Jon Moxley Says IWGP US Title Match Was Set For NJPW Strong Before Tony Khan Suggested AEW Dynamite

Jon Moxley is set to degend the IWGP United States Championship against Yuji Nagata on tonight’s AEW Dynamite, but Moxley says it was originally set for NJPW Strong. Moxley and Nagata spoke with Sports Illustrated promoting tonight’s match, and you can check out some highlights below:

Nagata on Moxley inviting him to Dynamite for the match: “I’m very grateful to Jon Moxley for wanting to fight me so much that he made this challenge and invited me to America and AEW. I have a lot of respect for him, and what I respect most is that he understands the level of competition that takes place in New Japan Pro-Wrestling.”

Moxley on wanting to defend the title Nagata since February 2020: “I was watching Nagata kick the piss out of guys. Up until that point, I thought of Nagata as one of those guys where it felt like our paths would never cross and our timelines would never intersect. I’d have put him in a category of Kurt Angle or Bret Hart, where I would have loved to work with him but we couldn’t because we’re from two different eras. But as I was watching him, I thought to myself, ‘F—, Nagata can still go.’ ”

Moxley on the match originally being set for NJPW Strong: “Strong is a great hour of professional wrestling, and it’s great for the young guys and it’s great for the fans. I love being a part of it. I heard from [New Japan’s] Rocky Romero, who told me Gedo still wanted to do me against Nagata, and that he was flying him out to America for Strong. So that was our plan, and I thought that was f—— awesome.”

Moxley on Tony Khan suggesting they have the match on Dynamite: “Tony asked, ‘Why not do it on Dynamite?’ And I said, ‘If we can, then f— yeah, that would be bigger, especially for a legend like Nagata.’ We both loved that it would be a chance for Nagata to be back on TNT. Before I knew it, Tony talked to New Japan, and now it’s happening. And it’s a chance to celebrate his career.”