pompadour and Juice Robinson’s hair was in an afro, continuing the ’70s-dancer-esque appearance he has been going for recently. Tanahashi pinned Tanga Loa with a bridging roll-up. (10:50)

Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kota Ibushi reiterated their desire to challenge for the IWGP Tag Team Championships.

CHAOS (Kazuchika Okada & Will Ospreay) def. Suzuki-gun (Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi)
Following their respective losses at The New Beginning in Sapporo, Will Ospreay and Taichi wrestled with chips on their shoulders to avenge their losses. Taichi seemed unfazed by his defeat among the hometown crowd of Sapporo, and laid into Okada with his hard-hitting offense. The crowds went wild for his dangerous backdrop drivers and loud kicks, but the CHAOS team’s combined might was too much for Dangerous Tekkers. Ospreay landed the Oscutter followed by Okada’s Rainmaker for Okada to take the pin on Taichi. (11:50)

Will Ospreay held the belt around his waist before putting it down on the mat for Zack. Angrily, ZSJ yelled “Look at it, you moron! This is coming back to Japan with me!”

Jay White def. SANADA
In the buildup to this match, Jay White had attempted to get under SANADA’s skin in a way that few have been able to do before, with very little success. SANADA did not seem to be intimidated, and often overpowered Jay when the competition was fair. SANADA hit the backbreaker and went for the moonsault, but Gedo tried to knock him off his perch. SANADA responded by pulling on his Gedo’s beard and using the ropes for a groin attack. Jay tried to capitalize on the opportunity with the Blade Runner, but SANADA caught him and hit the giant swing into the Skull End. SANADA broke the hold and went for the top rope moonsault, but Jay White moved out of the way. White hit the sleeper suplex and Blade Runner for the pinfall victory. (21:52)

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiromu Takahashi (c) def. Ryu Lee
For the better part of a decade, Hiromu Takahashi and Ryu Lee have had a reputation of wrestling each other with an exceptional amount of reckless abandon. For the better part of the first five minutes of the match, Hiromu and Lee simply traded slaps to each other’s chests: over and over, until their pectorals were purple, and that was just the start. Ryu Lee teased the Phoenixplex that put Hiromu out of action with a broken neck for over a year, but Hiromu reversed it as the crowd breathed a collective sigh of relief. Lee went for the Phoenixplex once more later on, but Hiromu reversed it into a Canadian Destroyer. Hiromu hit the Time Bomb, but Lee kicked out, so Hiromu simply hit the Time Bomb again and marked the first successful defense of his title reign. (23:54)

IWGP US Heavyweight Championship Match: Jon Moxley (c) def. Minoru Suzuki
This match has been highly anticipated ever since Moxley and Suzuki locked eyes for the first time. It’s safe to say that they delivered on what was expected of them. This was simply a brawl from the outset, when Suzuki invited Moxley to have a chair-swinging fight. They did no acrobatics, they just hit each other, sometimes with foreign objects. Suzuki smashed Moxley’s hand with a chair and then put him in an armbar, only for Moxley to lift him up and powerbomb him through a table. Moxley was clearly chagrined by Suzuki’s remarks that Moxley lacked redeeming qualities as a wrestler. Suzuki went for the Gotch-style piledriver, but Moxley reversed it into a double-arm DDT. He didn’t get much lift on it, so Suzuki was able to kick out at two. Moxley and Suzuki traded strikes until Suzuki pushed Moxley just a bit too far, and Mox decided he had had enough. He bowled Suzuki over with a lariat and hit the Death Rider to retain the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship. (17:16)

After the match, Zack Sabre Jr. ambushed Jon Moxley and took him to the ground with a rear naked choke and bodyscissors. Moxley was temporarily subdued as the British submission specialist held up the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship.

IWGP Heavyweight & Intercontinental Double Championship Match: Tetsuya Naito (c) def. KENTA
KENTA entered with the majority of Bullet Club with him, and they pushed Red Shoes Unno down before the match even began. All the Bullet Club members save KENTA were removed from ringside. As the match began, KENTA was reluctant to begin, rolling out of the ring instead of engaging Naito. The crowd booed as KENTA took a Naito teddy bear from the crowd and stepped on it, and he relished in the boos. KENTA attempted to remove a turnbuckle pad, but Red Shoes caught him and stopped him in the process, only for KENTA to remove the opposite one as Red Shoes was retying the one he had partially removed. KENTA continued to methodically work over Naito with kicks and arm holds. Naito rallied with elbows, but KENTA was able to apply the Game Over facelock only for Naito to crawl and wriggle his way to the rope for the break. Naito was able to hit a top rope hurricanrana into the valentia. Naito went for the Destino, but KENTA pushed him into the ropes and then Jay White came in to interfere. BUSHI tried to stop Jay White to no avail, but then Hiromu Takahashi came in and successfully apprehended Jay. KENTA went for the Go 2 Sleep but Naito reversed it with a counter Destino. KENTA threw Naito into the exposed turnbuckle, causing him to bleed profusely from his face. KENTA went for the Go 2 Sleep again, but Naito blocked it with a reverse frankensteiner. Finally, the bloody Tetsuya Naito hit the valentia and Destino to retain the IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Championships. (35:50)

The still-bleeding Naito then challenged his faction-mate Hiromu Takahashi to a singles match at the 48th Anniversary Show next month. Hiromu and Naito mutually agreed to it.

Minoru Suzuki will face Jon Moxley for the IWGP United States Championship this Sunday from Osaka, Japan. Suzuki spoke with NJPW1972.com about his new rival.

“He’s a guy who stepped in my house and didn’t take his shoes off at the front door,” Suzuki said about Moxley. “The ‘former WWE Superstar Dean Ambrose’. Changed his look up a bit and here he is. Look, I’ve been watching him for a while, yeah. Can he grapple? No. Is he strong? No. Tough? No. He can’t do s**t.”

Suzuki would continue to say, however, that Moxley stands out despite the things he can’t do.

“It’s a bit of a paradox, but it’s because of that he got chances in WWE. There’s nobody else like him, right? Nobody in the majors in America is like him. So he stands out. Nobody gets that,” Suzuki continued. “Look. An absolute all-round perfectionist, the perfect complete player, tens in every category? Not even Tanahashi is that. Naito isn’t that. They don’t exist.”

Suzuki then spoke about what goes into rating how good a pro-wrestler is.

“Everyone in this business is a mark, you included. You fans have this idea of ratings, of skill points. You put all those points in a hexagon graph and calculate an average; ‘oh he’s a good wrestler, over 80 overall’. BS. Who the hell will pay money to buy a ticket, and see a guy who’s a perfect hexagon, 8 out of 10 or above in all areas? The guy with zero overall, the guy who can’t do anything at all, he’s a better draw.”

Suzuki would conclude that even though Moxley might not be the most skilled wrestler, he has an intangible feel to him that makes people take notice.

