In a world where everyone wants to claim to be the best in the world or the face of a company, Jon Moxley might just be that for AEW. The summer of 2022 was supposed to be the Summer Of CM Punk. A span of sweltering months that fans never got to see from the self-proclaimed Best In The World during his time with WWE. However, Punk couldn't follow through on those plans for him. He injured his foot just a few days after beating Hangman Adam Page for the World Championship at Double Or Nothing.
Moxley was Tony Khan's break-glass-in-case-of-emergency champion after Punk shattered his foot while stage diving into the crowd before a trios match a few days after Double Or Nothing. The Death Rider won a tournament culminating at Forbidden Door, with Moxley taking Punk's spot in a match against Hiroshi Tanahashi and winning the interim title. That interim tag would eventually get under Jon's skin, as he started to feel like he'd carried AEW on his back while Punk recovered from his foot surgery.
Over the last few weeks, fans also saw that storyline come to a head. Moxley was allowed to squash Punk to unify the AEW World Championship 11 days before the All Out pay-per-view. That victory would be short-lived, as The Voice Of The Voiceless recovered the title in front of a hometown crowd in Chicago. What happened after that just might be the darkest night in AEW history. During the post-All Out media scrum, Punk eviscerated Hangman Adam Page and the company's EVPs (The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega). His words led to a backstage altercation between himself and several All Elite Wrestling staff members, including the EVPs he'd just buried to members of the national media. Not only that, but Punk had already severely injured himself during his fight with Moxley. So much so that it doesn't matter if he's getting suspended because he's set to miss significant time and requires another surgery.
AEW Calls On Jon Moxley Once Again
With Punk on the shelf again, Tony Khan made the call to entirely vacate the AEW World Championship this time. Over the next two weeks, several former champions will take part in a tournament to crown the next champ. After everything Jon Moxley has done for the company over the last several months, it'd be a shame for him not to come out on top again. He set the tone for the Dynamite following the disastrous All Out evening, delivering arguably the best promo of his AEW career. His words were goosebump inducing, as he reminded fans of the company why they were fans in the first place.
Moxley dropped the title to Punk at All Out despite being on the run of a lifetime. He's so over with crowds that he received support while fighting CM Punk in the Windy City. That just doesn't happen. This tournament is an opportunity for AEW to right the wrong of putting the belt back on Punk after Moxley had carried it so well throughout the last few months. Even if that isn't how things shake out (the man deserves a vacation, after all), no one can deny that it's been Jon Moxley, and not the once-again injured CM Punk or anyone else in AEW, who has been the company's MVP over the last year.