Jon Moxley

New Japan Pro-Wrestling wrapped up the World Tag League on Sunday, using the finale as part of the buildup to Wrestle Kingdom 14 on Jan. 5.

All Elite Wrestling star Jon Moxley made his return to NJPW, showing up after Lance Archer and Minoru Suzuki defeated Yujiro Takahashi and Kenta. After hitting Archer and Suzuki with the Death Rider, Moxley announced he wants to challenge Archer to a Texas Death Match for the IWGP United States title.

Moxley technically never lost the U.S. title. NJPW stripped him of the belt after he was unable to make the King of Pro-Wrestling show in October.

Archer beat Juice Robinson to become the new champion.

Chris Jericho made an appearance in the World Tag League final as well, albeit remotely. The AEW world champion interrupted Hiroshi Tanahashi and Toa Henare's post-match celebration to cut a promo for his bout against Tanahashi.

Jericho is looking for his first victory at Wrestle Kingdom.

He unsuccessfully challenged Kenny Omega for the U.S. title at Wrestle Kingdom 12, which was his first NJPW match since 1998. Last year, he lost the Intercontinental Championship to Tetsuya Naito.

For the second consecutive week, Jon Moxley, Hikaru Shida and the team of Santana and Ortiz are atop the men's singles, women's singles and tag team rankings, respectively, in the AEW weekly rankings.

Moxley defeated Joey Janela in the main event of Wednesday's AEW Dynamite to improve to 4-0-1 in singles competition. One week after Moxley stood in the crowd and stared down AEW world champion Chris Jericho, Le Champion did the same to Moxley.

While a Moxley vs. Jericho match in the near future seems inevitable, there was some movement elsewhere in the rankings. Most notably, Kenny Omega moved past PAC into second place after beating him last week and then defeating Kip Sabian this week on AEW Dark.

Cody is still in the top five at No. 4 despite saying he can no longer challenge for the AEW world title, while MJF held steady in fifth.

On the women's side, Shida maintained her No. 1 ranking and status as No. 1 contender to Riho's AEW Women's Championship despite losing a singles match to Kris Statlander on Dynamite. The singles match was Statlander's first in AEW, and it earned her an instant spot in the top five at No. 5.

Nyla Rose, who won a squash match before powerbombing a referee through a table, is on the ascent as well, going from fourth to second. Emi Sakura is in third, and Britt Baker is fourth.

The tag team rankings did not change at all from last week since none of the teams in the top five competing in a tag team match.

Santana and Ortiz are still in line for a potential shot at the AEW Tag Team Championships held by SCU with a 3-1 tag team record, followed by The Young Bucks and Best Friends at 4-3, and The Lucha Bros and Private Party at 4-4.

The tag team rankings could see a significant shake-up next week since Santana and Ortiz are set to face The Young Bucks in a Texas Street Fight on Dynamite.

Also, The Butcher and The Blade will make their AEW in-ring debut against Cody and QT Marshall, and a win could result in The Butcher and The Blade receiving some consideration for the top five.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

All Elite Wrestling star Jon Moxley suggested last week that he is focused solely on AEW and is no longer concerned with WWE.

During an appearance on the State of Combat podcast (h/t WrestlingInc.com's Ross Kelly), Moxley noted that he has no added motivation to stick it to his former employer:

"No, especially now since it's been six months later. I'm not motivated about showing WWE anything. I showed them when I had my great run there. I don't have anything to prove to them. I don't care what they do now. Good luck to them or whatever, but I don't have any of that chip on my shoulders about me showing Vince McMahon, I honestly don't have that. I feel like that would be negative anyway. My energy is about creating new, positive things and putting out good, creative angles and enjoying myself, and enjoying the fact that I don't have to have a real job and to live my dream of being a pro wrestler, which is all I ever wanted to do."

Moxley's last WWE appearance came in March under the Dean Ambrose moniker, as he teamed with Shield brothers Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins against Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley and Drew McIntyre.