“He has something very special about him,” Suzuki concluded.

Suzuki also gave his thoughts on WWE’s international expansion.

“They’re going into all these countries, buying up promotions, snatching away talent, and sapping the business there. But the one place they haven’t been able to do that yet? Japan. Japan and Mexico are the only places that have carried a strong sense of wrestling culture that was uniquely theirs. Business is down in Mexico. WWE are getting their claws in there, too. But they haven’t come here yet, because Japanese wrestling has too much presence. Uniquely Japanese wrestling does.”

The full interview with Minoru Suzuki can be read here.

All Elite Wrestling’s Jon Moxley has shared what he considers to be some of the key differences between WWE and AEW. For him, one of the most prevalent differences between the two promotions lies in the creative process.

AEW’s Story Pacing

Speaking with TV Insider, Moxley stated how AEW is how wrestling is supposed to be. He highlighted how the company is providing the same kind of product that he enjoyed as a kid when he was first becoming a fan.

Moxley noted how AEW doesn’t have “37 pay-per-views a year and 600 network specials every year,” and instead deliver Dynamite once a week and 4/5 pay-per-views a year. He argued how in doing so, it allows them to “keep those high-quality, big matches” for the bigger shows, giving them a big fight feel.

“I think some of that has been missing over the last few years when you have to rush through stories and car crash stuff and give away so much on TV,” Moxley explained. “The gratifying part for me is that it’s so much easier. You don’t have to overcomplicate things.”

Jon Moxley Hates Scripts

Jon Moxley noted how the story is a simple one. To him, it’s one that doesn’t need to be complicated: “You have professionals who know what they are doing, veteran guys. Sometimes you can take risks and try something out. Maybe it works or doesn’t. It’s always great to be willing to do that.”

He continued, “The lack of 30 writers buzzing around with all this weird f—’in energy is the biggest difference. Instead of a 10-minute sports entertainment segment, at AEW I don’t have anyone bugging me with 40-page script to memorize or drilled to me how it’s supposed to be done.” He added how this attitude creates a stress-free environment that allows people to get on with their jobs because AEW trusts them to do so.

Other AEW stars have recently spoken about how the promotion allows them a level of creative freedom. Both Shawn Spears and AEW ring announcer Justin Roberts have shared what they consider the differences between the AEW and WWE.

It appears as though not everyone sees Jon Moxley’s as a main event player in All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Despite garnering high praise for his work in the promotion, including from WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray, it turns out that former WCW President Eric Bischoff isn’t as taken with Moxley’s efforts. Yet.

Speaking on his podcast 83 Weeks, Bischoff broke down Moxley’s current run in AEW, admitting that he doesn’t believe Moxley is a “top guy.” 

“Not yet,” Bischoff said. “I gotta be honest, I like his character, I like his work, I like the fact that he is kind of this enigma in a way. Theres a lot of things I like about him, but the top guy? If I’m being honest, no I don’t.”

Eric Bischoff’s Belief

Eric Bischoff argued that Moxley is currently two dimensional. He believes he needs to find that third dimension to get himself to Chris Jericho’s level. He stressed that there’s nothing wrong with Moxley’s in-ring work but believes there is a “sameness” to his character. Bischoff noted how he lacks “range,” adding that this is true for a lot of characters and not just Jon Moxley. 

“You go back and look at Chris Jericho’s career and he’s been able to successfully reinvent himself so many different times and so many different ways because he has that range and that third dimension that a lot of people have really never developed,” Bischoff explained.

He continued, “A lot of top guys don’t have it. If any talent, not just Jon Moxley, wants to reach that level they have got to have that range that allows them to position elements of their character that make them feel more interesting.”

Jon Moxley is scheduled to face off against Chris Jericho for the AEW World Championship. The two clash on February 29th at AEW’s next pay-per-view, Revolution. 

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription. 

Today, New Japan Pro-Wrestling will hold the first day of their two-day event, The New Beginning in Sapporo. The event will be held at the Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center in Sapporo City, Japan. This event will be available to watch on their live streaming service, NJPW World. English and Japanese commentary are available.

Start times are as follows:

• Pacific USA: February 1st, 1AM
• Eastern USA: February 1st, 4AM
• UK: February 1st, 9AM
• Japan: February 1st, 6PM
• East Australia: February 1st, 8PM

Video Links:
NJPW World (English Commentary)
NJPW World (Japanese Commentary)

The New Beginning in Sapporo 2020 Day 1 Card

Bullet Club (Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo) def. Tiger Mask IV & Yuya Uemura
The match began with both members of Bullet Club taking turns beating up Yuya Uemura. This built up to the hot tag to Tiger Mask. The crowd went wild as Uemura managed to put Phantasmo in a Boston Crab and hit him with his overhead suplex. Uemura got several near falls with a school boy and a small package hold. Taiji Ishimori submitted Yuya Uemura with the Yes Lock. (8:13)

Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Toa Henare def. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Manabu Nakanishi & Yota Tsuji
Exactly three weeks from today, Manabu Nakanishi will retire from professional wrestling. The youngest and most sprightly wrestlers in this match, Tsuji and Toa Henare, made for the high point of this match as they fought. Toa Henare pinned Yota Tsuji with the Toa Bottom uranage. (9:41)

SHO, YOH, Will Ospreay & Ryusuke Taguchi def. Suzuki-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & DOUKI)
This was a fast-paced match, no surprise considering the majority were junior heavyweights. The main focus was on the two upcoming title matches involving the participants: Zack Sabre Jr. defending the Rev Pro British Heavyweight Championship against Will Ospreay tomorrow, and Roppongi 3K defending against Desperado and Kanemaru next week. Ryusuke Taguchi pinned DOUKI with the Dodon. Also, DOUKI brought a new metal rod, that was a little more professional than the one he was using before. (11:45)

Ryu Lee & Robbie Eagles def. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI)
Hiromu Takahashi and Ryu Lee were not waiting until their IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship match at The New Beginning in Osaka to go to war. Their rivalry that has gone on since Hiromu’s excursion to CMLL is revered for good reason: the two men never hold back around each other. Robbie Eagles also performed well. He may have felt slighted for not getting his own title match after pinning Hiromu in his return match last December. Robbie submitted BUSHIH with the Ron Miller Special, an inverted figure four leg lock. (11:47)

Bullet Club (KENTA & Jay White) def. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito & SANADA)
This tag team match was a preview for two singles matches at The New Beginning in Osaka: SANADA versus Jay White and Tetsuya Naito defending his IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships against KENTA. It could be said that this match was a tale of two matches. The first half could have been described more as physical banter than proper wrestling. Naito and KENTA taunted each other, entered the ring only to leave immediately, and generally tried not to take each other seriously. As the match progressed, all wrestlers involved became more urgent in their actions, and this gradual escalation made for a high-quality match. Jay White pinned SANADA with a victory roll. (18:42)

