"He exposed the business in front of all those people" - WWE legend slams Jon Moxley's recent AEW match for embarrassing finish
Former WWE manager Jim Cornette recently shared his thoughts on the infamous outing between Jon Moxley and Rey Fenix on AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam III.
The Purveyor of Violence lost his AEW International Championship last Wednesday night, just 17 days after winning it from Orange Cassidy at the All Out pay-per-view. Moxley reportedly suffered a "mild concussion" early into the match, which prompted him to call an audible and change the finish.
However, the referee, Rick Knox, refused to count to three after Fenix dropped the champion on his head with a scary-looking piledriver. The match eventually ended after the Mexican luchador caught a worn-out Jon Moxley with another piledriver. Following the botched finish, the referee received critical remarks from the wrestling world.
According to reports, Rick Knox, who's a well-liked figure backstage, has heat for failing to gauge The Blackpool Combat Club member's condition.
Speaking on the Jim Cornette Experience podcast, the former WWE manager lashed out at Rick Knox for exposing the business and held Rey Fenix responsible for potentially hurting Jon Moxley:
"And what was the referee thinking? It was the referee's fault that the match didn't end [early]. Even though it was not the right finish, that it didn't end with the first piledriver because the referee didn't do his job when nobody kicked out, he still didn't count. He exposed the business in front of all those people. It wasn't even close. It wasn't a judgment call. Nobody was f**king moving. So he f**ked up. [Rey Fenix] f**ked up at least two times, maybe three depending on how many concussions he gave Moxley," Cornette said.
Cornette added:
"And if Moxley was that hurt at the start, but determined to go through with the rest of the match because it was live television and the show must go on. Then why did he do another 10 minutes and then just lay down and said, "f**k it beat me for this f**king thing, I'm done." What the f**k is going on here?" (15:25 onwards)
Check out the full clip below:
What's next for Jon Moxley?
Jon Moxley is said to be doing "okay" following his title loss to Rey Fenix last week. The former WWE Champion was fortunate enough to walk on his feet after the AEW medical personnel checked on him after the match.
However, there's currently no word on his return timeline. The 37-year-old would have to pass a concussion test to get back to the ring.
Moxley missed this week's edition of AEW Dynamite, which was a go-home show before the WrestleDream pay-per-view this weekend.
Fightful Select recently learned that plans were in place for Jon Moxley to defend his title against a non-AEW competitor at WrestleDream in Seattle. But the plans had to be scrapped after Rey Fenix became the champion at Grand Slam III.
Do you agree with Jim Cornette? Sound off in the comments section below.
(Please credit the Jim Cornette Experience podcast and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for transcription.)