ROH Star Moose Not Going To WWE For Now Due To 2009 Arrest, Questions Abound About His Next Move
Moose was believed to be finishing up with Ring of Honor shortly after the Best in the World pay-per-view, en route to signing with WWE. Dave Meltzer reported in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Moose is actually not headed to WWE any time soon after all, due to a 2009 domestic violence allegation.
If the report is accurate, it sounds like WWE's concerns are primarily for the sake of public relations. "He was actually told not to worry by WWE with the idea it's just a timing situation (given the recent situations with Adam Rose and Jerry Lawler) and not a closed door," Meltzer reported. "He was originally expected to be part of their September NXT introduction class."
Quinn Ojinakka (Moose) was arrested in May 2009 after a fight with his then-wife. According to the Atlanta Constitution-Journal at the time, Ojinakka was taken in on a misdemeanor charge of simple battery. Ojinakka was playing in the NFL as an offensive lineman for the Atlanta Falcons then. Due to the arrest, he was suspended from the first regular season game of the following NFL season.
The Observer reported Moose also has had offers from TNA and Lucha Underground. TNA reportedly offered him $100,000 per year, more than either WWE or Lucha Underground.
On Twitter, Moose mocked rumors and reports about his future.
@brutalbobevans lol I don't believe until meltzer reports it....... Then it's definitely true #NOT
— Quinn Moose Ojinnaka (@MooseNation69) June 30, 2016
Moose is advertised for a Ring of Honor event on July 8 in Baltimore and the television tapings on July 16 in Philadelphia.
The next TNA Impact tapings are July 12 to 14 at Universal Studios in Florida, with a live episode on the 12th. Moose posted a tweet saying he'll be in Los Angeles, from July 12 to 15, which would make him unavailable for the TNA tapings. If he's going to Los Angeles to wrestle, no promotion was named, but it's also plausible he's going there on non-wrestling business. The Observer reports TNA tapings after that are scheduled for August 11 to 14.
Lucha Underground does shoot in Los Angeles, but its episodes are already taped through season three. The last episodes of season two air this month. If Moose was to work with Lucha Underground, the earliest he could debut there would likely be for the season four tapings. Tapings for that season might begin in the winter, according to the Observer.
Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter
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