Suzuki-gun (Taichi & Minoru Suzuki) def. Kazuchika Okada & Jon Moxley
Kazuchika Okada in a tag team match with Jon Moxley as his partner was something that no one could have predicted a year earlier. Okada against Taichi is the main event of tomorrow’s show, but the stars of this match were Moxley and Suzuki. It was not lost on them as to how much people are anticipating their IWGP US Heavyweight Championship match next Sunday, and gave the crowd today a delightful appetizer. They beat each other every which way, hit each other with guardrails and fans’ seats, spent a clearly illegal amount of time outside the ring, and traded their hardest hits. Suzuki pinned Moxley with the Gotch-style piledriver. (17:48)

After the match ended, Okada tried to hit a Rainmaker on Taichi, but Taichi avoided hit and knocked Okada down with the Iron Finger from Hell. Will Ospreay came out to apprehend Taichi, but Zack Sabre Jr. showed up to stop him. Taichi hit a Black Mephisto on Okada on the ramp.

Tomohiro Ishii def. EVIL
It was known all along that this match would be, as another wrestler put it “two meaty men slapping meat” and it lived up to that expectation. These two fridge-shaped men traded chops and lariats as close to the larynx as possible, and EVIL even seemed at times to have a hoarse voice from them. EVIL accidentally didn’t get enough lift on a corner suplex and Ishii fell on his head, but the match seemed to pick up from there, so maybe it energized him. EVIL used Ishii’s trademark superplex, but it only netted him a near fall, as did a following Darkness Falls. After a white-hot closing stretch, Tomohiro Ishii pinned EVIL with the vertical drop brainbuster. (21:14)

NEVER Openweight Championship Match: Shingo Takagi def. Hirooki Goto
Shingo and Goto were clearly not content to be outdone by the previous battle of rectangular, heavy men. So many lariats were traded, so many angry Japanese words that are probably inappropriate were said, and so much sweat flew. After landing a monstrous lariat, Goto was too tired to stand up, so Shingo lifted him to the top rope and hit him with an avalanche brainbuster known as the Stay Dream. To add insult to injury, Takagi landed a rope-hung GTR on Goto, which he had been referring in the lead-up to this match as the Great Takagi Revolution. Goto got a second wind and hit the Shouten Kai for a near fall. Goto hit the reverse GTR and was winding up for the regular version, but Shingo countered it into Made in Japan. He followed up with Last of the Dragon to win the NEVER Openweight Championship. (20:10)

Hirooki Goto’s reign lasted 25 days with 0 successful defenses.

Jon Moxley vs. Chris Jericho is official as AEW (All Elite Wrestling) has confirmed the match booking for the Revolution show. 

Jericho defending the AEW World Heavyweight Title against Moxley, who has been portrayed as a top star, will likely serve as the main event of this show. 

AEW set up this contest on Wednesday’s episode of Dynamite when Moxley beat PAC in the headliner with the winner challenging Jericho for the title at Revolution. Moxley ended up winning the match. 

Moxley has been the #1 contender in the men’s rankings for quite some time now and also been feuding with Jericho over the last month. 

AEW presents the Resolution pay-per-view event on Saturday, February 29, 2020 in Chicago, IL from the Sears Center.

The show will air at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, and is available for purchase via iN DEMAND cable operators, DirecTV, DISH Network and B/R Live. International fans can purchase the event at FITE.TV. 

The event is being promoted in conjunction with the popular C2E2 (Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo) convention and will mark the fourth AEW PPV event. AEW will be announcing more matches for the show in the coming weeks.  

What are your thoughts on this match being added to the card? Sound off in the comment section.

• Jim Ross Reveals One Of His Biggest Fears About Going To AEW

It has been announced that former UFC Heavyweight Champion Josh Barnett will face All Elite Wrestling star Jon Moxley at Barnett’s Bloodsport III on April 2.

Barnett made the announcement on his Twitter, writing: “The match you’ve waited for Barnett vs @JonMoxley. Josh Barnett’s: Bloodsport III 4/2 from The Cuban Club in Ybor City. Get your tickets now! https://Bloodsport2020.eventbrite.com”

Jon Moxley was scheduled to face Josh Barnett at GCW Bloodsport II held in September 2019, but he was not able to make it to the event due to an MRSA infection in his elbow.

Bloodsport III is set to take place during WrestleMania weekend in Tampa, Florida at The Cuban Club in Ybor City. Tickets can be purchased from this link.

Bloodsport is a shoot-style event with a ring featuring no ropes or turnbuckles. The event is presented as a hybrid between MMA and pro-wrestling with a unique ruleset. The only way to win the match is by KO or submission.

The event, which was created by Game Changer Wrestling in 2018, saw Minoru Suzuki defeat Matt Riddle in the main event. In 2019, Josh Barnett defeated Chris Dickinson in the main event.

Apart from Jon Moxley, Jeff Cobb is also signed for Bloodsport III.

Read more: WWE Hall of Famer Has Huge Praise for Jon Moxley/Inner Circle Angle

WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray recently made some interesting comments regarding the recent Jon Moxley and Chris Jericho/Inner Circle angle from this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite. Moxley had teased joining the group, after Chris Jericho seemingly made him an offer that he could not refuse a couple of weeks ago. Bully made the point of saying that the timing of the angle on television was excellent, saying that he was ‘got.’

Bully on Jon Moxley Joining The Inner Circle

“I think last week on the show we were talking about this story line in this angle and I said the obvious way to go is to have him say ‘no I’m not joining you'” Bully started. “I would have liked to have seen Jon Moxley become a part of the Inner Circle. AMoxnd then destroy the Inner Circle from within. It was all a ploy.”

“alright he said yes, they accepted.”

Ray then talked about the logistical side of the angle, mentioning that “last night he says yes. And he says yes at about nine fifty four pm. Now the the wrestler in me and smart guy is looking at the clock going ‘alright he said yes, they accepted.’ Now what? They have six minutes of TV time left. Did they go home too early? I’m legitimately wondering now if they blew through this segment too quickly. And now they’re celebrating with the champagne; and Moxley is cutting promos on people and everybody’s jacking each other off. Because they’re all so excited that Moxley is in the Inner Circle. Then with one minute left, he said ‘wait.’ They took you down a certain road and then they they swerved you at the very end.”

“It reminded me of Brock versus Daniel Bryan”

Bully also discussed how the segment reminded him of the match between Brock Lesnar and Daniel Bryan. “It reminded me of Brock versus Daniel Bryan. Where Brock beat up Daniel Bryan for seven straight minutes to the point where you’re saying to yourself; ‘oh my god this is gonna be a squash match.’ I never saw this coming. Last night I felt the same way. So I thought everybody in the Inner Circle, especially Chris and Jon Moxley did a great job.

