Dean Ambrose's Hardcore Roots.

This article will follow Ambrose's early career in professional wrestling. Going down a path most wrestlers choose to avoid known as "Hardcore Wrestling".
Hardcore Wrestling is one of Professional Wrestling's many different "Styles" and is known for its extreme violence and thrillingly dangerous nature. Its also one of wrestling's most beloved and well respected styles.

Who is Dean Ambrose?

Jonathan Good is a 32 year old  Pro Wrestler who goes by the ring names "Jon Moxley" and currently "Dean Ambrose" He currently wrestles for the WWE  and has been with the company since 2011. Starting in WWE's developmental promotion FCW that would eventually become NXT. He made his main roster debut in late 2012.  He made his debut apart of a 3 man faction that included fellow debuting wrestlers Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins, Together they are known as "The SHIELD" and since their debut has dominated WWE's Main Event Scene on & off since its creation and has propelled all 3 Wrestlers to becoming top stars and heights most wrestlers never reach. Dean Ambrose's WWE career has been nothing less then superb. He has built a long list of notable accomplishments in his time with the company and doesn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon.

This article tho is to highlight the particular of part of his character that has played a factor in his career in WWE  and helped him build an much needed individuality in establishing his role as one WWE's top superstars today.
The particular part of Dean's character refereed to is his "Hardcore Wrestling Style" which I have clearly made known already and this articles nearly sole purpose of being written. As said before tho, His Hardcore nature is only one facet of his character and he is known for multiple great quality's and is one of the most well rounded professional wrestlers in the company. But WWE has definitely taken notice in his hardcore style and made this a big part of his gimmick as a competitor through his entire career with the company. In this article tho were only looking at his Hardcore beginnings during his time on independent wrestling scene.

The Beginning of Jon Moxley.

Early Life
Jonathan Good a Cincinnati native grew up low income, living in Cincinnati public housing raised by his mother with his father being absentee majority of his life. During his childhood and teenage years he found a love in wrestling and used as an escape from life. Watching wrestling videotapes and reading wrestling literature. In this time period he decided he wanted to pursue wrestling as a career and during starting training while in High School. Only year into training Good decided to drop out of HS and pursue wrestling full time.

Start of Wreslting Career

He began working for the Heartland Wrestling Association (HWA) a local wrestling promotion in his hometown of Cincinnati,Ohio. When he first started in the HWA Good was refused training due to not being 18 years old and up until he was of age he helped by setting up chairs and the ring before shows. Once 18 He got his formal training from Les Thatcher and Cody Hawk. Good at 18 years old made his official wrestling debut in the HWA in 2004 under the ring name Jon Moxley. He would gain experience and within his first year win HWA's Tag Team Championship with Jimmy Turner as his partner. He was later stripped of titles for unknown reasons. In 2006 Moxley assembled a faction called "The Crew" with several wrestlers in the promotion most notably well known Hardcore wrestler Sami Callihan. In May of 2006 He defeated Pepper Parks winning the HWA World Heavy Weight Championship. Moxley held the Title for 4 months before dropping it to Chad Collyer. But he eventually regained the HWA World Title in December of 2006 and dropped it again in January of 2007. He would continue wrestling in the HWA until 2010 within his time in the HWA he held 4 Tag Team Titles & 3 World Heavy Weight Titles. 
In 2007 He began working for Insanity Pro Wrestling (IPW)     


IPW is famous for hardcore wrestling and  is
where Jon really started to compete in hardcore matches. Moxley would have a heated feud with wrestler Jimmy Jacobs that would come to an end IPW's 9th anniversary reign of insane event where he defeated jacobs and successfully defended his IPW World Heavy Weight Championship. Moxley would go on to successfully defend his IPW world title in a Three Stages of Insane match against Drake Younger. In his final show with the company Moxley would defend his title against Jimmy Jacobs in a Dog Collar Match and would lose the match and title due to referee stoppage for being so violent. He left the company in 2011.

Moxleys Most Hardcore Time in his Career

During 2009 Moxley would begin work with Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) which is a Hardcore Wrestling promotion and centers its shows around violence, weapons, and pure carnage. He would go on to enter CZW's 8th annual "Tournament of Death". Which is known as most violent and dangerous wrestling event put on in the United States. It has several different forms of matches that involve a number of different stipulations always involving various different weapons and can sometimes can be considered psychotic & borderline inhumane. If Wrestlers didn't sign contracts and weavers to be in these matches they could honestly go to prison for the things that place in this tournament. In the 1st Round Moxley would defeat Brain Damage  in a "Dining Room Deatmatch" Which featured Tables, Chairs, Silverware and more.In the Semi-Final Round Moxley would lose to Nick Gage in a "Fans Bring The Weapon Match" during the match Gage took an electronic saw to Moxleys Head (Pictured Above)
The match was extremely violent and just pure insanity. In the Final Round Moxley would compete in a Ultraviolet Battle Royal with 9 other wrestlers to determine who would go onto the Championship round. Moxley would be one of the 4 to go onto the Championship round. In the Championship round he would compete in a fatal 4 way along with wrestlers Danny Havoc, Thumbtack Jack, & Dj Hyde for the 
CZW World Heavyweight Championship. But would be defeated by DJ Hyde and end his time in the Tournament of Death. 
at CZW's 11th anniversary show in 2010 Moxley would defeat B-Boy to win the CZW World Heavy Weight Championship and would hold it for 6 months before dropping it to Nick Gage in a Ultraviolent 3 way dance also involving Drake Younger but only a week later would compete with Nick Gage & Egotistico Fantastico in another Ultraviolent 3 way dance to recapture the CZW World Heavy Weight Title and become 2 time champion. He'd hold the CZW World Heavy Weight Title for another 6 months before dropping it to Robert Anthony in February 2011 and that would end his time with CZW.

During his run with CZW. Also beginning in 2009 Moxley would also work for Dragon Gate USA which is a wrestling promotion famous for its Japanese Style Show. Japanese Wrestling has a long history of being violent and its famous "Strong Style" Wrestling which is famous for stiff strikes and wrestling maneuvers. During his time with Dragon Gate he started a feud with Legendary Hardcore Wrestler Tommy Dreamer and the feud would end Dragons Gate Mercury Rising PPV where he would defeat Dreamer in a Hardcore Match. In January 2011 on the Uprising PPV he would face old foe Jimmy Jacobs and during the match suffered a horrific injury that nearly severed his left nipple. Moxley would compete in many other promotions during this this time in the Independent Wrestling Scene including Full Impact Pro, Evolve, Jersey All Pro Wrestling, and Ring Of Honor. In April of 2011 WWE took notice and signed him to a developmental contract at which Dragon Gate the only company he was under contract with granted his release.  In May of 2011 Good would join WWE"s Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) under ring name Dean Ambrose. Ending his independent career.

CZW World Heavy Weight Champion