LEE MORIARTY | PHOTO COURTESY ALL ELITE WRESTLING

In the eyes of his peers, few pro wrestlers can match the skill of Lee Moriarty. The Pittsburgh native, who currently holds the Ring of Honor Pure Championship — a title contested under old-school wrestling rules — has been called one of the best in the world; he’s been ranked as high as the 47th-best grappler on the planet by the venerable Pro Wrestling Illustrated publication.

Yet he talks like a budding student — someone still learning his craft.

“I don’t think you ever stop learning professional wrestling,” Moriarty says. “There’s so much that gets forgotten — French wrestling, old-school lucha libre, Japanese styles … there’s so much I need to catch up with.”

PHOTO COURTESY ALL ELITE WRESTLING

Moriarty competes with Ring of Honor and its parent company, All Elite Wrestling; he’ll return to his hometown Wednesday, when All Elite Wrestling presents its flagship show, Dynamite, at the Petersen Events Center. The event, which will be broadcast live on TBS, is a special one: it’s the fifth-anniversary edition of the weekly program, which debuted in October 2019.

“I think five years at such a high level is huge — not just for professional wrestling but for any television show,” Moriarty says. He’s excited to celebrate the anniversary in Pittsburgh, which has hosted a number of prominent All Elite Wrestling broadcasts in the past five years — owing in part to homegrown talent such as Moriarty and longtime star Britt Baker.

While nationally broadcast shows may feature Moriarty’s most visible matches, his career takes him to plenty of events without a national spotlight. He maintains a regular schedule in independent promotions as well, traveling around the country — including regular appearances with Pittsburgh-based Enjoy Wrestling and Uniontown-based Ryse Wrestling.

PHOTO COURTESY ALL ELITE WRESTLING

“It’s been very fun, because it has accelerated my learning process,” as he learns the differences between performing for a television audience and for fans just a few feet from the ring. “If you can learn one, it can help the other.”

Moriarty, who now lives in Tampa, learned his trade in Pittsburgh, training with local grapplers Brandon K and Dean Radford. As Pittsburgh has emerged as a hotbed of independent wrestling — often with a dozen or more shows happening in the region each month — more up-and-coming wrestlers have learned and honed their craft nearby. Moriarty names rising star Mikey Montgomery, another regular with Enjoy Wrestling as well as Cleveland-based Absolute Intense Wrestling, as someone to watch. “He’s a younger talent that has done a lot of similar things [to the rise in my career.] I got to wrestle him, and I could see the passion.”

As for this Wednesday’s show, he’s keeping quiet about who he’ll be in the ring with. But he promises an entertaining evening.

“Professional wrestling is so unpredictable, and that’s the thing that makes it so much fun. No matter what, you’re gonna get a good show.”