Bye Ambrose...Welcome Back Jon Moxley

Should Dean Ambrose have left WWE?

David Gibb: Yes, 100%. Clearly, Vince McMahon only saw him as a fist-swinging Donald Duck.

Sam Gladen: Absolutely. If the promo after his run in is the only thing he had done at Double or Nothing, we would be saying the same thing. This is early NXT Moxley that we’re seeing again. He’s excited and passionate and when he’s invested, he’s truly one of the best in the world.

Juan Bautista: Yes. Dean Ambrose after The Shield breakup was just stale. We were led to believe that this was the PG combination of Brian Pillman and Stone Cold Steve Austin, but the major issue was that we already have seen that those individuals were better than him in a PG environment. His low point was attacking members of The Authority with mustard and ketchup. He should have left right then.

Chad Gelfand: Especially in light of what we found out on Talk is Jericho, absolutely. Ambrose was miserable at the end. More than anything, he was mentally burnt out on WWE, but not on professional wrestling as a whole.

Steven Jackson: Jon Moxley definitely should have left WWE. He has been floundering for several years since the breakup of The Shield and has not been utilized correctly throughout the majority of his WWE career. Moxley has nothing to lose leaving WWE and can make a fresh start on the indie scene in 2019.

John Corrigan: For sure! I wasn’t even a Dean Ambrose fan and I still knew he needed to escape the doldrums of McMahonland. After listening to the Talk Is Jericho interview, I’m happy for him and inspired by him.

Jack Goodwillie: Yes. First of all, WWE became a victim of its own business model when Dean Ambrose left. By having this Saudi Arabia deal and with the company throwing the ludicrous amount of money around that it is right now, they’re ensuring financial security for their talents to the point that when their deal comes up, they’re able to take off and make up for the profit loss with creative freedom. And for his legacy, Ambrose needed to get out. Dean found himself on the verge of super stardom between the Roadblock match with Triple H and the WrestleMania match with Brock Lesnar, but the latter match fell flat and killed his momentum dead. What happened? Which party was at fault? With Ambrose out of WWE, donning a fresh, albeit familiar coat of paint in the form of Jon Moxley, we’ll get to find out.

What was Dean Ambrose’s greatest match in WWE?

Gibb: Obviously the SmackDown Christmas spectacular between he and Bray Wyatt where they threw empty cardboard boxes at each other and took whips into trees. Kidding! See my answer to the next question for clarification…

Gladen: The Trick or Street Fight against Cesaro from SmackDown on 10-31-2014. It is just so, so dumb, but he goes all in and is so brutal with his Candy Corn Kendo Stick.

Bautista: As a singles competitor, the last man standing match with Kevin Owens at Royal Rumble 2016. When tagging with The Shield, it’s the match with the Wyatt Family at Elimination Chamber.

Gelfand: Dean’s greatest match in WWE was against AJ Styles at Backlash 2016. Those two had really good chemistry with one another and led to a fun feud that was one of the staples in making post-brand split SmackDown such a good show in 2016.

Jackson: Dean Ambrose’s greatest matches in WWE came courtesy of AJ Styles, and in particular, their match at TLC 2016. It was a brilliantly told ladder match, and the chemistry the two shared was infectious.

Corrigan: Goodwillie has convinced me that Ambrose’s match with Triple H at Roadblock is his best singles match. As far as The Shield is concerned, nothing tops their debut against Team Hell No and Ryback at TLC 2012.

Goodwillie: The ladder match with Seth Rollins at Money in the Bank 2015. It was obviously a phenomenal match, even though WWE missed the boat in not crowning Ambrose in that moment, at least for a month or so to maintain his feud with Seth. When you consider everything both guys gave to that feud, it really does seem silly that they went on to have a Tag Team Title run three years later. Of course, Dean eventually got his moment one year later at MitB 2016, but the key to the 2015 match was the promo he cut after the match, which was his best WWE promo and was a ‘Hard Times’ for the modern era. Also, make sure to check out his work with AJ Styles, John Cena and definitely that Roadblock match with HHH.

What was Dean Ambrose’s greatest moment/angle in WWE?

Gibb: WWE consistently failed Ambrose in terms of building his matches in a way that made them feel important ahead of time and memorable afterward. He was there a long time, but it’s hard for me to recall his highest high. I seriously think his most impactful, memorable stuff in WWE was during the first SHIELD run.

Gladen: The Ambrose angle that made me a fan of his character work, as well as his in ring, was when he split from The Shield in 2014. He seemed dangerous and a legitimate threat to anyone who had the misfortune to be in the opposite corner of the ring from him. Once he was out of the shadow of the Big Dog and the more traditionally charismatic Seth, he really came into his own.

