Forbidden Door (2023)

Forbidden Door (2023) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view co-promoted by All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). It was held on June 25, 2023 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario. It was the second AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door event to take place. The event was the first PPV held outside of the United States and NJPW's first PPV in Canada. This was also the first non-WWE professional wrestling event held at the arena since November 21, 1999 when World Championship Wrestling (WCW) held Mayhem at the then-Air Canada Centre.

AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door
Information
Promotion	All Elite Wrestling New Japan Pro-Wrestling
Date	June 25, 2023
Attendance	14,826
Venue	Scotiabank Arena
City	Toronto, Ontario
Pay-per-view chronology
AEW: Double or Nothing NJPW: All Together Again AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door AEW: All In NJPW: Fantastica Mania Mexico
Forbidden Door chronology
2022 AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door

The main event of the show saw Bryan Danielson defeat Kazuchika Okada. Danielson would trap Okada in an omoplata and then transfer into his LeBell lock to make Okada to tap out, getting the submission victory. During the match, Danielson suffered a legitimate fracture in his elbow after a top rope diving elbow drop from Okada landed on his arm.^[1][2]

The event recieved very positive receptions from fans and critics. The IWGP U.S. Championship match, International Championship match, 10-man tag team match, and Danielson-Okada main event all recieved praise. Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter rated the IWGP U.S. Championship match between Kenny Omega & Will Ospreay 6 stars out of 5, making it the highest rated match in AEW history at that time. Meltzer said that the match was one of the greatest matches in the history of AEW.^[3]

Matches

#	Matches[4][5]	Stipulations	Times
1D	Tom Lawlor (with Royce Isaacs) defeated Serpentico (with Luther)	Singles match (Serpentico replaced a sick Adam Cole)	4:10
2P	Mogul Embassy (Swerve Strickland, Toa Liona, Brian Cage, and Bishop Kaun) (with Prince Nana) defeated Chaos (Rocky Romero, Chuck Taylor, and Trent Beretta) and El Desperado	Eight-man tag team match	12:30
3P	Athena defeated Billie Starkz	Women's Owen Hart Cup Tournament first round match	7:50
4P	El Phantasmo defeated Stu Grayson	Singles match	7:15
5P	Los Ingobernables de Japon (Shingo Takagi, Bushi, and Hiromu Takahashi) defeated United Empire (Jeff Cobb, Kyle Fletcher, and TJP)	Six-man tag team match	7:30
6	MJF (c) defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi	Singles match for the AEW World Championship	15:30
7	CM Punk defeated Satoshi Kojima	Men's Owen Hart Cup Tournament first round match	13:40
8	Orange Cassidy (c) defeated Zack Sabre Jr., Katsuyori Shibata, and Daniel Garcia	Four-way match for the AEW International Championship	11:15
9	Sanada (c) (with Douki) defeated "Jungle Boy" Jack Perry (with Hook)	Singles match for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship	10:45
10	The Elite ("Hangman" Adam Page, Matt Jackson, and Nick Jackson), Eddie Kingston, and Tomohiro Ishii defeated Blackpool Combat Club (Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta, and Claudio Castagnoli), Konosuke Takeshita, and Shota Umino	10-man tag team match	21:25
11	Toni Storm (c) (with Ruby Soho and Saraya) defeated Willow Nightingale	Singles match for the AEW Women's World Championship	10:30
12	Will Ospreay (with Don Callis) defeated Kenny Omega (c)	Singles match for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship	39:45
13	Sting, Darby Allin, and Tetsuya Naito defeated Le Suzuki Gods (Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, and Minoru Suzuki)	Six-man tag team match	15:10
14	Bryan Danielson defeated Kazuchika Okada	Singles match	27:40
(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match D – match was a dark match P – match took place on the pre-show

References

1. "Bryan Danielson Enters To 'Final Countdown', Taps Kazuchika Okada At AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door". Fightful. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
2. "Bryan Danielson: My Broken Arm Is The Singular Worst Injury I've Had, I Couldn't Be There For My Kids". Fightful. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
3. "Will Ospreay praises Kenny Omega following AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
4. "AEW-NJPW Forbidden Door pre-show results: Powell's live review of Athena vs. Billie Starkz in a Owen Hart Cup tournament match, Kyle Fletcher, Jeff Cobb, and TJP vs. Shingo Takagi, Hiromu Takahashi, and Bushi, Stu Grayson vs. El Phantasmo". ProWrestling.net. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
5. "AEW-NJPW Forbidden Door results: Powell's live review of Bryan Danielson vs. Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega vs. Will Ospreay for the IWGP U.S. Championship, MJF vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the AEW World Championship". ProWrestling.net. Retrieved November 24, 2023.