The western Ocean has gone dry; what does the new interior look like?

So, the western ocean of my world has gone dry (in the distant past). The continent has moved eastward to collide with what was previously the next continent over. The newly exposed land is a barren wasteland, but I'm looking to see how it would develop over time. We are probably talking millions of years, even tens of millions. <br><br>Here's a basic summary of the two previous landmasses:<br><br>Old Western Continent:<br>* Continental Climate, cold winters, warm summers<br>* Ocean to the east; arid, temperate, and tropical to the west<br>* This continent was home to trees that can live for over a thousand years. It also had a similar mountain range in the west, but it had already worn down over time. <br><br>Old Eastern Continent:<br>* Temperate/Meditteranean climate<br>* Ocean to the west; arid, temperate, and tropical in the east<br>* This continent was home to trees that only lived for a few hundred years. The mountain range in the east is still a very active volcano chain. <br><br>How would these two landmasses influence each other over time as the ocean between them closes? What kind of climates, geology, and life forms would develop in the old oceanic region that is newly exposed? <br><br>Edit: Thank you for all the responses so far. I'm probably going to keep this thread going for a few days since I'm still brainstorming a bit. If you have more info, please feel free to share. Your help is much appreciated.