Jon Moxley Talks Lesnar, Bully Ray Incident Investigated, Brian Cage AEW Rumors
June 3, 2019
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news in professional wrestling.
Moxley Talks Frustrations in Brock Build
Dean Ambrose's match against Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 32 was one of the most disappointing finishes to a build in recent memory. Whereas some thought the match had the ability to steal the show, their "street fight" had little "street" to it and was considered a lowlight of the pay-per-view.
The wrestler now known again as Jon Moxley spoke of his frustrations with the creative team and Lesnar's disinterest in an interview on The Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast.
Moxley doesn't exactly paint anyone in a good light (h/t Kellie Haulotte of Wrestling Inc.):
"I was supposed to work with [Chris] Jericho and Brock was supposed to work with Bray. Then me and Brock did the three-way match, some cool stuff, and there was like a vibe between us. I earned this match on my own merit. Me doing my thing my way made it to where people wanted to see this match. This is like my dream opponent. This is my life. The match happened because of what I've done. Now they're booking it, it's goofball city again.
"They're afraid to yell at Brock. I think he believed that he was doing me a favor. He thought just being in the ring was good enough. I think that's what he thought. He didn't want to be there. I pitched all this stuff to producers and I'm just getting ignored. Our match wasn't important to any of the producers, writers or Vince."
Moxley expressed a particular annoyance with an angle that saw him carry a red wagon and fill it with weapons as a threat to Brock. The wagon ultimately had no payoff in the brawl, and Moxley said nearly every angle he attempted to make better got shot down:
"The weeks leading up, the angle was not good. Brock isn't even there half the time. We don't do anything interesting. The weeks before in Brooklyn, I carry a little red wagon to the ring and fill it with weapons. I go into Vince's office. I'm mortified. I'm like, 'This is so serious and you got me dragging a little red wagon. Make me understand.' He's like, 'Oh, this is dead serious to you. You're going to drag that wagon out there. You're not even going look at him. Going to drag the wagon out, put your weapons in, and say, 'I'll see you at WrestleMania.'
"I couldn't convince him otherwise. I tried to do it exactly as he saw it. It kind of got over to a degree. If anyone call pull a red wagon and make it look cool, it's me. We had one scheduled WrestleMania rehearsal at like 11 p.m. Saturday night before the show at the stadium. He never came to the hotel. We ended up not even doing that. Day of the show, he gets there at like 3. He's walking away, talking to other people, not really interested. He didn't have the mentality to steal the show at all. We finally talked about the match while the second match was going on."
Moxley had a bit of bad timing. His build with Lesnar was during 2016, also known as the peak of Lesnar's disinterested phase. It was right before Lesnar made another return to WWE and before the creative team caught on to weaponizing Lesnar's heightened status for storyline purposes.
For Moxley, it was just another in a long line of creative frustrations that ultimately led to his WWE departure.
Twitter User Details Bully Ray Incident
A Twitter user detailed an incident in which Bully Ray allegedly yelled at him for exchanging words with members of Allure during a recent Ring of Honor show:
Osh Kosh Big Josh @xIAMHOLLYWOODxSome opening match happens. Wildly unimportant. Second match occurs and it’s a local v a local. Allure interferes at the end. I’m mouthing off to all the girls for no reason other than THEY’RE THE BAD GUYS “Boo... you’re trash... get lost... no one wants you here... etc”
Osh Kosh Big Josh @xIAMHOLLYWOODxAt some point Velvet Sky seemingly loses her cool & is challenging me to come in the ring. Tells me to suck it, calls me a pussy, etc No prob. Get your heat She calls me a virgin. I remind her she has sex with that fat turd Bully Ray. Call them the tramp stamp trio. End segment
Osh Kosh Big Josh @xIAMHOLLYWOODxShe goes to the back. Fast forward about five minutes & I get a tap on the shoulder “Hey, we’re with security and need to talk to you about an incident that occurred” Immediately I think of the Allure stuff but think that maybe Mandy got in trouble for spitting/face palming me
Osh Kosh Big Josh @xIAMHOLLYWOODxHe said “hey. I heard there was incident tonight with you and some of the girls” “Uh... yeah? I guess” *I’m so lost* “So here’s the deal. You’re done talking down to them. You need to treat them with respect. Don’t be saying anything you wouldn’t say to your mom, you got it?!”
Osh Kosh Big Josh @xIAMHOLLYWOODxI’m not trying to act tough. I was legit being intimidated with purpose and I wasn’t about to get kicked out during match 3 so I just bit the bullet and said “sure... yes sir... yeah, I understand... yup...” He said “End of convo. Go be a fan” Security led me back to my seat
Ring of Honor general manager Greg Gilleland released the following statement to Raj Giri of Wrestling Inc:
"ROH has always taken fan-first approach, with fan experience being at the forefront of all of our live events. We consider this to be very serious and will be conducting an internal review over the next 48 hours to determine the appropriate actions."
Brian Cage Was Reportedly Backstage at Double or Nothing
PWInsider reported Impact champion Brian Cage was at Double or Nothing and "prepared to wrestle," per Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc.
However, Impact contacted Cage and informed him he was not contractually allowed to compete in the AEW event. It's unclear where Cage would have fit into the event, though he could have added some extra intrigue to the Casino Battle Royale.
The 35-year-old has competed in other promotions aside from Impact since returning last year, but his appearances have been sparse. Cage just won the Impact championship in April, so it's possible the promotion just did not want its titleholder making a splash for a competitor.