During a recent interview, All Elite Wrestling talent and Blackpool Combat Club member Claudio Castagnoli shared his reaction to his AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door hug with Tony Khan. Claudio discussed the possibility an annual Forbidden Door event, and more. Check out the highlights below.
On an annual AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door event:
“I think it was very successful, and I think it was a very smart and successful attempt at introducing American fans that may not have seen New Japan Pro Wrestling to [NJPW]. I think it’s only good for both companies to have that relationship and hopefully this will become a yearly thing. The other part that is kind of fun is, yes, they’re all kind of cold matches, but that’s also in this case, the allure. It’s this is just one time of year where you can have your favorite AEW wrestler against your favorite New Japan wrestler. People always ask me, ‘What’s your favorite dream match of all time, who’s your favorite opponent anyhwere in the world?’ I’m like, ‘I don’t know, there’s too many out there.’ I don’t want to pick just one because I think that’s what fantasy booking is for, that’s what the GM mode in video games is for. Fans can speculate, and that’s actually a night where that can happen. You saw Tanahashi against Mox. How awesome is that? You have the story built in, but that’s the fun part. I hope it’s gonna be a yearly thing.”
On his hug with Tony Khan at the Forbidden Door press conference:
“It’s so strange because that was after Forbidden Door, the press conference. It was literally like, it was like a quick hug. It was just like I was done, and it was just like, it lasts. It was like, you know when you see your friend and then you give like a high five and then like a pat on the back kind of hug and like it was screen captured, and I guess people ran with it. Hey, it’s just a few pros hugging.”