You can check out the Busted Open Radio podcast here

Japanese wrestling legend and leader of the Suzuki-gun faction Minoru Suzuki made a shock appearance at Wrestle Kingdom. The strong style practitioner appeared following the IWGP United States Championship match between Jon Moxley and Juice Robinson. This match was set following the events of Night 1; where Moxley defeated Lance Archer to recapture the US belt. The US Championship was stripped from Moxley back at the King of Pro Wrestling event, as Moxley was unable to appear due to severe weather conditions preventing travel.

When Suzuki appeared he marched straight down to the ring and began trading blows with the AEW star. There had been speculation that Moxley would not be leaving Japan with the belt, due to complications with the AEW/NJPW relationship and Moxley’s schedule.

Minoru Suzuki then revealed his desire to challenge for the United States Championship. It has not been confirmed when that bout will be happening but it can be expected down the line.

There had also previously been speculation that Minoru Suzuki wanted to leave New Japan. The Suzuki-gun leader apparently liked the idea of joining the revitalised Pro Wrestling NOAH promotion as he was unhappy with his booking and placement on the New Japan roster. It is not known if this is a ‘farewell’ feud for Suzuki.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling is kicking off 2020 with their biggest event of the new year, Wrestle Kingdom 14. For the first time ever, Wrestle Kingdom will be a two-day event, with shows in the Tokyo Dome on January 4th and 5th. This event will be available to watch on their live streaming service, NJPW World, as well as Fite TV. Both platforms enable a choice between English or Japanese language commentary.

Day 1 of Wrestle Kingdom 14 took place on January 4th, and it made for a very eventful evening. Full results of the show can be read here and a shorter synopsis with key takeaways can be read here. Three matches from Day 1 pertained to the card of Day 2. An IWGP US Heavyweight Championship match has been scheduled for Day 2 in which Juice Robinson would challenge the winner between the title bout between Jon Moxley and Lance Archer, which ended up with Moxley the victory. Also, the “Double Gold Dash” will come to a head, as Kazuchika Okada and Tetsuya Naito left Wrestle Kingdom 14 as the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Champions respectively, and will face off in the main event of Day 2. Their respective opponents, Kota Ibushi and Jay White, will also compete in a singles match.

Pre-show start times are the following. The main show starts one hour after the listed time.

• Pacific USA: January 4th, 9PM
• Eastern USA: January 5th, 12AM (Midnight)
• UK: January 5th, 5AM
• Japan: January 5th, 2PM
• East Australia: January 5th, 4PM

Stream Links

• NJPW World (English Commentary)
• NJPW World (Japanese Commentary)
• Fite TV

Wrestle Kingdom 14 Day 2 Card

(Pre Show) NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Gauntlet Match: Los Ingobernables de Japon Win
Teams:
– Champions: Togi Makabe, Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi
– CHAOS: Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI & Robbie Eagles
– Los Ingobernables de Japon: Shingo Takagi, EVIL & BUSHI
– Suzuki-gun: Taichi, El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
– Bullet Club: Bad Luck Fale, Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi

The match began with the Bullet Club and CHAOS teams. CHAOS eliminated Bullet Club when Tomohiro Ishii hit a vertical drop brainbuster on Chase Owens. The Suzuki-gun trio entered second, but also fell to the CHAOS team as Eagles hit a small package hold on Kanemaru. With two teams dispatched, CHAOS finally fell to Los Ingobernables de Japon, the third trio to enter, after EVIL hit Tomohiro Ishii with the Darkness Falls. With LIJ the last of the challenger teams standing, the champions Makabe, Yano, and Taguchi entered to determine the ultimate winner. There was a close call in which Taguchi hit Shingo Takagi with the Dodon, which he used to finish off Jushin Thunder Liger yesterday, but Takagi kicked out. BUSHI sprayed black mist in Taguchi’s face and Shingo hit him with Made in Japan and got the pinfall victory to win the match. Los Ingobernables de Japon won the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championships, putting another piece in place for every member of LIJ leaving Wrestle Kingdom 14 as champions.

Jushin Thunder Liger Retirement Match II: Hiromu Takahashi & Ryu Lee def. Jushin Thunder Liger & Naoki Sano (with Yoshiaki Fujiwara)
Ryu Lee entered using his new, non-CMLL namesake for the first time, donning the ROH Television Championship and a mask with Liger’s horns. He held the rope open for Hiromu Takahashi, who was wearing half-Liger styled tights, as he made his entrance. The crowd was ablaze as Jushin Thunder Liger walked down the ramp for his final match. Hiromu tagged to Lee, but they double-teamed Liger as the crowed booed. Liger rallied with tilt-a-whirl backbreakers and was able to tag in Naoki Sano, who briefly rallied with surprising agility. The match went back to Liger and Hiromu, and Liger showed great fire against his junior heavyweight successor. Crowds came unglued for his comebacks and were thrilled with his kickouts. They did not want the illustrious career of Jushin Thunder Liger to end. But it did end, when Hiromu Takahashi hit the Time Bomb on Liger to pin the junior heavyweight legend in his final match. Liger briefly spoke on the microphone to the Tokyo Dome audience, his music played, and an era of pro-wrestling ended. Jushin Thunder Liger’s retirement ceremony takes place tomorrow at New Year Dash. (12:16)

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: Roppongi 3K (SHO & YOH) def. Bullet Club (Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo) (c)
Roppongi 3K rushed Bullet Club before the bell rang, presumably as payback for stealing their Super Junior Tag League trophies. Soon, the Bullet Club turned the tables with underhanded offense. In one of the most magnificent displays of ostentation, El Phantasmo hit a springboard backflip into a back rake. Theoretically, this match should have struggled to hook the crowd following Liger’s heartfelt retirement, but the crowds were solidly behind Roppongi 3K. Bullet Club attempted to do Roppongi 3K’s self-titled finish, but SHO countered it and the three-time Super Junior Tag League winners were able to take control. Phantasmo tried to get in a belt attack and a groin attack, but they were both foiled. Roppongi 3K hit a combination Shock Arrow and diving double foot stomp, to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships. (14:08)

Revolution Pro Wrestling British Heavyweight Championship Match: Zack Sabre Jr. (c) def. SANADA
As is the theme of matches between Zack Sabre Jr. and SANADA, this was a match that was highly ground-based and full of counters, and counters of counters. Zack and SANADA traded control in holds and on the ground, with Zack becoming increasingly frustrated as he realized that SANADA did not succumb to his skill as easily as most others. He had promised to defeat SANADA by submission in the Tokyo Dome. SANADA took the match to stand-up and Zack couldn’t match him in that regard. Nevertheless, Zack deftly caught SANADA with a Japanese leg roll clutch to retain the British Heavyweight Championship. (12:32)

IWGP US Heavyweight Championship Match: Jon Moxley (c) def. Juice Robinson
Despite his rather comedic facial hair and entrance outfit, Juice rushed Moxley as he made his entrance with the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship that he had won less than 24 hours prior. Moxley was arguably at a disadvantage considering the danger of the Texas Deathmatch with Lance Archer that he went through yesterday, but he soon was dominating Juice with strikes. Juice had won a match against Moxley on one of the final days of the G1 Climax, but he looked worse for wear at first. He urged Juice to hit him harder, and then put him out of his misery. Jon Moxley hit the Death Rider to retain the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship. (12:48)

Then, Minoru Suzuki’s music started playing. He entered in his ring gear and gave Jon Moxley a Gotch-style piledriver. He held the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship above a fallen Moxley and left the ring.

