Former AEW Champion Jon Moxley has responded to criticisms of his brutal upcoming clash with Kenny Omega at AEW Revolution.
In an exclusive interview with Inside The Ropes‘ Lead Writer Gary Cassidy, the former AEW Champion would respond to criticisms of the idea of an Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match, following Jim Cornette’s comments of it being goofy and unnecessarily dangerous. When asked what he’d say to those critiquing the match stipulation, Mox had three words, “turn it off.”
“I’d say you probably shouldn’t watch the pay-per-view then, or at least turn it off before that match happens.”
Moxley – who admitted to Inside The Ropes that the match wasn’t his idea – went on to say how All Elite Wrestling provides a buffet of wrestling, before warning that the Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match will be incredibly violent.
“It’s the good thing about AEW, we’ve got a little something for everybody, but there’s really no way to sugarcoat an Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match, you know, so if you don’t want to see it, then don’t watch. If you think your kid is going to be a little bit too young to watch it, a little bit too violent for them, don’t watch it.”
With regards to the brutality of the match, Moxley said he believes it’s something that’s been missing across the industry for several years, speaking of the concern of actual danger and how it can spur both excitement and anticipation in an audience, something he called “exciting” when discussing the match.
“I think it’s something wrestling has been missing lately. I think it’s something wrestling has been missing in the last several years, or maybe a decade or more, or whatever, is the element of actual danger. An element of… You know, that feeling of, when it’s main event time, when the bell rings and the ring announcer walks down the aisle, this is the moment where all the marbles are on the line and there’s not an element of danger, that element of the Mike Tyson fight or, ‘Well, somebody could really…’ We’re really risking our lives. These gentlemen are doing something extraordinary here and really putting their body on the line.”
The former AEW Champion would hit back with a criticism of his own, stating that violence is often advertised, but never delivered upon. Moxley would claim that extreme matches have been “watered down” to be safe, saying wrestling nowadays can sometimes resemble talents playing “f***ing Pattycake” in the ring.
“Things, over the last decade or so, have just got so… No matter what you advertise, you can put whatever you want on a poster and make it seem like you’re going to see something super-violent or whatever, but at the end of the day, these extreme kind of matches have been watered down and they’re just safe and, you know, the same old, same old and we look like we’re playing f***ing Pattycake, and I think we’re going to bring back a real element of actual unpredictability and actual danger.”
Jon Moxley outlined the impossibility of predicting a match like an Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match, saying he doesn’t know what to expect, and neither does Kenny Omege, so there’s no ways the fans can possibly know what they’re about to see. However, Moxley did deliver a warning, one he said he also gave Tony Khan and AEW ahead of the match, as he refuses to hold back.
“There’s no restrictions as far as what could happen in AEW and I can’t thank AEW, Tony Khan, and everybody enough that the fact that, when they put me in these situations, I make it very clear, ‘Don’t put me in these situations if you don’t want… Be careful what you wish for. If you want Jon Moxley at level ten, then make sure that’s what you really want.’ I don’t want to get yelled at by sponsors, and TNT, and Bleacher Report, and everybody, after the fact, so make sure this is what you really want and that’s what we’re doing – and that’s what we’re going to get on March 7th. It’ll be unlike anything you’ve seen, definitely any time recently.”
Jon Moxley was speaking ahead of his incredible promo on this week’s episode of Dynamite, but reiterated that he was feeling good about the match and his own emotional state ahead of the clash.
“I’m pretty excited about it. I’ll have a lot of things to say about it going forward on Dynamite and so forth, as far as my feelings, so I don’t want to spoil any of it right here, but I’ve got a really good feeling about this emotional place I’m at right now. I’ve got a feeling about March 7th, I feel like it’s going to be a pretty wild night in Jacksonville.”
Jon Moxley challenges Kenny Omega for the AEW World Championship in an Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match at AEW Revolution on March 7th via Fite TV for viewers outside the United States.