On April 30, Moxley posted a video on social media that showed him escaping prison. That led to speculation that he was leaving WWE to explore opportunities in another wrestling company:

That happened May 25 in Las Vegas at Double or Nothing when Moxley made his AEW debut after the main event between Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega. Moxley attacked both wrestlers before brawling around the arena with Omega.

Since that time, Moxley has become one of AEW's biggest stars, and it can be argued that his stock is higher than ever, even when taking into account his time as a member of The Shield and being WWE champion.

During his short time in AEW, Moxley has beaten Omega in an unsanctioned match at Full Gear, and he has his sights set on Jericho and the AEW World Championship.

Moxley and Jericho had a feud in WWE that was focused primarily on comedy, but due to the seriousness of Moxley's character in AEW, things figure to be different this time around.

Although Moxley may not be actively looking to prove WWE wrong, having a far better and more engaging rivalry with Jericho in AEW could go a long way toward allowing Moxley to show the kind of range he wasn't often permitted to show in WWE. 

Tune into TNT on Wednesday nights at 8 p.m. ET to catch all the action of All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

We live in a world where some people share every thought they have on social media. It has become second nature for them to grab their phone and tweet or Instagram anything they find the least bit interesting.

For WWE Superstars, they have to be careful of what they choose to put on their social media accounts because everything they do is being watched by management to make sure they are not making the company look bad.

Over the past year, it has become more and more common for Superstars looking to leave the company to let everyone know they have requested their release from WWE on social media. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

Let's take a look at this from every angle and figure out how WWE should handle things when a Superstar publicly requests to quit the company.

Independent Contractors

WWE Superstars are classified as independent contractors. They are signed to a contract, but in technical terms, they are not employees of WWE.

The laws and regulations surrounding independent contractors are vague and confusing. In most cases, both parties are allowed to end the agreement at any point if one side is not fulfilling its end of the deal.

Contractors are usually allowed to take on more clients and work for multiple entities unless some kind of exclusivity deal is part of the original contract.

Not only do WWE Superstars not have the ability to work for other promotions whenever they have time, but they are also not allowed to end the contract if they feel unsatisfied with the direction of their career.

The only way around this is retirement. AJ Mendez, formerly AJ Lee in WWE, retired from in-ring competition in order to leave the company. If she wanted to wrestle for All Elite Wrestling or Shimmer, she would open herself up to a lawsuit from WWE.

WWE allows exceptions on occasion like when it sends wrestlers to appear at Evolve shows or allowing The Colons to work for WWC in Puerto Rico, but management only allows things like this when it won't affect the company's bottom line in a negative way.

Being classified as independent contractors also means Superstars are responsible for their own insurance and other non-wrestling expenses such as travel and lodging. Contractors and their employers are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act and all laws relating to it, which means things like unemployment insurance do not exist for them.

Back in 2010, WWE was investigated for potentially misclassifying wrestlers as independent contractors, according to Brian Lockhart of the Connecticut Post. Nothing ever came of the investigation since WWE has continued to operate the same way since then. 

In 2012, WWE posted a response to several accusations on its website regarding these practices. One thing addressed was how the company covers all costs related to injuries in the ring and rehabilitation. 

The response also noted how WWE complies with all state athletic commissions and federal regulations regarding the use and employment of wrestlers as contractors.

However, the post says nothing about what a Superstar can do if they would like to leave the company and continue to wrestle elsewhere.

What Happens When a Superstar Publicly Requests a Release?

In years past, the only way we would hear if someone requested their release was either someone with a source would report it online or WWE would wish them the best in their future endeavors once the agreement was terminated.

When a Superstar requests their release, they are likely told the company will need time to consider it. It's hard to say how long they have to wait for an answer but they probably don't get it the same day.

This is why we are seeing so many people post messages stating they have requested their release before knowing if they will be let out of their contract. 

Before AEW had a weekly show on Wednesday nights, WWE was more willing to let people leave if they were unhappy. Goldust was able to depart, Hideo Itami was granted his release and Jon Moxley was given a hero's sendoff with a special event dedicated to The Shield for his last match on WWE Network.

Shawn Spears was one of the first to post about requesting his release on Twitter on February 19. WWE granted it, and he has been working for AEW in recent months.

