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THE AEW FORBIDDEN DOOR TIP SHEET

AEW will present the 2023 Forbidden Door PPV in conjunction with New Japan Pro Wrestling live from Toronto this Sunday.  Barring any last minute twists or developments on Collision this Saturday, here is our take on what should happen!

Bryan Danielson vs. Kazuchika Okada.

Mike Johnson:  I look at this match like Taz vs. Sabu.  It’s been built up in people’s heads for so long that no matter what these two do, there will be some out there disappointed it wasn’t the perfect match they envisioned in their head.  The reality is these two are great but they are older and Danielson especially has had a lot of mileage on his body over the years.  But, I expect this to be a lot of fun, even if I warn everyone to temper their expectations and not expect a Flair vs. Steamboat-esque 60 minute match.  As far as who wins, it’s Okada.  He’s New Japan’s number one guy and you have to build to a potential rematch!

Cory Strode: I expect this match to be a banger, with both men doing everything they can to show they are the best in the business. It’s one that fans have been wanting for over a decade. I know it’s not a great idea to predict based on the go home show, but since Dynamite ended with Okada standing tall, I am thinking Danielson will get the win.

Dave Scherer: This should be amazing and to the fans who follow New Japan, which means they follow everything, this is a legitimate Dream Match.  Even to someone with a casual interest in New Japan, I know how great Okada is and this is the one match I can get invested in without any real build up.  I think it will be a great match where Okada wins.

Richard Trionfo:  Hogan vs. Andre, Austin vs Hart, Rock vs Hogan, Flair vs Steamboat, Flair vs Race, Top Dolla vs Tyrus.  This match will join all of those matches in the pantheon of classic wrestling matches.  If I were a betting man, I would put good money on the fact that there will be "THIS IS AWESOME" chants before the match begins.  This will be a wrestling showcase that will outdo any of the technical wrestling on this show.  This is a match that needs NO OUTSIDE INTERFERENCE (and no RED SHOES).  I expect this to go at least a half hour if not close to 60 minutes.  I hope this is not the only time we see these men wrestle in a singles match.  It is a shame that Danielson is not in the G1 because it would have been a great way to build off what they do in Toronto.  If Danielson wins, then you can have Okada MDKing everyone to try to get to Danielson in the knockout portion of the tourney.  Do we see this go to a draw to set up a rematch in London at All In or in Tokyo at Wrestle Kingdom?   The real winner of this match is the profession of wrestling that we get to see these two men meet in the ring.  Will it be the Best in the World for the first decade of this century or the man who took the title from him over the last decade?  I am going to go with Danielson because if he wins, I want Okada to treat Danielson like Kiyomiya until they get the rematch. 

IWGP United States Champion Kenny Omega vs. Will Ospreay.

Mike Johnson:  Kenny got the win in Tokyo.  It’s time for Ospreay to get that win back and set up the rubber match down the line (London?)  The Wrestle Kingdom match was the best Omega bout in forever in my opinion, so hopefully this lives up to that standard.

Cory Strode: AEW hasn’t been talking about Omega being the US Champion in his appearances, and Don Callis is going to be involved in the match, so I expect Ospreay to win and Callis to be the cause of that to further their feud. Ospreay wins.

Dave Scherer: I think Mike nailed it.  We need to tie this up so we can do it again in London.  Personally, I hope Will goes total heel and does the “I won’t give you ghouls the spot monkey stuff you want” bit.  The fans will hate it, which will make for great heat.

Richard Trionfo:  I think the biggest problem with this match is the expectations that many fans will have.  Are they expecting something better than their match at Wrestle Kingdom?  If this is 75% of what they did in Tokyo, this will probably be match of the night.  There are two ways I can see this match going.  The first is a time limit draw (which I don't think the crowd will want to see, especially if this is the last match of the night) and then they run it back at All In at Wembley.  The other option is to have Ospreay win the title and then do the rubber match in London.  Whatever happens on Sunday, it will not be the end of the story.  I hope any of the possible interference options are kept in the planning stages because the more people who get involved in the match, the more it will affect my enjoyment of the overall match.

AEW Champion MJF vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi.

Mike Johnson:  My guess is MJF plays Larry Zbyszko here since he didn’t want to have the match to begin with until finally Tanahashi has enough and pinballs him all over the place.  MJF will do something underhanded to get the win with his feet on the ropes of the diamond ring, etc.

Cory Strode: With MJF as the champion, and Tanahashi being in the part of his career where he makes stars, I look for MJF to win.

Dave Scherer: I love Tanahashi.  This should be really good.  No way he beats the champ though, at least there shouldn’t be any way he beats the champ.

