HeelByNature.com is reader-supported. When you click on links or make purchases through our site, we or our affiliated partners may earn a commission. Additionally, our site features Sponsored Content, which helps us maintain and operate the website.
Jon Moxley Speaks On Passing Of Brodie Lee
Following the news of Brodie Lee’s passing, several of his peers inside the ring shared memories of working with him throughout his career.
AEW star Jon Moxley spoke with Sports Illustrated, speaking on how hard Lee’s passing has been on him. He also shared memories they shared on the independent scene, as well as WWE, and AEW.
“It doesn’t feel real,” Moxley stated. “It feels like I’m in a very vivid dream and I’m waiting to snap out of it. My brain hasn’t accepted it yet. Right now, I’m completely f—— numb.”
Moxley remembers the first time he wrestled Lee, and how pleasant he was to be with in the locker room. He recalls sharing a hotel room with Lee after their first match.
“The first night we wrestled each other, we shared a hotel room together later that night,” Moxley stated. “That was over a decade ago. He was an incredible person. While so many of us would be all hot about some wrestling angle, he would find a way to turn negatives into a positive or an inside joke. He was the exact person you wanted in the locker room. I was so glad to be around him again in AEW.
The two continued to work with each other throughout the independent scene, as well as their time in WWE. He admired his in-ring ability, and shared his response when Tony Khan suggested Lee joining AEW.
“And we wrestled so many times. Whether it was on the indies, in The Shield–Wyatt war, six-mans on house shows and European tours, it felt like we were always together.” Moxley recalled. “When Tony Khan asked me about Brodie in AEW, I said, ‘Hell yeah, I want that match.’ We could wrestle each other in our sleep. He was so f—— good.”
Moxley worked with Lee during his first tryout in WWE, reminiscing about a joke he made about him after the match.
“We always joked that he’d be a substitute teacher in Rochester if I hadn’t made him look so good, but the truth is he was this can’t-miss, undeniable talent,” says Moxley. “He was an athletic big man that could work circles around everybody.”
During Wrestlemania 31, Daniel Bryan, Bad News Barrett, Dean Ambrose, Dolph Ziggler, Stardust, Luke Harper and R-Truth all competed for the Intercontinental Championship in a ladder match. Moxley spoke on memories from that match.
We wanted to make the highlight reel,” Moxley stated.. “We figured the only way we could do that was if I nearly killed myself with a death-defying bump. So we devised this spot where he powerbombs me from the ring to the floor through a steel ladder, and that’s f—— sketchy. It’s an extremely dangerous bump, going backward at a high angle”
He recalls Vince McMahon’s reaction to the bump, and how he his trust for Lee was crucial in making that spot come off without a hitch.
“It was a gnarly bump. Vince [McMahon] bugged out. He thought I was dead, which meant it was a good f—— bump. And we made the highlight reel. I maintain to this day that I would not have trusted anybody else on the planet with that bump. I put my life in his hands, and I walked away.”
After losing an AEW World Championship match to Moxley at Double Or Nothing, Brodie Lee proved himself as a main event performer, being the centerpiece of The Dark Order faction.
“It wasn’t a secret to anyone in the business how good he was,” Moxley said. “But he was always used in a utility role or part of a group. For him to be the centerpiece of a group as a solo act, he proved he was a main-event performer.”
Moxley not only spoke about Lee’s work in the wrestling business, but also his life outside the ring. He praised him for being a great father and husband.
“He wasn’t interested in being famous,” Moxley stated. “This is a guy you would not see at an afterparty. As soon as he was done with work, he was going home to his family as soon as possible. He was so proud to be a father and a husband. He loved wrestling and he was great at it, but it was his job. He was lucky enough to love his vocation, but his most important role in life was as a father and a husband.”
“I’m grateful I got to spend so much time with him, from the time we first met on the indies,”
“I’ll always picture him with that smile on his face. I still can’t wrap my brain around this. I don’t understand why the best people are the ones taken away so early.
Special thanks to Sports Illustrated for the quotes.