PWI Weekly for June 1, 2026
Opening (And Occasionally Closing) The Forbidden Door
JUNE 28 MARKS THE fifth annual AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door event. The once-groundbreaking show brings together talent from the aforementioned promotions and has grown to include stars from CMLL, Stardom, and ROH, as well. Post-COVID, wrestling has seen an unprecedented degree of talent crossover between promotions. Has the novelty worn off? Not for us. And this edition of the PWI Weekly is dedicated to the marvelous multiverse of the mat game.
WRESTLER OF THE WEEK
Imagine if Shohei Ohtani were allowed to play for the Dodgers, the Angels, and his old Japanese club, the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters … all at the same time. With all due respect to the talented two-way player, it wouldn’t happen. In wrestling, however, another prime athlete is doing something similar.
Konosuke Takeshita has carved out a place for himself as wrestling’s ultimate global conduit. “The Alpha” has a unique “triple contract” with AEW, DDT, and New Japan Pro-Wrestling, which has allowed him to reap success in all three promotions. The fact that Takeshita has been able to not only bridge the gap between AEW and NJPW, but also pull his old DDT stomping grounds into this orbit? Well, that speaks volumes about his raw talent and versatility. Whether he’s in the East or the West, Takeshita is a man in demand, and each of his three employers stands to benefit.
A QUICK WORD ABOUT …
While historically WWE has rarely strayed far from its own sandbox, recent years have seen the company usher in an era of cooperation like never before. In 2026, the industry-leading promotion has cultivated its own wrestling multiverse that includes Lucha Libre AAA, TNA Wrestling, and, on occasion, Japan’s Pro Wrestling NOAH and Dream Star Fighting Marigold. During the post-Vince McMahon age, WWE has even allowed contracted wrestlers to appear on select independent shows.
World Wrestling Entertainment was far from the first big dog to open the “forbidden door. "Still, the contemporary iteration of the company has gone about building its own house with rooms open for other federations to occupy. To us, that’s a win.
SPOTLIGHT ON …
While not on the scale of the AEW/NJPW partnership, the NWA and All Japan Pro-Wrestling are also exploring the benefits of a collaborative arrangement. Truth be told, theirs is a relationship that predates any other crossover taking place in wrestling. Founded by Giant Baba in 1972, AJPW was recognized as an NWA territory shortly afterwards, and the two parties maintained a strong relationship until 1989. During that time, it was common for the NWA World heavyweight champion to compete on All Japan shows.
While the storied promotions exist today under new ownership and management, the historic relationship between them has once again come to the fore. The AJPW tag team champions, Titans of Calamity, have already taken full advantage of the partnership by entering (and winning) the NWA’s 2026 Crockett Cup. If you are a fan of classic wrestling brands, then this is a crossover for you.
MUSINGS, WITH MATT BROCK
If you only pay attention to the loudest (and least knowledgeable) fans, you might think that champions crossing territorial lines was some new concept. Well, like everything else good, someone already did it a long time ago. In fact, in my halcyon days, I covered countless shows featuring top stars from other promotions.
I remember being at the Kiel Auditorium in 1980, where I watched Bob Backlund defend his WWWF title against “Bulldog” Bob Brown on the same show that Harley Race retained his NWA World championship over Ric Flair. Imagine if the WWE and AEW champions were on a show together today? Doesn’t seem possible.
For all the criticisms that might be levied against the old National Wrestling Alliance, the NWA umbrella organization allowed for more cooperation among promoters—and more exciting matchups for fans. With the WWF’s ascent and expansion under Vince Jr., wrestling became a much more insular world. I’m glad to see that this is now changing … but let’s not pretend it’s some new thing.
SPOTLIGHT PHOTO
Emi Sakura, a longtime fixture of the AEW women’s division, has TNA Knockout Harley Hudson in a precarious position during their recent singles match for Labor of Love, a Philadelphia-based independent promotion. Given recent changes to TNA’s talent policy, which now forbids its wrestlers from competing against AEW-contracted talent, interesting match-ups such as this one may be a thing of the past.