Richard Trionfo:  Tanahashi has been broken down over the last few years, but when the spotlight is on, he produces.  I think Jungle Boy has a better chance to beat Sanada than Tanahashi does of beating MJF, but this should be a good match.  I hope MJF has been watching Jay White matches from NJPW because he needs to get in about 12,000 steps running away from Tanahashi and stalling.  If MJF walks to the ring with anything Florida Panthers related, he wins the night.

IWGP World Heavyweight Champion SANADA vs. Jungle Boy Jack Perry.

Mike Johnson:  Jack Perry is there to have a competitive match and look strong against one of the best talents in Japan, but no way is New Japan sacrificing their top talent and title to Perry.  Perhaps Hook will get involved with some of the other 5Guys?

Cory Strode: There is no way Jungle Boy gets a win over the World Champion, and since I have been predicting it since before Double or Nothing, is this when JB finally turns heel? His story is that he wants a title, and losing here could make him turn on Hook to go after the FTW title. SANADA wins

Dave Scherer: There is no way that this should be a 50/50 match.  The champ should dominate 3/4 of it.  Give Jack some hope spots but he shouldn’t be on an even par.  He’s not close to being a top guy in AEW so he shouldn’t come close to hanging with SANADA.  If Tony wants that, New Japan should squash it.  ASAP.

Richard Trionfo:  Even if it was for storyline purposes, I agree 100% with what Sanada said about his opponent.  This would be the same as Miz or Baron Corbin accepting an open challenge in WWE, in my opinion.  Sanada has not had a title reign that is on par with recent IWGP champions and a competitive match against Perry does nothing to elevate him.  It would have made more sense for Jay White to be the one to accept the challenge and then he could have talked about how much of a joke it is that Sanada is champion and he will prove who the better IWGP Champion is.  Sanada wins this one, but if Jack wins, I want Toru Yano to win the G1 to set up that spectacular match at Wrestle Kingdom.

AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy vs. Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Katsuyori Shibata vs. Daniel Garcia.

Mike Johnson:  Cassidy is due for a loss.  My thought process is he’s finally overwhelmed but Daniel Garcia picks the bones and gets the title.

Cory Strode: Orange Cassidy has been “injured” in storyline for weeks, and a match with Zack Sabre Jr., whose style to to work a body part with ever increasingly painful holds seems like the best way to pay that off. I also think that having the International title on someone who does wrestle all over the world is a way to keep elevating the title and make it different from the other AEW titles. And, I love Sabre Jr’s work, so I see a title change here with a Zack Sabre Jr. win.

Dave Scherer: I think it’s time for Orange to get crushed.  Of the three guys, I like Sabre getting the win because he is, well, someone who works Internationally.  That is supposed to be what the belt is about right?

Richard Trionfo:  I thought the tag match and post match title grabbing fest was too long on Wednesday night, but this match makes sense.  This is AEW and New Japan and if there is an actual one on one title match, we need some matches with too many people for our own good.  Since this probably will be the night that they break the pattern of Orange Cassidy matches, I am going to go to the KhanTron and pull out the typical OC match.  Throughout the match, Cassidy will be stretched by Sabre, kicked by Shibata, and whatever Garcia does (please rescue him from the JAS).  When it appears that all is lost, Cassidy will Orange Up and find a way to retain the title.  Sabre has to go back to Japan for the G1 and Shibata can deal with the Pure Title.  This match will get a lackluster thumbs upish.

AEW Women's Champion Toni Storm vs. NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Willow Nightingale - NJPW title not on the line.

Mike Johnson: I really wonder if they do some sort of screwy finish here.  I don’t see Willow taking the belt but she’s got some nice momentum and is absolutely great in her role.  Storm has played a good heel champion since turning but it’s way too soon to do a title switch.

Cory Strode: Nightingale is on the rise, but this is not the time to take the title off of Storm, since she JUST won it. Also, with Nightingale’s title not at stake, it’s like the unleashed a spoiler. Storm wins.

Dave Scherer: I don’t see Storm losing but even with Willow’s belt not on the line, I can’t see New Japan wanting their new champ to take a loss.  This seems like the perfect place for a no finish or a DQ to me.

Richard Trionfo:  Please give me serious Willow from when she won the NJPW Strong Women's Title for this match.  While I was talking about this match on my preview audio, I wasn't really discussing the match, but more about who would be there to help Willow neutralize Ruby and Saraya.  It is a shame that the focus should not be on two good wrestlers having a good wrestling match, but more about the shenanigans that will probably lead to Toni challenging WIllow for her title.  Willow will have the match won but Ruby and Saraya distract the referee and that gives Toni the chance to cheat to win. (This feels like a Red Shoes Match)

Owen Hart Foundation Tournament: CM Punk vs. Satoshi Kojima.

Mike Johnson:  I love me some Kojima  and always have, but he’s here to have a competitive match before falling prey to the GTS.  Punk isn’t losing anytime soon.

