Report: NOAH Had AEW Concerns When Booking Shinsuke Nakamura Vs. Great Muta
Details on how AEW factored into the booking process of Nakamura vs. Muta in Pro Wrestling NOAH.
All Elite Wrestling factored into the booking process for The Great Muta vs. Shinsuke Nakamura, reports Wrestling Inc.'s Dominic DeAngelo.
Former WCW manager Sonny Onoo served as a facilitator in getting the deal done. As announced last weekend, Pro Wrestling NOAH's 1 January 'The New Year 2023' event will host WWE star Nakamura's crossover as part of Muta's retirement tour, marking a break in tradition from the typically isolationist market leaders.
At one point, WWE's creative lead, Paul 'Triple H' Levesque, reached out to NOAH to ensure the opportunity was still available. NOAH then contacted Onoo, who stated the CyberFight-owned promotion sought to protect its growing relationship with AEW:-
"NOAH wanted to protect the newly developing relationship with AEW. "I made sure they were no objections from various promotions."
AEW and NOAH's collaboration manifested at September's Grand Slam special, where Muta aligned with Sting on AEW television. Sting is now set to team with his legendary rival at the 'Great Meta Final Bye-Bye' show on 22 January.
Onoo told Wrestling Inc. that teaming with Sting was among Muta's requests for the last show of his long career:-
"Sting joining together on Muta's last event was a wish of Muta. I'm glad I could help make it possible!"
Earlier this week, Tokyo Sports reported that Nakamura vs. Muta initially encountered resistance in WWE, though negotiations continued following Vince McMahon's resignation as Chairman and CEO in July. Finally, the deal was agreed upon on 26 October.