Jon Moxley has finally been able get back to defending his IWGP United States Championship, being able to send KENTA packing. Tonight, he faces a two time IWGP Heavyweight Champion and living legend, Blue Justice himself. Yuji Nagata is making his AEW Dynamite debut, as he looks to capture some gold before making his way back to NJPW. Moxley got the win over Nagata & Ren Narita on NJPW Strong, but Nagata made sure to inflict some damage ahead of this match all the same.
Yuji Nagata Doing The Third Generation Of NJPW Proud, But Jon Moxley Won’t Be Stopped
Moxley hit the ring with some special music, that being Wild Thing by The Troggs, a song famously used by deathmatch legend Atsushi Onita. Nagata got right in the face of Moxley with some forearm strikes, before hitting a knee strike to take Moxley down before hitting a running big boot. Moxley was sent to the outside, where he was able to outbrawl Nagata and gain control of the ring.
Nagata was taken down to the mat with a snapmare, before Moxley hit a PK for a two count. Moxley threw more kicks the way of Nagata, before going to the second rope. Nagata would catch Moxley out of the air but couldn’t get the exploder suplex. Instead, he’d kick some sense into Moxley before hitting the exploder suplex for a two count.
A basement dropkick took Moxley down, before Nagata launched some midkicks. They’d trade blows in the middle of the ring, before Moxley dodged a big boot and hit a german suplex. Moxley set up the big lariat, but only got a two count. Nagata would block the piledriver attempt, before hitting the rising knee in the corner.
Moxley was set up on the top rope, and taken down with the avalanche exploder suplex. Nagata set up a hard midkick, Moxley flipped him off, and Nagata nearly knocked him out. Moxley looked for the rear naked choke after blocking the backdrop driver, but ended up in an armbar.
Moxley was able to save himself with the ropes. More strikes were exchanged, and Moxley was busted open with a jumping enziguri only to come back with a sliding lariat. Moxley applied a bulldog choke before Nagata fought his way free. Nagata was unable to block the Paradigm Shift, and was dropped on his head for the end.
This was a hard hitting brawl of a match, and as good as you can expect from the 53 year old Yuji Nagata. It was a spectacle more than anything, something that will be remembered for years in AEW, as they honored the NJPW legend. Moxley was able to more than hold his own and show why he’s a dominant champion. Match Rating: 4/5 (****)
Who will take the IWGP United States Championship off Jon Moxley? Is Lance Archer due for a rematch? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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