10 Bold Predictions For Wrestling In 2023

5. Tension Develops In The AEW/NJPW Partnership

Forbidden Door suplex
AEW

There are certain wrestling truisms that never go away.

With no off-season, every last wrestling booker eventually burns out.

Money will always override past conflict.

And wrestling promoters only play nicely with others for a certain amount of time.

What is the longest-standing working relationship of note? NJPW and CMLL? That collaboration stretches all the way back to 2008, and has proven useful - it was pivotal to the stratospheric rise of Tetsuya Naito - but it has prospered because it's not really a complex thing to manage. It's limited to an annual collab tour and the odd excursion.

In most other cases, eventually, the politics ruin it.

Thus far, AEW has benefitted more than NJPW since that Forbidden Door was first opened in February 2021. The eponymous PPV was held on U.S. soil, and Tony Khan is adamant that it will remain that way as an annual tradition. Many NJPW wrestlers are desperate to work Bryan Danielson, and NJPW are desperate to book him - why, then, did AEW book its first show in the Pacific Northwest on January 4?

The relationship is very strong at present - so much so that NJPW are happy for AEW to collaborate with other Japanese leagues - and has benefitted NJPW too. They shared the incredible Forbidden Door gate, where FTR elevated their latest UK shows.

Still, the joint PPV, while a monumental over-delivery, wasn't quite the top-to-bottom big match fare of fantasy booker's dreams - and if the novelty wears off in 2023, both parties may end up blaming one another.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!