5 dream matches for Hiroshi Tanahashi in AEW
Hiroshi Tanahashi is the man who created the term "forbidden door," referring to the portal between NJPW and AEW before his match against Chris Jericho at Wrestle Kingdom 14. Following his recent vignette on Dynamite, it looks like The Ace will be the latest New Japan star to arrive in All Elite Wrestling.
Tanahashi defeated AEW's Lance Archer to win the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship at NJPW Resurgence on Saturday in Los Angeles. Following the main event, Archer invited The Ace to come to AEW and face him in a rematch. All signs point to Hiroshi Tanahashi coming through the forbidden door and facing the top stars of AEW.
Tanahashi is undoubtedly one of the biggest and most influential performers in the history of New Japan Pro Wrestling. His arrival in All Elite Wrestling would be a landmark moment for both companies. In this article, let's take a look at the five dream matches for Hiroshi Tanahashi in AEW.
#5 MJF - AEW
When looking at the AEW roster, there are many tantalizing matchups to choose for Hiroshi Tanahashi. However, there aren't many characters and promo experts quite as good to put against The Ace as MJF. The Pinnacle leader has a personality that plays off of the traditionalist that is Tanahashi.
MJF is one of the best promo-cutters in AEW. The Ace's first language is of course Japanese, so he would need an exceptional talker to do the heavy lifting of building anticipation for their clash.
Chris Jericho has been the defining rival of MJF since their story began almost one year after AEW All Out 2020. The two men were tag team partners and stablemates before Friedman turned on him and The Inner Circle to form his Pinnacle stable. Tanahashi was Jericho's last opponent in NJPW with the former AEW World Champion defeating The Ace inside the Tokyo Dome.
MJF can claim that he has done what Tanahashi couldn't in defeating Chris Jericho. The purity of Tanahashi vs. the evil ways of MJF make for a juxtaposition that is too good not to explore.