NEVER Openweight Championship Match: Hirooki Goto def. KENTA (c)
After an initial burst from Goto, KENTA kept throwing him out of the ring, eliciting heavy boos from the Dome audience. He pompously rubbed his boots in Goto’s face and kicked him while he was down, until Goto lost his patience and floored him with a single forearm. Goto was tired of KENTA’s constant belittling, calling him cute and not taking him seriously. KENTA briefly countered with kicks but Goto continued his momentum with the Ushigoroshi. A corner dropkick and a penalty kick, followed by a shotgun dropkick held Goto down for a near fall. KENTA went for the Go 2 Sleep but Goto caught his leg and headbutted him to the ground. KENTA had a second wind of furious strikes, but Goto powered through them all and delivered the GTR to win the NEVER Openweight Championship. (16:12)

Singles Match: Jay White def. Kota Ibushi
This match involved the two losers of the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championship matches from Wrestle Kingdom 14 Day 1. Ibushi looked understandably disappointed as he entered, while Jay White seemed unfazed by his loss. White started the match in the lead, working over Ibushi while proclaiming that his people didn’t care about him anymore. Ibushi was not interested in being slowly worn down, and responded in his usual ferocious manner. He struck Jay down as if he were insignificant, and a wobbly White struggled to land a hit on him. White hit a fast Complete Shot and German suplex to give himself a moment of reprieve. He landed a Kiwi Crusher for a near fall as Gedo barked orders at him. White went for the Blade Runner but Ibushi blocked it with a high kick, and Gedo came in with a chair after the referee had been hit. He hit Ibushi on the back with it, but Ibushi turned around, unfazed, and felled Gedo with a slap to the chest. Ibushi hit an elevated sitout powerbomb on White, but the referee was still down. He left the ring to pull the referee back in, and hit a Kamigoye, but Gedo pulled the referee out of the ring. Gedo came in once again, and Ibushi caught him, but White used the moment to hit Ibushi with a chair, then hit the Blade Runner for the victory. (24:58)

Singles Match: Chris Jericho def. Hiroshi Tanahashi
The video package for this match showed Tanahashi making a comedic parody of the video package that played when Chris Jericho challenged him in November, wearing Juggalo face paint and pretending to sing. Chris Jericho entered wearing the AEW World Championship, after claiming that Tanahashi would be granted an opportunity to challenge for it if he defeated him at Wrestle Kingdom, which was also shown in the video package. The most interesting part of the early stages of this match was Jericho attempting to flex his muscles at Tanahashi, which seemed to amuse him. Jericho used all sorts of unconventional tactics in this match, such as DDTing Tanahashi through an announce table and flogging him with his belt. Not the championship, the belt of his pants. Jericho went for a Lionsault but Tanahashi pushed him off the ropes, and then did a High Fly Flow onto him on the outside. Jericho tried to retaliate with the Codebreaker, but Tanahashi caught him and punished him with repeated dragon screws. Tanahashi went for a High Fly Flow in the ring, but Jericho blocked it with his knees, and then hit a Lionsault for a near fall. Tanahashi blocked the Judas Effect, but Jericho got him in the Walls of Jericho. He was in it for what seemed like forever, but broke the hold and hit a Sling Blade. Tanahashi went for the High Fly Flow yet again, but Jericho stood up in time and hit the Codebreaker in mid-air. Tanahashi blocked the Judas Effect again and hit a Codebreaker of his own for a near fall. Jericho rolled through another High Fly Flow attempt and reapplied the Walls as the crowd went into a frenzy. Jericho arched into the Liontamer and Tanahashi had nowhere to go. Chris Jericho defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi by submission. (22:24)

IWGP Heavyweight Championship & IWGP Intercontinental Double Championship Match: Tetsuya Naito def. Kazuchika Okada
Before the two men even touched, the crowd was absolutely ballistic for this match once the bell rang. This was the match to decide the first ever Heavyweight and Intercontinental double champion, and a one-on-one encounter that had not been seen in two years. As the match began, Okada took advantage early, controlling the pacing and working over Naito’s neck. Naito briefly took control with his own neck attacks, but Okada’s big boot put him flat on his back. Okada hit the reverse neckbreaker, diving elbow drop, and then called for the Rainmaker with unexpected urgency. This Okada was not the same Okada who was toying with Kota Ibushi yesterday. Naito dodged the Rainmaker easily, but Okada compensated with attacking Naito’s damaged knees, including dropping him knee-first on a commentator’s table. Naito barely made it back to the ring before the 20-count and Okada leveled him with a missile dropkick as he made it back. Naito desperately turned the tables with his rope-assisted tornado DDT, followed by the Gloria. Okada blocked the Destino attempt, only for Naito to avoid the Rainmaker. Naito hit a running Destino for a near fall as the crowd erupted. He attempted another, but Okada blocked it and hit his signature dropkick. Naito blocked the Rainmaker with a slap to the face, only for Okada to follow up with a discus lariat. Okada hit a Tombstone piledriver and the Rainmaker, but Naito kicked out. Okada rallied the crowd as he picked Naito up for another tombstone, but Naito struggled out. Okada smashed Naito’s knee against the mat and was roundly booed for it. Okada hit a Rainmaker and held onto Naito’s wrist, then hit another. Naito countered a third rainmaker and hit a Destino for a near fall. Naito body slammed Okada in the corner and hit the Stardust Press for yet another near fall as the ring announcer called that 35 minutes had passed. Naito hit the Valentia and Destino to become the first ever simultaneous IWGP Intercontinental and Heavyweight Champion. (35:37)

As Naito was about to complete the roll call of Los Ingobernables de Japon at Wrestle Kingdom, KENTA came out of nowhere and attacked him. He sat on Naito’s chest holding the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships, then left. BUSHI came out to help Naito up, and carried him to the dugout with the roll call left incomplete.

AEW star Jon Moxley defeated Lance Archer to regain the IWGP United States Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 14. The former WWE Superstar took a microphone after the match and declared that he is a “gambler.” And that he wanted to leave “with nothing, or leave with everything.”

