AEW’s Jon Moxley Forced Into Physical Therapy

Jon Moxley has explained his philosophy on rehabbing injuries and says he has been undergoing physical therapy for months.

At WrestleDream, Jon Moxley ended Bryan Danielson’s World Title reign with a brutal send-off. The event was the culmination of a reign of terror Moxley had inflicted on AEW since returning in August. Over the last few weeks, he has led the Blackpool Combat Club in vicious assaults on the likes of Darby Allin, The Dark Order, and any other star who gets in the way of his vision of a “new paradigm” for the company.

While he is a dominant force dealing out punishment onscreen, Moxley isn’t impervious outside the ring. Speaking to Authority Magazine, the AEW World Champion revealed he has been undergoing physical therapy on his hip for months now.

“I’ve been going to physical therapy for my hip for the last few months. When it comes to rehabbing injuries, just find quality PT people and do everything they say with 100% effort. Vetting them is important. I think the biggest differentiator between someone who returns from a serious injury 100pct and someone who’s never quite the same again is simply the attitude with which they approached rehab. If you’re on crutches and all they tell you to do for the day is 15 reps of little foot flexes or something, make those the best, most focused 15 reps you can.”

Jon Moxley Admits He Needs Longer To Recover

After two decades in the ring, Moxley admits recovery takes him longer than it used to, something he’s found difficult to accept.

“For me, being that I’m 38 and have been getting the crap kicked out of me for 20 years, I don’t recover as quickly as I used to. That’s been difficult to accept. There’s a principle I learned at 11 years old when I started wrestling, basically the principle that hard work beats talent, or at least it can. You may not have been given the same natural gifts; you may not have the same advantages. It doesn’t matter. Hard work evens the playing field.

“The ability to endure, to have discipline, a simple willingness to put in more time and effort- this was like learning some cheat code to the universe. Discovering that simple principle, changed the course of my life. That’s what gave me the confidence to pursue pro wrestling despite the astronomical odds of success. I was a nobody; I didn’t have any advantages, but who cares? I’d just outwork everyone. I read a book back then called ‘A Season on the Mat’ and it talked about how Dan Gable wouldn’t be satisfied until he had to be carried off the mat after practice. That’s how I approached my life from then on.”

Jon Moxley will defend the AEW World Title for the first time at Full Gear against Orange Cassidy. The reluctant hero explained that while he never wanted the gold, Moxley’s recent actions have left him with no choice but to step up as a locker room leader and take on the Death Rider.

H/T to Fightful for the above transcription.