AEW and NJPW are running it back with another co-promoted pay-per-view event, Forbidden Door 2, on June 25, 2023, at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The inaugural event took place last June at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, and was the first AEW/NJPW co-promoted event. Among the 13-match card was the main event that saw Jon Moxley defeat Hiroshi Tanahashi to become the interim AEW World Champion.
No matches have been announced thus far, but some wrestlers have already been ruled out for the show due to promotions they’re affiliated with. At last year’s event, Andrade couldn’t work the show because NJPW wouldn’t let him on the card after CMLL said he was an AAA wrestler.
NJPW has a working relationship with CMLL, which is a rival of AAA in Mexico. Andrade originally worked for CMLL before going to WWE, and once he left WWE, he didn’t go back to CMLL. Instead, he signed with AAA and AEW.
In October 2021, NJPW reportedly prevented Will Ospreay from working with MLW on a Mexico tour. An exception to the rule is the likes of Kenny Omega, FTR, and Sammy Guevara, who have also not just wrestled for AAA but have been champions.
In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported that several wrestlers are not expected to be on the card due to this issue.
Meltzer wrote, “There is a list of AEW talent which I believe would include Bandido, Vikingo, Rush, Komander, Penta, Fenix, Andrade, Dralistico and probably others who aren’t expected to be allowed on Forbidden Door due to New Japan’s strong ties with CMLL. The rules are different if you are Mexican.”
AEW returns to pay-per-view this Sunday with Double or Nothing.
