Top AEW Star Announced For Rare Independent Wrestling Appearance

AEW

A top AEW star has been announced for a rare independent wrestling appearance, his first in the promotion since 2023.

Despite no longer holding the AEW World Championship Jon Moxley is still among the biggest names in the company, and continues to feature prominently on television alongside his Death Riders faction.

With an anticipated “I Quit” match set for AEW WrestleDream 2025 on Saturday, October 18 with long-time rival Darby Allin, Moxley won’t have too long to recover, as he’s now been announced for a return to DEFY Wrestling for their October 24 show at the Wonder Ballroom in Portland, Oregon,

The promotion took to Twitter to break the news, however, it’s not yet known what Moxley will be doing at the show.

While Moxley is not known for taking many independent bookings, DEFY is one promotion that he is no stranger to.

The former four-time AEW World Champion had his last match in the promotion on July 29, 2023, when he defeated Artemis Spencer. He previously competed in the promotion three other times before that between 2021-2023.

We will provide further updates as/when Moxley’s opponent at the show gets announced.

The DEFY return of MOX!!
WRAITH — October 24 | Wonder Ballroom | Portland, Oregon 💀
🎟 Tickets on sale tomorrow at 1PM PSThttps://t.co/NUoF7hoR37 pic.twitter.com/ruZ2wRxTGX

— DEFY Wrestling (@defyNW) October 8, 2025