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Just at the age of 32, WWE Superstar Dean Ambrose has already achieved several major accomplishments in his 14-year career in the Professional Wrestling industry. Ambrose, who initially signed with the WWE in 2011, is already a Grand Slam Champion with the company having won the WWE Championship, the WWE Intercontinental Championship, and several other major accomplishments as well.
However, before signing with the WWE almost seven years ago, Ambrose was considered as one of the most violent, brutal, and ruthless Pro Wrestlers on the Independent circuit, where the 32-year-old Cincinnati native was billed as Jon Moxley and most notably is recognized for his work for Combat Zone Wrestling.
Therefore, that being said let us now take an in-depth look at Dean Ambrose’s best 5 matches from the Indie circuit, prior to signing with the WWE:
#5 Jon Moxley vs Robert Anthony - CZW: It's Always Bloody In Philadelphia, 2010
If you truly consider yourself to be a hardcore fan of Dean Ambrose, then I suggest that this is the exact match where you should initially start with all of Ambrose’s work on the Independent circuit.
Moxley’s showdown against Robert Anthony was a solid championship match which had plenty of amazing spots to cheer for and one of the standout moments of this match was Anthony breaking the pane of glass with a steel chair in order to attract the adequate amount of heel heat towards himself.
However, all things said and done, Anthony's actions eventually came back to haunt him when Moxley brutally powerbombed his opponent through that same shattered glass and all the build-up to this spot, in particular, was equally brilliant as well.
At one point of the match, Moxley even connected with a wicked Stunner on Anthony and despite the questionable finish to the match, this match truly remains as one of Moxley’s best CZW Heavyweight Title defenses.
#4 Jon Moxley vs Jimmy Jacobs (I Quit Match) - Dragon Gate USA: DGUSA Bushido Code of The Warrior
Jimmy Jacobs and Jox Moxley’s feud was certainly considered as one of the best things on the Independent circuit around the 2009-10 period and the conclusion to this heated mid-card rivalry was definitely one of the most hardcore stuff Dragon Gate USA ever produced.
The I Quit Match between Moxley and Jacobs at Dragon Gate was another thing of beauty, given the fact that the two men absolutely went the distance in terms of brutality, despite the contest being relatively short.
In the end, it was Jimmy Jacobs who got the win after continuously stabbing Moxley with a spike and making him quit in the process.
#3 Jon Moxley vs Nick Gage vs Scotty Vortekz- CZW: Tournament of Death 8, 2009
This CZW Tournament of Death Semifinal match is an absolutely brutal and barbaric brawl between three absolute madmen, who put their bodies on the line in a gruesome showdown from 2009 and if you’re a fan of deathmatches then I suggest you go and check out this full match immediately.
Nick Gage and Jon Moxley were two of the most brutal deathmatch competitors in CZW at that point of time, but despite that, a young Scotty Vortekz was the star of this match I believe. The first big spot of the match from Vortekz was a huge Moonsault to the outside on both Gage and Moxley, which was then followed up by a gruesome lightbulb spot between all three men.
Later on in the match, Vortekz pulled off one of the most brutal spots of the match when he jumped off a ladder on Nick Gage through a bunch of light bulbs which were perfectly placed on top of Gage’s torso, allowing Moxley to take advantage of the situation and go for a quick roll-up victory only for Gage to kick out at two.
A frustrated Moxley then powerbombed Vortekz on another bunch of light bulbs, but once again failed to capitalize on the situation, as Gage eventually went on to pick up the win following a Piledriver on another bunch of lightbulbs on Moxley.
#2 Jon Moxley vs Nick Gage - CZW, 2010
Jon Moxley initially started off this match in typical Jon Moxley fashion, when he started stabbing Gage on the forehead with a fork like an absolute madman. Gage, however, eventually managed to turn things around and turned the match in his favor when he applied and used Moxley’s tactics against him and thus attacked him on the forehead with the very same fork and busted him wide open.
After countering each other’s offense for the next few minutes, both Moxley and Gage’s foreheads started to look like a pool of blood, as the former perfectly executed a suplex from the top rope and through a barbed wire table on Gage that subsequently allowed Moxley to pick up a huge win.
#1 Jon Moxley vs Nick Gage vs Drake Younger - CZW: Southern Violence, 2010
Taking place in one of the most unique venues of all time, this Falls Count Anywhere match truly did live up to the Southern Violence name as we witnessed one of the craziest and insane matches of all time.
Coming in as CZW Heavyweight Champion, Jon Moxley exactly proved the entire world why he is one of the best talkers and in-ring performers of all time and with the additional inclusion of the evergreen Nick Gage and the much brutal Drake Younger, this match had all the perfect elements for a classic CZW deathmatch.
This match was contested in a typical southern summer night with three men beating the living the hell out of each other, surrounded by a small, but passionate and vocal crowd who cheered on for all three men throughout the evening.
In the end, it was Gage who eventually picked up the win in a similar fashion (much like the previous triple threat match mentioned on this list) and walked away with the CZW World Heavyweight Title. But, by the end of the evening, it was Jon Moxley who received a huge ovation from the entire crowd for his crazy performance and his tank top by the end of the match speaks for itself.
Did we miss out any matches? Which are your favorite Dean Ambrose matches? Let us know in the comments below.