Jon Moxley – The Belt He Never Lost

This bout was Moxley’s opportunity to regain the title that he never lost in-ring. There were severe weather conditions last year around the King Of Pro Wrestling event. This meaning that Moxley was unable to travel to Japan. Lance Archer took advantage of this and faced Juice Robinson in a bout for the then vacated title; taking the win and holding the belt all the way to Wrestle Kingdom. Robinson himself was part of a bout just minutes before Moxley’s match, winning the IWGP Tag Team Championships alongside David Finlay.

A Violent Affair

The match was a violent affair. Archer at one point choking Moxley with a plastic bag, looking to suffocate the former WWE Superstar. Moxley took the win after hitting his Death Rider DDT into a pair of tables on the outside. With Jon Moxley managing to rise before the 10 count as Archer laid on the tables.

Juice Robinson

Jon Moxley will now go on to face Juice Robinson at tomorrow night’s Wrestle Kingdom event. This year marks the first ever two-day iteration of Wrestle Kingdom, with Moxley now set to defend the IWGP United States Championship just a day after this hellacious Texas DeathMatch.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling is kicking off 2020 with their biggest event of the new year, Wrestle Kingdom 14. For the first time ever, Wrestle Kingdom will be a two-day event, with shows in the Tokyo Dome on January 4th and 5th. This event will be available to watch on their live streaming service, NJPW World, as well as Fite TV. Both platforms enable a choice between English or Japanese language commentary.

Pre-show start times are the following. The main show starts one hour after the listed time. Note that the dark match will start at the listed time, but it will not be live streamed, so the live stream will begin after the first match ends.

• Pacific USA: January 3rd, 11PM
• Eastern USA: January 4th, 2AM
• UK: January 4th, 7AM
• Japan: January 4th, 4PM
• East Australia: January 4th, 6PM

Stream Links

• NJPW World (English Commentary)
• NJPW World (Japanese Commentary)
• Fite TV

Wrestle Kingdom 14 Day 1 Card

(Dark Match) STARDOM Women’s Wrestling Exhibition Match: Mayu Iwatani & Arisa Hoshiki def. Hana Kimura & Giulia
This match was not aired on NJPW World or televised, due to television airing conflicts. Mayu Iwatani pinned Hana Kimura after a dragon suplex and a moonsault.

Pre-Show Eight Man Tag Team Match: Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, Yota Tsuji & Yuya Uemura vs. Toa Henare, Clark Connors, Karl Fredericks & Alex Coughlin
This was the first broadcasted match of the WK14 pre-show. The young lions from both teams looked motivated to perform in front of the Wrestle Kingdom crowd, and were working stiffly, especially Yota Tsuji against Toa Henare. The match was fairly brief but worked at a fast clip and the crowd was loud for it. Toa Henare pinned Yota Tsuji with the Toa Bottom. (7:36)

Pre-Show Tag Team Match: TenKoji (Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan) def. Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi
It was interesting to see these once-main eventers now working a pre-show match, but probably preferable to having them still main event given their varying states of physical condition. Kojima went for his signature top rope elbow drop but Nakanishi threw him to the mat. Nakanishi put him in a torture rack, but Kojima got out of it and hit a lariat for the pinfall victory. (5:47)

Jushin Thunder Liger Retirement Match I: Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Ryusuke Taguchi def. Jushin Thunder Liger, Tatsumi Fujinami, The Great Sasuke & Tiger Mask IV
Kero Tanaka, the NJPW ring announcer from the 1990s, was here to announce the entrants for this match. Norio Honaga, one of Liger’s rivals from that same period, was the special guest referee as well. Most of the men in the match were clearly in the twilight years of their athletic ability, but they tried their best to pull off the spots they were remembered for decades ago, such as Sano’s dive through the ropes, Otani’s facewash, and Fujinami’s dragon screws and dragon sleeper. It was a very heartfelt match, despite the age showing, or perhaps because of the age showing, as it exemplified the effort these men were putting in for Liger’s sake. Ryusuke Taguchi pinned Liger with the Dodon. Afterwards, Liger’s team hoisted him up and celebrated as his music played. Jushin Thunder Liger’s last ever match is tomorrow. (8:52)

Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi & El Desperado) def. Los Ingobernables de Japon (SANADA, EVIL, Shingo Takagi & BUSHI)
Notably, the Suzuki-gun team entered to Zack Sabre Jr.’s music, even though Minoru Suzuki is usually considered the faction leader. Zack defends his Revolution Pro British Heavyweight Championship against SANADA tomorrow, and the match was centered around those two. The other wrestlers will be participating in the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship gauntlet match tomorrow, with the exception of Minoru Suzuki, who does not have a match tomorrow. Hard-hitting exchanges between Shingo and Taichi were the arguable highlight for this match. Shingo was exceptional at playing to the Dome audience, despite it being only his second time wrestling for an audience of this size. Zack Sabre Jr. locked a Jim Breaks Armbar on BUSHI to get the submission victory.

CHAOS (Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano & YOSHI-HASHI) def. Bullet Club (KENTA, Bad Luck Fale, Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi)
KENTA is defending the NEVER Openweight Championship against Hirooki Goto, while the rest of the participants are participating in the NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship gauntlet match. Highlights of this match were Toru Yano trying to outpower Bad Luck Fale, whose “Ready for War” t-shirt may be unsavory considering current events, and Goto easily overpowering KENTA, but using Bullet Club’s help to even the odds, and Ishii suplexing Fale. Goto hit the Ushigoroshi and GTR to pin Yujiro for the win, but will he win tomorrow?

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match: FinJuice (Juice Robinson & David Finlay) def. Guerrillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa) (c)
Juice and Finlay bravely stood outside the ring and tried to attack the Guerrillas of Destiny before the match began, but it backfired on them, leaving Juice laying after taking a painful-looking back body drop on the ramp. From there, G.o.D. dominated the early going, befitting of the fifth most dominant IWGP Tag Team Champions of all time, but they may have played with their food a bit too much. They hit the Magic Killer on Finlay but he kicked out of it, only to hit another for Juice to break up the pin, and receive a Magic Killer of his own for his trouble. G.o.D set up the top rope power bomb, but Finlay reversed it. Juice hit a punch to knock out Jado on the ring apron, enabling David Finlay to hit the Acid Drop on Tama Tonga. Juice Robinson and David Finlay are the new IWGP Tag Team Champions! G.o.D.’s reign ended at 312 days and 7 successful defenses.

