Forbidden Door 2022: Injuries Cannot Stop AEW and NJPW from Delivering

Kyle O'Reilly won by last eliminating Wheeler Yuta. The match is framed as 21-Man Casino Battle Royale for a chance to qualify for the AEW Interim World Championship Eliminator Series and runs 10:05. As a pre-show match, it has to create momentum before the pay-per-view proper while still feeling worthwhile on its own. The match is solid and useful, but it lacks the urgency or escalation needed to reach the top tier. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 6.8 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Lance Archer defeated Nick Comoroto by pinfall. The match is framed as Singles match and runs 6:08. As a pre-show match, it has to create momentum before the pay-per-view proper while still feeling worthwhile on its own. The match is mixed: the purpose is understandable, yet the material never consistently becomes compelling viewing. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 5.7 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Swerve In Our Glory (Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland) defeated Suzuki-gun (El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru) by pinfall. The match is framed as Tag team match and runs 12:08. As a pre-show match, it has to create momentum before the pay-per-view proper while still feeling worthwhile on its own. The match is strong rather than transcendent: its structure is convincing and its flaws never take over. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 7.1 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Max Caster and Gunn Club (Billy Gunn, Austin Gunn, and Colten Gunn) (with Anthony Bowens) defeated Yuya Uemura and New Japan LA Dojo (Alex Coughlin, The DKC and Kevin Knight) by pinfall. The match is framed as Eight-man tag team match and runs 5:35. As a pre-show match, it has to create momentum before the pay-per-view proper while still feeling worthwhile on its own. The match is mixed: the purpose is understandable, yet the material never consistently becomes compelling viewing. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 5.8 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Minoru Suzuki and Le Sex Gods (Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara) (with Tay Conti) defeated Eddie Kingston, Shota Umino, and Wheeler Yuta by pinfall. The match is framed as Six-man tag team match; The winning team received the man advantage for the Blood and Guts match. and runs 18:58. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. The match is strong rather than transcendent: its structure is convincing and its flaws never take over. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 7.7 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

FTR (Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood) (ROH) defeated United Empire (Great-O-Khan and Jeff Cobb) (IWGP) and Roppongi Vice (Rocky Romero and Trent Beretta) by pinfall. The match is framed as Winners Take All Three-way tag team match for the ROH World Tag Team Championship and IWGP Tag Team Championship and runs 16:19. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. FTR, United Empire and Roppongi Vice turn a multi-title three-way into more than belt collection. FTR's win feels like a meaningful international achievement, while the match keeps enough team structure to avoid becoming pure rotation. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 8.7 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Pac defeated Clark Connors, Miro, and Malakai Black by submission. The match is framed as Four-way match for the inaugural AEW All-Atlantic Championship and runs 15:10. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. The score reflects an excellent performance whose central idea lands cleanly and whose finish gives the surrounding story useful weight. The championship decision makes the result an institutional part of the promotion's history. At 8.5 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Dudes with Attitudes (Darby Allin, Sting, and Shingo Takagi) defeated Bullet Club (El Phantasmo, Matt Jackson, and Nick Jackson) (with Hikuleo) by pinfall. The match is framed as Six-man tag team match and runs 13:01. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. The match is strong rather than transcendent: its structure is convincing and its flaws never take over. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 7.9 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Thunder Rosa (c) defeated Toni Storm by pinfall. The match is framed as Singles match for the AEW Women's World Championship and runs 10:42. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. The score reflects an excellent performance whose central idea lands cleanly and whose finish gives the surrounding story useful weight. The championship retention keeps the existing title direction intact while asking the match to justify the defense bell to bell. At 8.1 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Will Ospreay (c) (with Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis)) defeated Orange Cassidy by pinfall. The match is framed as Singles match for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship and runs 16:43. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. Ospreay and Cassidy produce the night's revelation. The matchup initially looks like a contrast in personality, then develops into a high-level title match where Cassidy's timing and Ospreay's athletic escalation make every near fall feel increasingly plausible. The championship retention keeps the existing title direction intact while asking the match to justify the defense bell to bell. At 9.3 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Claudio Castagnoli defeated Zack Sabre Jr. by pinfall. The match is framed as Singles match and runs 18:26. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. Claudio's debut is successful because the match does not need elaborate introduction. Sabre immediately gives him a technical opponent who can test the newcomer, and Claudio's power creates a clear stylistic contrast that lets the crowd understand him in minutes. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 8.8 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Jay White (c) (with Gedo) defeated "Hangman" Adam Page, Kazuchika Okada, and Adam Cole by pinfall. The match is framed as Four-way match for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship and runs 21:05. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. The four-way has extraordinary talent and several outstanding sequences, but the finish is compromised by Cole's apparent injury and the abrupt pin. The score recognizes the quality before the ending without pretending the conclusion is satisfying. The championship retention keeps the existing title direction intact while asking the match to justify the defense bell to bell. At 8.4 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.

Jon Moxley (with William Regal) defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi by pinfall. The match is framed as Singles match for the interim AEW World Championship and runs 18:14. On the main card, its value comes from how well the wrestling, stakes and finish support the larger rhythm of the night. Moxley and Tanahashi finally get the singles match that had hovered around their careers for years. It is not the wildest bout on the card, but its deliberate pacing and Moxley's interim-title win give the first Forbidden Door a credible closing statement. The result does not rely on a championship change for its importance. At 8.8 out of 10, the rating reflects how the match works inside Forbidden Door 2022 as a complete show rather than treating historical importance and immediate match quality as the same thing.