However, Luke Harper, Sin Cara and Mike Kanellis have made similar statements in 2019 and have not been released. 

Then there's Super ACH, formerly known as Jordan Myles in NXT. He was the winner of the NXT Breakout Tournament this year and seemed poised for a big push when the black-and-gold brand debuted on USA.

Before Myles could ever appear on national television, WWE planned on releasing a shirt for the young Superstar. The design unintentionally invoked racist imagery and once the company received complaints, the product was removed before any units had shipped. 

Myles took to Twitter and slammed WWE several times before he was let out of his contract. Marc Middleton has a full breakdown of everything that happened on WrestlingInc.com.

How Should WWE Handle Public Requests for Release?

A situation like this is a double-edged sword. If WWE grants a release to everyone who tweets about wanting one, it sets a dangerous precedent. If the company does not grant the release, it makes WWE look petty.

Management does not want to lose Superstars to the competition, but it also doesn't want to look like a horrible place to work. 

Unfortunately, there is no easy answer here. The only solution if someone requests their release on social media is to take it on a case-by-case basis.

Ideally, WWE would want to make it so people do not want to leave, but when you employ well over 100 wrestlers, certain people will always feel they are being underused because there is only so much room at the top.

Management could always tell the roster that taking these matters to social media will hurt their chances of being allowed to leave, but the company risks looking bad if people found out about a policy like this. 

According to Darren Wood of WrestlingInc.com, Triple H addressed this issue during the most recent pre-TakeOver conference call. He said it was unprofessional to take these matters to social media and talents who have a problem need to speak to management, not Twitter. 

Until WWE makes a concrete decision about how to handle this issue, it should release the people who are unhappy. None of those asking to leave are main event players so it's not as if any of them showing up in AEW would cause millions of fans to change the channel. 

Harper, Sin Cara and Kanellis are all talented performers, but none of them have been a part of a storyline for months. Releasing them would allow WWE to save a little money it could put back into the developmental system to continue grooming the next crop of Superstars.

What do you think? Should WWE release anyone who wants to leave or should people be forced to finish their contracts?

After winning the ratings battle for the first time two weeks ago, last week's episode of WWE NXT beat AEW Dynamite again in viewership.

According to Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp, last week's NXT finished with 810,000 viewers, which was down from 916,000 the previous week. Meanwhile, AEW Dynamite went from an average of 893,000 viewers two weeks ago to 663,000 last week.

The viewership numbers are usually released the day after the shows, but since last Thursday was Thanksgiving, the figures didn't come out until Monday.

NXT opened with a celebration after dominating at Survivor Series by winning four of the seven inter-brand matches. That celebration was interrupted by Undisputed Era, which led to Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish defending the NXT Tag Team Championships against Keith Lee and Dominik Dijakovic.

Fish exited the match early with an injury and was replaced by Roderick Strong. Even with an unprepared Strong in the match, Undisputed Era beat Lee and Dijakovic to retain the titles.

Other major happenings included Lio Rush beating Akira Tozawa to retain the Cruiserweight Championship, Rhea Ripley laying down an NXT Women's Championship challenge to Shayna Baszler and Finn Balor beating Tommaso Ciampa in the main event courtesy of interference from NXT champion Adam Cole.

Balor also hit Cole with a Pele Kick after the match, which means a Triple Threat feud over the title could be in the cards.

On AEW Dynamite, Chris Jericho beat Scorpio Sky in the main event to retain the AEW World Championship. After Jericho's victory, Jon Moxley emerged in the crowd and stared Jericho down, which suggests he may be Le Champion's next opponent.

Also, Kenny Omega beat PAC in a singles match, MJF beat "Hangman" Adam Page to win the AEW diamond ring and The Butcher and The Blade debuted in AEW alongside Allie by jumping Cody.

Next week's NXT will feature Damian Priest vs. Killian Dain after they did battle at NXT TakeOver: WarGames in a Triple Threat that also included Pete Dunne, while next week's AEW Dynamite will include The Young Bucks and Dustin Rhodes vs. Sammy Guevara, Santana and Ortiz in a six-man tag team match.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).