Cory Strode: There is no way CM Punk is going to lose his first singles match back from injury. Add to it the story that KENTA wouldn’t agree to the match, I have to think it’s because he didn’t want to lose to Punk. Punk wins.

Dave Scherer: About the only booker I can think of that would be dopey enough to book a Punk loss here is Vince Russo.  Tony is better than Vince Russo.  Punk wins.  And with Punk on the show, I wonder how many gutless crybaby wrestlers will call to complain to their Uncle Dave about having to be sad at work because Punk is allowed to be on the same show that they are!  DraftKings set the over under at 5.5.

Richard Trionfo:  I am more excited for this Punk match than the other one that was rumored for this show.  There is a 'dream match' that people are looking at in the Owen Tournament, but I might be in the extreme minority who don't want to see it because I want Roddy/Punk in the second round (a little FIP bias).  Punk hits the GTS but we should get some of Kojima's greatest hits as well.

The Blackpool Combat Club & Konosuke Takeshita & Shota Umino vs. The Elite & Eddie Kingston & Tomohiro Ishii.

Mike Johnson:  Let there be blood!  They are pushing Takeshita hard and probably will do so until he faces Omega (All Out?), so I don’t see the Blackpool Combat Club losing this one.  My guess is Ishii takes the pinfall loss.

Cory Strode: The feud continues, and since The Elite lost last time, I am going to presume they will win this time. I can’t think of two wrestlers whose styles do NOT mesh with the spotfest style of The Elite than Kingston and Ishii, so I just wonder what kind of a match this is going to be. The Elite win.

Dave Scherer: The thing that I am most interested in here is if The Young Bucks will feel secure enough to come out in front of the crowd.  Obviously, they didn’t have that feeling on Wednesday night.  I am in the camp of the AEW fans that turned this feud off in droves on 6/13.  I don’t care about this feud, I just want it to be over.  There will be gore and ridiculous violence that won’t mean a thing.  Yay.  I hope that The BCC win so it just ends this thing.  Clearly, I am not the target audience for it.

Richard Trionfo:  While Ishii was one of the first people I thought about as the man Eddie was going to announce, in the back of my mind, I was hoping for Chris Hero to come out to confront his former partner.  I am putting the over/under on people bleeding at 7.5 (and I am including Callis in that group).  I said on my informal preview audio that I could see the Elite winning as a way to give them a pacifier before the next blow up, but it probably won't happen since BCC is on a better trajectory than the Elite.  I can see Eddie taking the pin, but if they have Ishii lose, then The Elite can 'injure' Eddie to write him off AEW TV while he is in the G1.  Eddie and Ishii wrestle each other in the G1 on July 26th, so that can add to the match because I think Ishii finishes in the top 2 of their block (with Shingo)

Sting & Darby Allin & mystery partner vs. Chris Jericho & Sammy Guevara & Minoru Suzuki.

Mike Johnson:  It makes no sense but I’d hope for Jushin Liger as the guest wrestler, even though he’s retired. They are obviously building to Jericho vs. Sting for London.  It makes sense that Jericho’s team gets the win here.

Cory Strode: I am putting out the guess that Sting and Darby will be teaming with Tetsuya Naito, and I can’t see Sting losing while he is on his farewell tour. While I can see Jericho’s team winning to set up a solo match between Jericho and Sting, my gut just tells me that Sting gets to win and make the Toronto crowd happy, since that’s what AEW has been doing with him for the last year or so. Sting, Darby Allin and their partner win.

Dave Scherer: Chris Jericho is good at coming out on top of the young guys.  But, Sting is older so his team gets the win here.  Hopefully it leads to Sammy finally leaving Jericho.  It’s about time and they have laid the seeds for it to happen.  I wouldn’t mind Jericho going on a tour or something.  He has been around too long and needs to take a break.

Richard Trionfo:  My first pick to be the mystery partner is Naito, followed by Shingo.  However, if they want to go with something a little more color coordinated in the face paint, why not do El Desperado.  I don't see that last option being used, but we can think outside the box.  This match depends on how slow the Guevara separation from Jericho goes.  I think Sting, Darby, and TBD win the match with Guevara taking the pin and Jericho can show frustration over the loss on Dynamite.

Owen Hart Foundation Tournament: Athena vs. Billie Starkz.

Mike Johnson:  Starkz is here to be chum for Athena the shark.  

Cory Strode: While it would be a boost for Starkz to win here, Athena is the bigger deal, the ROH Women's champion, and Starkz is still a freshman. Athena wins.

Dave Scherer: I don’t see the ROH Champ losing.  I think this will be about showcasing what Starkz can do.

Richard Trionfo:  This match is more about how Starkz looks against a top talent like Athena than who wins the match.  Athena might be the best thing about ROH at this time and I can't see her losing.  It is more important that Starkz puts up the good fight knowing that Athena is going to do everything possible to embarrass the youngster.

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