Jon Moxley Is Wrestling's Masculine Icon

The average guy wants to be Jon Moxley.

Jon Moxley is a fictional character who seems to solve most of his problems through violence and fighting, so any sane individual understands that they can’t actually be Jon Moxley, but in a wrestling world that seems short on relatable characters that the average fan can look to as some kind of overarching role model, Moxley stands out as an accessible paragon of a certain type of masculine virtue every man secretly wants to emulate.

After the death earlier this month of Dory Funk Jr. and the reflections on his career poured in, one of the things that stood out was that Dory Funk had a look that would be considered “outdated” by modern standards. He wasn’t a giant guy with a bodybuilder’s physique, and he certainly didn’t have flowing locks of hair. He didn’t look like a superhero, which would become the standard look for top wrestlers in subsequent generations.

Dory Funk Jr. looked like a regular tough guy you might see walking around your own hometown. A cattle rancher who wrestles steers down by day and world title challengers at night. The same could be said for a lot of his contemporaries like Jack Briscoe, Harley Race, and his brother, Terry Funk.

Dory Jr. looked like a guy you would know, and conceivably, a guy you could be.

Moxley stands out in much the same way.

Wrestling has changed over the five decades since Dory Funk Jr. was the world champion, and there are not many top stars who come across as idyllic versions of the average man. Either in the way they look, the way they act, or the way they are presented, the typical top wrestling star, even very popular and successful ones, comes across as a cartoonish version of a human being. A completely extreme representation of heroes and villains.

Moxley feels relatable, and thus his attitudes and actions feel transferable to an everyday person’s life in some way. Jon Moxley doesn’t take any shit from anyone, just like every man wants to be seen. Sure, if someone gives us shit, we can’t drag them through broken glass to teach them a lesson, but the idea is still the same.

Moxley holds those around him accountable. He holds the other members of the Death Riders to a high standard and there is pressure in every match they have–they need to perform in a certain way to earn Moxley’s approval. His frustration at any shortcomings is palpable, especially when he is on color commentary for the matches of his stablemates.

At the same time, Moxley has proven to be a character full of love and compassion. He’s never disappointed in his fellow Death Riders if he feels like they tried their best, and he has been loyal to them and supported them for years. There is a fierce sense of camaraderie among the Death Riders, and Moxley, as their leader, serves as their ultimate protector, the same kind of patriarchal role that most men want to see themselves in within their own families.

Moxley doesn’t always play by the rules–while most men would tell people that they always want to engage in something in a fair and balanced way, the reality is that a lot of men enjoy the idea of going a bit rogue, taking an advantage when presented and going for something in an extreme, unsporting manner, when something of great importance is presented to them. Moxley isn’t the perfect gentleman and that certainly appeals to a certain part of the masculine fantasy that men have about themselves.

Moxley’s look over the years has evolved into one of pure practicality. His bald head, unshaven torso and pants give off the vibe of a real working man, someone who sweats from his brow each day and works with his hands. Perhaps there is no bigger contrast between Moxley in AEW and Dean Ambrose in WWE than looking at their gear–with Dean Ambrose wearing tactical gear and later jeans, dressed like a “lunatic” and not like a real, earnest person.

While Moxley is playing a character on television, there is no denying that Moxley’s real-life attitude, or what he has chosen to present to us as his “real” character, has played a major role in his appeal to fans. Moxley plays a tough bastard on TV, but we all know he is a wife guy, married to someone wrestling fans see every week on TV. Again, something that most men aspire to be.

Moxley has openly talked about his struggles with alcoholism and has tackled that challenge head-on, attacking it with the same single-mindedness his character demonstrates in the ring when working over an opponent.

Perhaps more than anything though, Moxley told WWE to shove it and left the company that he felt had turned him into a joke to strike out independently and shape his own destiny. What fan doesn’t think about telling their corporate boss to fuck off and go and strike out and do their own thing? And unlike other wrestlers who have talked the talk but then went crawling back to WWE, Moxley gives off the impression he would rather retire than work another day in WWE.

Moxley’s contrast with “Hangman” Adam Page, who he feuded with extensively last year, leading to the largest gate of any show in the United States for a company outside of WWE, is an interesting juxtaposition in masculinity in wrestling.

Both men have a lot of similarities, and as wrestling characters they are both convinced that most of their issues can be solved with their fists and their best work comes when they are covered in their own blood (and the blood of their enemies). Both wrestlers have been staples of AEW since the company launched, and you can easily argue they are the two most integral pieces to the company.

Page though, feels like a feminine idealization of masculinity. Page is well-groomed, conventionally handsome, mindful of the feelings of others and his friends and open about his support for various causes such as the environment and immigration. Page has a lot of the same traits of Moxley, but in a more friendly, conscientious package that appeals to a different demographic of fans.

That isn’t to say that Moxley only appeals to males and Page only to females, that is far, far from the case, as both men are incredibly popular with all types of fans. One is also not better than the other, wrestling takes all types of different people that appeal to various parts of the fanbase to be successful, and AEW is fortunate to have two guys like Moxley and Page at their disposal as top drawing acts.

Moxley highlights a lot of the contrasts of what most men feel.

He is single-minded and focused on his goals, but also feels responsibility for the success of others. He is at times friendly and supportive, but can also be sullen and moody. He wins most of the time but when he loses he is the hardest on himself. He understands the importance of fair competition but also can’t resist taking an edge to really get the job done in a high pressure situation. None of this inherently makes Moxley’s character a “good” person, but he makes him relatable, understandable and for a lot of men, enviable.