7 Ups & 1 Down For AEW Collision (Jan 20 - Results & Review)

Ups...

7. A Physical Opener & Renewed Focus For Mox

For the most part, Shane Taylor has been utilised in a managerial capacity on AEW programming, heading up Shane Taylor Productions and mentoring Lee Moriarty. But why should AEW's audience care about Taylor, and why is he such a big deal that somebody would sit under his learning tree?

Likewise, Jon Moxley has been in somewhat of a holding pattern at times over these past few months. The Continental Classic obviously served as a great showcase for Mox as a badass wrestler, prior to that he'd tangled with Orange Cassidy, and most recently he's been competing for NJPW, but it feels like a good little while since, from a storyline and creative approach, Moxley had something to sink his teeth into.

As for Taylor vs. Moxley, it was a lovely, snug opener, with both men bringing the hefty strikes in a bout that was extremely well paced. By that, the pair were happy to take their time and sell the physicality of the blows being exchanged. That started with Taylor serving somewhat as the proverbial "immovable object" as Mox threw his best shots at the former ROH TV Champion.

The sheer brute force and size of Taylor meant Moxley had to step up his aggression, which was met by similar aggression from Shane. Some might argue that this was maybe a little too competitive for a Moxley match, but this could be wise if a larger role is on the horizon for Taylor. Of course, that's a big if...

Making Shane Taylor look even stronger, he wasn't pinned or tapped out. Instead, he passed out in Moxley's bulldog choke.

Post-match shenanigans suggest things are in the work for both talents, with Lee Moriarty throwing out a frustrated, confused look towards his mentor, suggesting that there's trouble in paradise for the two. As for Moxley, a post-match promo saw a focused, no BS Mox put the entire roster on notice... including his Blackpool Combat Club teammates.

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Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.