Jon Moxley is set to take on Hiroshi Tanahashi at AEW X NJPW Forbidden Door on June 26 in a match that has been in the making for so long, that Tony Khan says it's fate. AEW's co-owner and president might have a flair for the dramatic, but given how close this bout has been to happening in the past, it might be tough to argue with him on this one.
Ever since leaving WWE as Dean Ambrose and reemerging as Jon Moxley, this is a match he's wanted. It was close to going down while Mox was spending time in NJPW, but Khan claims to have prevented it from happening at that time. He wanted AEW to be involved, and it's difficult to blame him for that desire. Now with Forbidden Door literally opening the gateway between the two promotions, the time is right for them to fight.
Khan spoke about this match at length during a recent sit-down with Busted Open Radio and had the following to say about Forbidden Door's main event. "There's some backstory as to why it never happened. I would never allow it to happen," he said. "They tried to do it so many times, Moxley vs. Tanahashi, and I've always been there to stop it from happening because it's such a huge match and we had to be involved if it was going to happen." He went on to say that, given CM Punk's untimely injury, the need for a new interim AEW World Champion, and the developing relationship between All Elite and NJPW that "it's been building towards this and it's fate." (h/t to Fightful.com for the transcription)
The circumstances surrounding this title fight could be better. Punk was initially being set up to work with Tanahashi at Forbidden Door before injuring his foot, and that contest would have been stellar. Moxley isn't a check down here at all, though, and it's a match fans can expect him to give his all to. Chicago is going to be white-hot for this main event, and the never tired Tanahashi will leave it all in the ring like usual.
Forbidden Door is shaping up to be an outstanding night of professional wrestling. The new All-Atlantic Championship will be won for the very first time, while the likes of Okada, Hangman Adam Page, Jay White, and Will Ospreay will all likely be involved somehow. It seems like only a matter of time before FTR is added to the proceedings, and it'd be quite strange for NJPW to come to town without getting The Young Bucks involved. The next few editions of AEW Dynamite will be close to can't-miss television as the rest of Forbidden Door takes form.
Sources: Busted Open Radio, Fightful.com