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Jon Moxley Beats Brodie Lee, Retains AEW World Title at Double or Nothing 2020
May 24, 2020
Jon Moxley beat Brodie Lee at Double or Nothing on Saturday night to retain the AEW World Championship.
Moxley delivered the Paradigm Shift on three occasions, one of which sent both competitors through the entrance ramp.
The combined impact from the moves still wasn't enough to keep a bloodied Lee down for the three-count.
Moxley changed his approach and locked Lee in a sleeper hold. Lee couldn't fight out of the move and eventually passed out, forcing the referee to call for the bell.
The feud between the two men started May 6 when Lee and The Dark Order attacked Moxley after he beat Frankie Kazarian in a singles match. It was then that Lee made his intentions clear and declared he was coming after the AEW world title.
Since Moxley is never one to turn down a fight, he accepted the challenge immediately, and a match was made for Double or Nothing.
Mox entered the pay-per-view with a great deal of momentum on his side. Ever since making his AEW debut at last year's Double or Nothing, he has been a dominant force and has essentially developed into the face of the company.
He beat Chris Jericho for the AEW World Championship at Revolution in February and continued to take on all comers in the weeks that followed. That included a No Holds Barred championship match against Inner Circle member Jake Hager.
While Hager gave Moxley everything he could handle and nearly beat him on multiple occasions, Moxley managed to retain and handed his opponent the first loss of his AEW career in the process.
Moxley was off television for the next few weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic, and Lee emerged as a major threat during that time. He was announced as the leader of The Dark Order on March 18, and he went on to win a number of squash matches after that to establish dominance.
Lee was also featured in many vignettes that showcased his character and the leadership style he would employ as the ruler of The Dark Order. Given his demeanor and the army of minions behind him, it made him an ideal foe for Moxley.
Moxley and Lee did battle many times throughout their careers before meeting in AEW, including their overlapping stints in WWE. While AEW didn't specifically mention the clashes between The Shield and The Wyatt Family, there were plenty of nods to their past leading up to Double or Nothing.
The combatants entered the PPV with a lot of built-in chemistry because of their history, and that made them logical opponents, as the COVID-19 situation made it difficult for AEW to put together a card with a ton of build.
AEW's decision-makers were well aware of the fact that most fans knew about the past battles between Moxley and Lee, and they used that to their advantage.
Moxley came away from Double or Nothing with his title reign still intact, but given how deeply ingrained Lee is as a top heel now, it won't be at all surprising if he gets another shot at the championship in the near future.
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