Ember Moon On Her Dream Opponent, WWE 2K19, Ronda Rousey, And More
The Raw Superstar shared her thoughts with us on a variety of topics.
We recently had the opportunity to talk to WWE Superstar Ember Moon and asked her questions on a variety of topics, from the origins of her distinctive look and spectacular finishing move, to her dream opponent, the upcoming WWE Evolution pay per view, and more.
We began by asking Ember if she was excited about her appearance in WWE 2K19.
'Who wouldn't be? It's such a cool and awesome opportunity to be a part of a video game. As a huge video game nerd it's a little crazy and surreal to see the face in the mirror in a video game [...] I'm super happy with the representation of myself; they even got my hair down!'
We then touched upon Ember's distinctive look, asking what inspired her ring gear and general aesthetic.
'I'm really big into Game of Thrones and medieval fantasy, I've always been a massive fan of it. I wanted to be the person that saved the day; I never wanted to see myself as a victim. I really wanted to be Xena mixed with me! The show might not hold up, but man it was great when I was a kid! I was going to be by own warrior princess or war goddess, or however you want to put it.'
Ember then talked about the origins of her distinctive finishing move, the Eclipse.
'A very very close friend of mine actually created the move. He was an independent wrestler and he was retiring, and I said "Hold on! Could you teach me how to do this? I really think it could give me an edge." [...] But I had a fear of heights - I still have a fear of heights! - so it was very difficult for me to gain the confidence to even go on the second rope. So he taught me the move and it took me months upon months to figure out how to corkscrew right. Then I got to Booker [T] and he suggested doing it off the top rope.'
We pointed out that Ember hasn't just done the Eclipse from the top rope, but also recently from the shoulders of her Mixed Match Challenge partner Braun Strowman. She spoke about the competition as a whole.
'It's so much fun, not only just for the WWE Universe but for us as entertainers as well. It brings something different because it's giving you a closer in-depth look at what happens in the ring when we're in there - all the smack talk and all the crap that's being said. That's something I think people are drawn to; you get a deeper look at us as Superstars and as characters, and I think that's something that the audience craves a lot of the time. Not only that, but you get crazy match-ups like me and Braun Strowman!'
On the topic of WWE Evolution, Ember spoke on who her all-time dream opponent would be for the event.
'There's a whole chunk of the roster that I haven't faced yet, but I keep saying it and I hope that it'll come true - I've always wanted to wrestle Beth Phoenix. She's the Glamazon, she's had a huge influence on my career, but anyone would be a great opportunity to wrestle at Evolution. Everybody's going to bring their A game. [...] I know that we're all going to steal the show. Every woman is in the gym, every woman is in the ring trying to get an edge.'
Speaking of dream matches, she also revealed a rather unorthodox match-up she always wanted to have when she was younger.
'I've always had this weird dream match situation where it would be me and Too Cool vs. Ivory, Taka Michinoku and Funaki. I'm a big wrestling nerd! There are too many matches that I've always wanted to do, but that's the funniest one that comes to mind.'
Finally, Ember gave her thoughts on Ronda Rousey's work in WWE so far.
'I think she's the biggest star that WWE has ever gotten their hands on. She is the baddest woman on the planet. She's a pioneer for women in UFC and now she's in WWE. It's crazy because every day I go to work and see Ronda Rousey as our Women's Champion [...] It's so cool to see someone like Ronda come over and just catch on so quickly. It's scary how quick she caught on from her first match at WrestleMania to her singles match on Raw with Ruby Riott. She's an athlete; she's absolutely phenomenal, and I wish I'd caught on that quick when I was a rookie!'
We began by asking Ember if she was excited about her appearance in WWE 2K19.
'Who wouldn't be? It's such a cool and awesome opportunity to be a part of a video game. As a huge video game nerd it's a little crazy and surreal to see the face in the mirror in a video game [...] I'm super happy with the representation of myself; they even got my hair down!'
We then touched upon Ember's distinctive look, asking what inspired her ring gear and general aesthetic.
'I'm really big into Game of Thrones and medieval fantasy, I've always been a massive fan of it. I wanted to be the person that saved the day; I never wanted to see myself as a victim. I really wanted to be Xena mixed with me! The show might not hold up, but man it was great when I was a kid! I was going to be by own warrior princess or war goddess, or however you want to put it.'
Ember then talked about the origins of her distinctive finishing move, the Eclipse.
'A very very close friend of mine actually created the move. He was an independent wrestler and he was retiring, and I said "Hold on! Could you teach me how to do this? I really think it could give me an edge." [...] But I had a fear of heights - I still have a fear of heights! - so it was very difficult for me to gain the confidence to even go on the second rope. So he taught me the move and it took me months upon months to figure out how to corkscrew right. Then I got to Booker [T] and he suggested doing it off the top rope.'
We pointed out that Ember hasn't just done the Eclipse from the top rope, but also recently from the shoulders of her Mixed Match Challenge partner Braun Strowman. She spoke about the competition as a whole.
'It's so much fun, not only just for the WWE Universe but for us as entertainers as well. It brings something different because it's giving you a closer in-depth look at what happens in the ring when we're in there - all the smack talk and all the crap that's being said. That's something I think people are drawn to; you get a deeper look at us as Superstars and as characters, and I think that's something that the audience craves a lot of the time. Not only that, but you get crazy match-ups like me and Braun Strowman!'
On the topic of WWE Evolution, Ember spoke on who her all-time dream opponent would be for the event.
'There's a whole chunk of the roster that I haven't faced yet, but I keep saying it and I hope that it'll come true - I've always wanted to wrestle Beth Phoenix. She's the Glamazon, she's had a huge influence on my career, but anyone would be a great opportunity to wrestle at Evolution. Everybody's going to bring their A game. [...] I know that we're all going to steal the show. Every woman is in the gym, every woman is in the ring trying to get an edge.'
Speaking of dream matches, she also revealed a rather unorthodox match-up she always wanted to have when she was younger.
'I've always had this weird dream match situation where it would be me and Too Cool vs. Ivory, Taka Michinoku and Funaki. I'm a big wrestling nerd! There are too many matches that I've always wanted to do, but that's the funniest one that comes to mind.'
Finally, Ember gave her thoughts on Ronda Rousey's work in WWE so far.
'I think she's the biggest star that WWE has ever gotten their hands on. She is the baddest woman on the planet. She's a pioneer for women in UFC and now she's in WWE. It's crazy because every day I go to work and see Ronda Rousey as our Women's Champion [...] It's so cool to see someone like Ronda come over and just catch on so quickly. It's scary how quick she caught on from her first match at WrestleMania to her singles match on Raw with Ruby Riott. She's an athlete; she's absolutely phenomenal, and I wish I'd caught on that quick when I was a rookie!'
Written by Jack King
jack.king@cultaholic.com Twitter: @JackTheJobber
