"I don’t know what has happened to her" - AEW star is surprised Vince McMahon didn't push former WWE Superstar
While Vince McMahon has created many world-renowned stars in WWE, fans have often felt that he did not maximize certain stars' potential. AEW star Dax Harwood felt the same way with regard to Ember Moon.
Ember Moon, now known as Athena in AEW, joined WWE in 2015 as part of the NXT women's roster. She won the NXT Women's Championship once, holding the title for 140 days. She was promoted to the main roster but never got a sustained push before getting demoted to NXT again in 2020.
In November 2021, she was released from the company. She spent some time on the independent circuit before debuting for AEW. At the ROH Final Battle pay-per-view, she defeated Mercedes Martinez to win the ROH Women's World Championship.
Speaking on FTR with Dax Harwood, the former AEW tag team champion spoke about Athena's time in WWE as Ember Moon.
"Ember Moon, incredible athlete. I don’t know what has happened to her, at least in WWE, I don’t know why she had so many start stops. I don’t know why they never got fully behind her. Because she is an incredible athlete. She has some crisp snap bumps. Her kicks are crisp, her forearms are crisp, her movements, the way she cuts and dodges, that’s athleticism. And on top of that, she can speak. She’s a great speaker too. I don’t know what happened with her on the main roster and the start and stops but yeah, she’s one of the top women wrestlers physically in the world," Dax Harwood said. [From 1:34 to 2:32]
Athena has multiple title matches in AEW since leaving WWE
Athena made her All Elite Wrestling debut on May 29, 2022, at the Double or Nothing pay-per-view. She showed up at the end of Jade Cargill's title defense and made the save for Anna Jay and Kris Statlander.
She defeated Kiera Hogan on her AEW television debut before challenging Jade Cargill for the TBS Championship at All Out. She came up short but challenged for the AEW Women's World Championship at the Grand Slam event.
MOVING GRAPHICS for Jade Cargill vs Athena at All Out! https://t.co/nVF7wpVrlU
It was a fatal four-way match involving Toni Storm, Athena, Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D., and Serena Deeb.
Toni Storm emerged victorious. After defeating Mercedes Martinez, Athena won her first title under Tony Khan's tutelage by lifting the ROH Women's World Championship.
If you use quotes from this article, please credit FTR with Dax Harwood, and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.