IWGP US Heavyweight Championship Texas Deathmatch: Jon Moxley def. Lance Archer (c)
Jon Moxley came out wearing jeans, as is customary for a match with a hardcore stipulation, whereas Archer was wearing a leather jumpsuit and brandishing spray-painted trash can lids. Lots of weapons were used in this match, including a gnarly shot to Archer’s head with said trash can lid, and a suplex through chairs. Archer dived over the top rope and chokeslammed a young lion onto Moxley. A reverse crucifix powerbomb onto four chairs put Moxley down for a count of 8, but Moxley managed to trap Archer with an armbar. Archer put the EBD Claw on Moxley with a plastic bag on his hand, but Moxley was not defeated yet. Lance Archer set up two tables outside the ring, but he paid for it, as Moxley hit a Death Rider from the apron, putting them both through the two tables. Moxley was able to recover before the count of ten, but Archer could not. Jon Moxley wins back the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship that he never lost in a match to begin with. After the match, he said that he would settle the score with Juice Robinson. (14:26)

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiromu Takahashi def. Will Ospreay (c)
Both men in this match put a lot of effort into their entrance outfits, with Ospreay having a white tiger’s head on his shoulder and Hiromu resembling a peacock more than a wrestler. As the match began, it looked like Ospreay was a step ahead of Hiromu at every turn, blocking his moves and stuffing his attempt at the apron sunset flip powerbomb. Ospreay made an effort to focus his offense on Hiromu’s head and neck, with this being his first major match since breaking his neck in July 2018. Arguably the highlight of this match was Ospreay going for the Sasuke Special and missing it, only to have Hiromu throw him through the ropes, after which he finally hit the move in one fluid motion. Ospreay hit the Oscutter for a near fall, and went for the hidden blade once again but missed, then being felled by a pop-up powerbomb. Hiromu hit another Canadian destroyer, but Ospreay blocked the Time Bomb. Ospreay finally hit the hidden blade, but Hiromu blocked the Stormbreaker to hit another Canadian destroyer, followed by the Time Bomb, but Ospreay kicked out of it. Hiromu hit a sliding forearm followed by a move that I can’t describe to finally get the victory. Hiromu Takahashi becomes the new IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion.

IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: Tetsuya Naito def. Jay White (c)
As Jay White bailed from the ring to start the match, Naito left as well to grab Gedo by his beard, which the audience enjoyed. Nevertheless, Gedo was there to hold onto Naito for brief moments, enabling White to take advantage. White was incredibly smug in this match, showboating and gloating to the crowd when he wasn’t working over Naito’s knees or his neck. Naito was able to outsmart Jay at times to take control back, and the crowd was almost entirely with him. Naito was able to reverse White’s offense at times, but his damaged knee slowed him down at times, which White capitalized on. White locked in the same leglock that submitted Tanahashi to win him the IWGP Heavyweight Championship last February, but Naito made it to the ropes, garnering a thunderous ovation. Naito managed a rolling kick into a pop-up spinebuster to make a labored but effective comeback. Naito spat in his face and then hit a top rope Frankensteiner, followed by the Gloria for a near fall. Gedo tried to hit Naito with a chair, but Naito stopped him with a kick to the groin, but left an opening for White to hit him with a chair. White followed up with sleeper suplexes, but Naito hit a flash Destino that he was too tired to capitalize on, followed by a reverse rana and another running Destino. White went for the Blade Runner, but Naito blocked it and hit a final Destino for the pinfall victory. Tetsuya Naito wins the IWGP Intercontinental Championship for the fifth time, an accolade only matched by Shinsuke Nakamura. (33:54)

IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) def. Kota Ibushi
Kota Ibushi’s entrance music was slightly remixed, but Okada’s entrance was so over-the-top it has to be seen to be understood, but it included a white, glow-in-the-dark robe. Underestimating Ibushi, Okada attempted his first Rainmaker mere minutes into the match, but Ibushi dodged it easily. Ibushi never really seemed to intimidate Okada, who invited him to hit Okada harder. Okada locked in the Red Ink submission but Ibushi got his hand on the bottom rope to break the hold. Okada signaled the Rainmaker coming with his trademark pose, but Ibushi flattened him with a dudebuster and a double footstomp on his chest, followed by a triangle moonsault outside the ring and a missile dropkick off the ropes. Okada landed uppercuts and slaps on Ibushi, but Ibushi stood still and retaliated, even standing up after a front dropkick. Ibushi laid into a fallen Okada with strikes as the crowd began to boo him. Ibushi tried to throw Okada into the ring post from the apron, but Okada countered and hit an apron tombstone piledriver. Ibushi laid outside the ring until nearly getting counted out, only for Okada to pounce on him as he finally entered the ring. Ibushi countered with an incredible lariat and blocked Okada’s Rainmaker with another huge lariat of his own. Ibushi hit the Kamigoye but Okada barely kicked out of it, and gave him a dropkick when Ibushi attempted another. Okada attempted a missle dropkick, but Ibushi countered it into a sitout powerbomb. Ibushi went for a phoenix splash, but missed, leaving Okada the opening to hit the Rainmaker, which Ibushi kicked out of. Okada kept the pressure on and hit another piledriver followed by the Rainmaker for the win. Kazuchika Okada retains the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. (39:16)

After the match, Tetsuya Naito entered the ring to confront Okada. They posed with their respective championships, and Naito left peacefully, as Okada cut a go-home promo to end Day 1 of Wrestle Kingdom 14.

WWE commentator Corey Graves recently made some interesting comments about Jon Moxley on the latest episode of WWE’s After The Bell podcast. The show is part of WWE’s official podcast lineup in conjunction with Endeavour audio.

“I respect the hell out of what Jon Moxley is doing”

Graves was answering mailbag questions at the start of the show and one of the bigger questions posed to the SmackDown commentator surrounded former WWE Superstar Jon Moxley/Dean Ambrose.

“‘Do I believe that Jon Moxley/Dean Ambrose will return to WWE?’ I hope so” Graves began, “I respect the hell out of what Jon’s doing, he’s happy. I still keep in touch with him, even though that is ‘against all the rules.’ This is all part of his journey, but ultimately I think that the Lunatic Fringe needs to come back home at some point in the future.”

Moxley challenges Lance Archer for the IWGP United States Championship this weekend as part of New Japan’s Wrestle Kingdom 14 event.

• Lance Archer Warns Jon Moxley Ahead Of Wrestle Kingdom 14

WrestleMania Main Event

The main event of WrestleMania 36 was another topic discussed during the Q&A portion of the podcast. When asked who he thinks will headline the show, Graves gave an interesting pick that might surprise people.

“My prediction for the main event of WrestleMania this year. The Universal Championship [will be] on the line…The Fiend, the reigning champion will defend against…Big E from The New Day.”

This is not the first time Corey Graves has pushed for Big E to get a run as a main event singles star. In fact, regular listeners of the show know that Graves has been touting Big E as a potential breakout member of the New Day faction.

“I’ve said it here on After The Bell, it’s about damn time for Big E to get his just do and have his opportunity at a big time singles run,” said Graves. “I think that Big E versus The Fiend under the bright lights of Tampa, Florida would be truly memorable.”

