How Jon Moxley Became The Best Wrestler In The World
NJPW
In the time between Moxley's NJPW debut and his anointing as the most vital wrestler on the planet, he'd been red hot in all his other side-ventures.
His maiden AEW match was a bloody Fyter Fest brawl with Joey Janela elevated entirely by his presence within it. Select indie dates with the likes of Darby Allin and Caz XL were being found in the dark corners of the internet because he had cultivated an unmissable air around himself.
On his second night with NJPW, he squashed Young Lion Shota Umino in just 3:52, but has already set about making memories with the youngster that will last a lifetime. Adopting him as his second, Moxley's deep affection for Umino speaks to an impressive comedic bent he was never fully permitted to embrace while dragging his stupid red wagon to the ring in WWE. The violence of his total bangers in the G1 with the likes of Shingo Takagi, Jeff Cobb and Taichi were evidence of his malleability as a worker and confidence as a character.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
