AEW vs NJPW Forbidden Door 2023 is the long-awaited crossover show between All Elite Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling.
It pitted all the top stars from both promotions against one another, creating some dream matches that nobody could ever expect.
With the show opened by Hiroshi Tanahashi vs MJF and ending with Bryan Danielson vs Kazuchika Okada, it’s clear that Forbidden Door is one of the most star-studded shows of all time.
In this article, we’ll take you through all the winners and losers of AEW x NJPW Forbidden door, revealing our grades for each match on the card.
Zero Hour: Mogul Embassy vs Chuck Taylor, Trent Beretta, Rocky Romero & El Desperado
Winner: Swerve Strickland (Mogul Embassy) pinned Rocky Romero following a double foot stomp.
Grade: D
Zero Hour: Athena vs Billie Starkz
Winner: Athena pinned Billy Starks following a piledriver.
Grade: D
Zero Hour: Stu Grayson vs El Phantasmo
Winner: El Phantasmo pinned Stu Grayson after hitting him with a variation of a piledriver.
Grade: E
Zero Hour: United Empire vs Los Ingobernables de Japon
Winner: Shingo Tagaki (LIJ) pinned TJF after hitting him with his “Made in Japan” finishing move.
Grade: D
MJF vs Hiroshi Tanahashi (AEW Championship)
Winner: MJF hit Hiroshi Tanahashi with the Dynamite Diamond Ring, pinning the Ace to retain his AEW Championship.
Grade: C+
CM Punk vs Satoshi Kojima (Owen Hart Cup Round 1)
Winner: CM Punk seemingly turned heel in the match, being booed out the building as he pinned Satoshi Kojima with a GTS. He then teased leaving down the heel tunnel.
Grade: B
Orange Cassidy vs Zack Sabre Jr vs Daniel Garcia vs Katsuyori Shibata (AEW International Championship)
Winner: Orange Cassidy pinned Daniel Garcia, after the champion threw Katsuyori Shibata out of the ring after he hit Garcia with a PK.
Grade: B
SANADA vs Jungle Boy (IWGP World Heavyweight Championship)
Winner: SANADA pinned Jungle Boy following a top-rope moonsault. Jungle Boy attacked Hook after the loss, turning heel and mocking the crowd.
Grade: D (C if you include the post-match shenanigans)
Blackpool Combat Club (Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta, and Claudio Castagnoli), Konosuke Takeshita, and Shota Umino vs. The Elite (“Hangman” Adam Page, Matt Jackson, and Nick Jackson), Eddie Kingston, and Tomohiro Ishii
Winner: Tomohiro Ishii pinned Wheeler Yuta with a Sheer Drop Brainbuster.
Grade: B
Will Ospreay vs Kenny Omega (IWGP United States Championship)
Winner: Will Ospreay wins after hitting a Tiger Driver 91, Hidden Blade and Stormbreaker to pin Kenny Omega, after nearly three quarters of an hour of incredible action that is, in my view, the greatest match of all time.
Grade: S
Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara and Minoru Suzuki vs Sting, Darby Allin & Tetsuya Naito
Winner:
Grade:
Bryan Danielson vs Kazuchika Okada
Winner: A one-armed Bryan Danielson shockingly forced Kazuchika Okada to tap out to a variation of the LaBelle Lock, using his leg due to a shoulder injury.
Grade: A