New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s IWGP United States Champion Lance Archer has shared his unsettling intentions with Jon Moxley ahead of their championship clash at this weekend’s Wrestle Kingdom 14 event.

In a video uploaded to NJPW’s YouTube account, Archer discussed their forthcoming Texas Death Match in front of a fire pit, his precious championship belt next to him as he burns an image of Moxley in the flames.

“Jon Moxley…You Will Die”

Lance Archer told Moxley, “Let me tell you a story about a lunatic who thought he could try to be strong style. He left his safe little cage, he left his friends, he left the protection of a shield, but that shield of protection is gone.”

Archer continued, “I’m talking about Jon Moxley. You lost something because you couldn’t show up to Japan. A little wind scared you away, and it was in my favor.”

“Now let me tell you about me. The Murderhawk Monster. The one you should be afraid of. The one that you shouldn’t underestimate because I’ve been coming up for eight and a half years and this is my time, and not you or anybody else—no little s***—is going to come in and take my title.”

He continued, “In this Texas Death Match, I don’t have to pin you, I just have to hurt you, so you never get up again. I’m going to do to you what your friends say they’re going to do: I’m going to set you ablaze; I’m going to burn you to the ground. I’m going to make you wish that you never showed up in New Japan Pro-Wrestling. […] I don’t care who you think you are. I don’t care if you think you’re a lunatic. I don’t care how crazy your fans think you can be. You’re not me. Jon Moxley, you will die…because everybody dies.”

Lance Archer Championship Victory

Moxley was initially stripped of the IWGP United States Championship after he was unable to attend last October’s King of Pro-Wrestling show due to Typhoon Hagibis. Lance Archer defeated Juice Robinson that night to claim the vacated title. Since then, Moxley issued his challenge to Archer for the championship.

Wrestle Kingdom 14 takes place this weekend on 1/4 and 1/5 from the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan. Archer and Moxley will clash in a Texas Death Match on Night One.

If you use any quotes from this article, please provide a H/T to SEScoops.

The relationship between the former Shield brothers Seth Rollins and Jon Moxley has been a bit tense since the former Dean Ambrose decided to leave WWE and pursue a career outside.

However, Rollins tried to squash the beef between him and the former WWE star when he recently took part in a Q&A session with Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch.

The Architect was asked about his current relationship with the AEW star and replying to the question, Seth revealed that he texted him on his birthday last Saturday:

“I texted him on his birthday, which was a few days ago, and wished him well, I hope that he’s good, and he seems to be doing great at AEW and New Japan. I wish nothing but the best for him and his lovely wife, and their great dog.”

Seth Rollins later also revealed that he got a response from Mox as well and Jon texted him back saying ‘Thanks brother!’.

The Relationship Of Jon Moxley And Seth Rollins

The relationship between the two former stablemates seem to have taken a turn for the worse since Ambrose parted ways with WWE and comments from both the stars since then have reflected this tension.

Seth Rollins was asked about Mox during an interview back in June right after he left the company and he had claimed that Dean “took his ball and went home”.

Jon Moxley, on the other hand, has not addressed the former Universal Champion directly but when asked about staying in touch with his Shield Brothers recently, Mox revealed that he exchanges text with Roman Reigns but avoided saying anything about Rollins:

“You get in the bubble. You’re busy. I mean, not really. Not so much, a little bit. You know, text Roman a little bit here and there. But he’s super busy. I mean, they’re so busy in the bubble and stuff, you know, and I’m busy, too.”

Both Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose are currently busy in prominent storylines in their own respective brands. Rollins completed his heel turn this week on Raw while Ambrose is busy building up his rivalry with Chris Jericho on Dynamite.

Quotes via WrestlingInc

Jon Moxley has been very vocal about the lack of creative control in WWE since leaving the company and his Talk Is Jericho interview is just one example of it.

The former WWE Champion recently had an interview with State of Combat podcast where he talked about a number of things and explained the level of creative freedom he has in his new home, AEW.

Mox first explained that the creative process in AEW is a collaborative effort and he then went on to reveal that he has full creative control:

“Pretty much it’s a collaborative effort. There are so many great ideas that come in. I’m hearing really good ideas. I have full control in that I am not going to go out there and do anything that makes me look stupid, at least not on purpose, which is a giant weight off of my shoulders,”

The former Dean Ambrose went on to explain that there are no higher-ups they have to make sure to please in AEW and instead there are super creative guys who don’t give a damn about what anyone thinks and they have no fear of reprisals.

Apart from this Jon Moxley also talked about his Full Gear lights out match with Kenny Omega which many believed was too violent for mainstream wrestling.

The former Champion said that he was thrilled with the bout and he recalled thinking how far they were going to take it, the night before the event.

Quotes via WrestlingInc

Jon Moxley has made his return to NJPW (New Japan Pro Wrestling). 

He did so when he made a surprise appearance at the NJPW World Tag League finals on Sunday where he was looking for his IWGP US Championship.

Moxley made his way through the crowd where he would attack Lance Archer and Minoru Suzuki as he connected with the paradigm shift to both stars. He would get a microphone in order to issue a challenge to Archer in a Texas Deathmatch for the IWGP US Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 14.

The segment ended with Archer and Moxley brawling. 

Jon Moxley Plans To Wrestle For NJPW For The Rest Of His Career

Moxley was stripped of the title in October because he was forced to miss the NJPW King of Pro Wrestling card due to weather issues (Typhoon Hagibis hitting Japan). He was supposed to defend the title against Juice Robinson at the show.

As a result, NJPW made changes to the card with Archer stepping in and winning the title.

NJPW’s biggest event of the year will be two days at the Tokyo Dome on January 4 and January 5. As of this writing, there’s no word yet on which night this match will take place at the show.

All Elite Wrestling’s Jon Moxley recently discussed if he would wrestle in Japan again in the future while appearing for an interview with Chris Van Vliet.

The former IWGP US Champion said that as long as he will be wrestling, we can expect to see him perform in the East Asian nation. “As long as I’m wrestling, I’ll still wrestle in Japan,” Moxley said.

He added that since AEW allows wrestlers to appear for other promotions, fans will be able to see more of him in New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Jon Moxley in New Japan Pro Wrestling

Jon Moxley made his debut for New Japan Pro Wrestling in May 2019, challenging Juice Robinson for the IWGP United States Championship at the final night of the Best of the Super Juniors 26 event on June 5. He went on to defeat Robinson to become the US Champion.

He also participated in the G1 Climax 29 Tournament and won his first five matches against Taichi, Jeff Cobb, Tomohiro Ishiii, Shingo Takagi and Tetsuya Naito. He would then go on a sort of a losing streak, and fail to advance to the finals with a final standing of 10 points.

Moxley was stripped of his US title as he was unable to defend it in on King of Pro Wrestling due to travel issues from Typhoon Hagibis.