The sort of bold booking both men - and the company - needed, Swerve Strickland defending his AEW World Heavyweight Championship against Will Ospreay made everything that matters about All Elite Wrestling feel alive in one fell swoop.
Strickland's been dogged with accusations that he's on borrowed time as Champion and simply keeping it warm for 'The Aerial Assassin', and Forbidden Door's main event can utilise the conversation happening in reality to enhance what should be some gripping fiction. The polar opposite of 75% (more?) or AEW's matches, it is unpredictable with two awesome outcomes.
The Champion retains and he sits firmly atop the mountain having pushed back his most obvious and dangerous challenger. Ospreay lifts the gold, and the consensus best wrestler on the planet is holding the top title in the company "where the best wrestle" and knocking together a belt collector run in the process. That it will be the main event and should be the match of the night doubles down on the benefits for both men.
This was a pleasing masterstroke, and sets up a potentially spectacular summer.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back almost 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 60,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
