10 Times Wrestling Made You Lose Your Goddamn Mind

10. Wheeler YUTA Ascends

On the April 8, 2022 AEW Rampage, Wheeler YUTA lost to Jon Moxley and got over as a megastar.

It was a magical moment. The graduating spirit displayed by YUTA over the prior month informed it - he showed a brief fire-up on March 16 before refusing to die less than a month later - but the match was also informed by Mox's immense three year run. A match like this can't just be magicked out of thin air.

Moxley had been built as a super-credible, super-violent badass for ages and ages before he subverted the worst wrestling trope and restored its brilliance. When a blood-drenched YUTA kicked out of the Paradigm Shift, Mox, wearing an expression of shock, asked the referee if he was sure he'd counted correctly. Only when you establish a character for that long are you able to play against it to such euphoric, dramatic effect. In a less broad but no less outstanding touch, Mox attempted to catch YUTA with a flash pin shortly thereafter. He was no longer in a position to show YUTA violence; he was lucky just to get away with a win.

The kick-out fuelled YUTA's belief, and he very almost stoved Mox's head in what was an electrifying star-making performance for which the fans went wild. Years' worth of committed booking and masterful in-ring storytelling converged to create this moment. Moxley did the shocked-face kick-out, and it worked because it was a shock to both him and the audience.

Of course, that trope meant something once upon a time...