Bautista: When he cashed in against Seth Rollins. Although predictable, it was great storytelling with all of The Shield holding the WWE Championship in one night. Ambrose also got revenge on Rollins for his betrayal.

Gelfand: Dean’s greatest moment was winning the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank 2016. Every member of The Shield was WWE Champion at some point that and it was tremendously satisfying to see Ambrose get his chance to be champion.

Jackson: Dean Ambrose’s greatest moment was definitely when he debuted as part of The Shield at Survivor Series 2012 and the promo the three cut after their debut. You were immediately drawn to Ambrose. Who knew when he uttered “Nope” would become an internet meme around the globe!

Corrigan: Even though Ambrose hated the props and silly skits, I loved him dressing up as The Mountie and breaking character with Daniel Bryan.

Goodwillie: The SHIELD debut obviously comes to mind because of the pure authority for which those guys came onto the main roster with. But I’ll throw out two other angles, one serious, one… not so serious. First, you have to consider Dean’s WWE Championship win at Money in the Bank 2016, but I also enjoyed an angle on Raw maybe a year before that when he destroyed Bray Wyatt’s rocking chair. Bray’s reaction really sold it for me.

Who loves jon moxley #DeanAmbrose #JonMoxley #AEW #AEWAllOut pic.twitter.com/Gaqf54CMMe
— becky 2 belts [saw endgame] (@ILOVEJONMOXLEY) May 31, 2019

How do you feel about his surprise debut in AEW?

Gibb: I didn’t think it was very surprising, but it was good!

Gladen: I loved it. I was among those who thought that leaving WWE and the public way in which it was announced so early was all a work for Dean to leave and Moxley to come in and run roughshod over everyone a la Mankind, so I was very pleasantly surprised that I was so wrong.

Bautista: It was great. He just came out of the crowd and started tearing up the place attacking everybody in the ring. It’s how it should’ve been done.

Gelfand: Dean Ambrose’s re-debut as Jon Moxley was tremendous and it was a great signature moment for AEW to close out their inaugural show.

Jackson: I read rumors of Moxley’s debut before Double or Nothing, so it slightly tainted his debut for me. Regardless, Moxley looked phenomenal and the crowd response to his appearance was sensational. Definitely a spine-tingling moment!

Corrigan: It was the perfect ending to Double Or Nothing. The show was pretty good before that, but it became historic as soon as he stormed through the crowd.

Goodwillie: I love it. Wasn’t too outside the box, but that’s okay because sometimes you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Jon Moxley is in AEW now and sent a message to the rest of the roster on his way in. That’s all that needed to be done, and you can now consider my interest piqued.

When Mox meets the #BadBoy #AEW @JonMoxley @JANELABABY pic.twitter.com/4r76hQeiqz
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEWrestling) May 28, 2019

Who are you most looking forward to seeing him face in AEW?

Gibb: Kenny Omega and Adam Page would both be great opponents for Jon Moxley. Kenny is the bigger draw and money match; Page is the better natural opponent, and a feud with Moxley could be a star-making deal for him.

Gladen: I want to see him face off with guys like Jimmy Havoc and Joey Janela. I really want to see him embrace his hardcore roots, but I don’t want him to be segmented as a hardcore guy on the card. An iron man match versus Adam Page or Kenny Omega would be incredible as well.

Bautista: I believe this question should be reserved for New Japan, but that’s for another day. It’s Kenny Omega. In WWE, we didn’t see the wrestler in him. The character was based off being wacky. Now Jon Moxley, while being recognized as a world-renowned death match wrestler, can show the world that he’s one of the best wrestlers in the ring.

Gelfand: I’m most looking forward to seeing him face guys like Jimmy Havoc or Joey Janela, so that we can see Ambrose still has it as that psychotic, deranged brawler that we all fell in love with on the indies a decade ago.

Jackson: The talent pool of AEW is very deep and there are a lot of wrestlers I’d love Moxley to face. However, there is one wrestler who stands above all others that needs to face Jon Moxley…Pentagon Jr! Can you imagine a hardcore brawl between these two?!

Corrigan: Joey Janela. I can’t believe it’s already happening at Fyter Fest on June 29.

Goodwillie: Any name is an acceptable answer here. For me, it’s Kenny Omega. I’d love to see how Ambrose’s brawling style meshes with Omega’s Japanese-bred style of wrestling, in addition to what kind of promos and angles both guys can come up with. But as far as the clash of styles is concerned, we won’t have to wait long to see how Ambrose fits, because remember, he will be working dates for New Japan as well. Ambrose…Moxley…that’s going to take some getting used to.