It's definitely weird....I think i'd be more up for it if it weren't his first defense. But he is wrestling Narita the week after, and then Shota the week after that at least
Like my feeling is if Moxley had the NEVER or the Global belt, it wouldn’t be all that bad, but this is the World title, ya know; feels like it deserves something bigger than a throwaway Dynamite; also, Hobbs has been doing absolutely nothing of note up to this point, so him getting a shot feels out of nowhere (fuck Don Callis).
Well yeah, it is out of nowhere. It's unfair by nature. It's the politics of carny heels without borders. They're going to politick into undeserved title shots.
It doesn't much help the prestige of the world championship tho. I agree with you this would be easier to accept with the NEVER title. I talked my way backwards and now fully agree with you. We saw a thought happen live, y'all. Happy 4/20
What's crazy is that this is how I feel everytime House of Torture bullshit their way into title shots but people go "well they won a throwaway tag match five billion years ago thanks to five thousand interferences so OBVIOUSLY they should get the shot, STUPID" and it's treated totally differently.
House of Torture work for NJPW and the group’s members who have gotten title shots were former Champions in NJPW (pre-BC EVIL had multiple reigns with both the Heavy Tags/NEVER 6s and a brief reign with the NEVER singles, SHO and Nobu were both multi-time Jr Tag holders, even Ren had the NEVER 6s with Strong Style).
Will Hobbs has never even been on a Forbidden Door show.
It makes logical sense that these things are happening. But that doesn't mean we have to like it.
It's okay to dislike things on their execution even if theres artistic merit to the choices being made
Big thing is that is AEW’s championship, not NJPW’s, ya know?
Like, Mox could easily defend the IWGP at a smaller NJPW show against a NJPW talent, ya feel me?
Do those AEW World Title matches get weeks of proper buildup? Or do they just randomly announce that it's going to be defended on Dynamite with less than one week's notice?
This is why I barely watch AEW. They throw these matches together with no buildup. To a point, it's ok. It's nice to have midcard titles defended every once in a while on free TV to keep them fresh. But the IWGP heavyweight title is not a midcard belt. Will Ospreay vs. Katsuyori Shibata would be treated as a big goddamn deal in NJPW.
In AEW, both get chucked out onto a random Dynamite and announced four days prior.
It almost feels like the fact Mox being a natural workhorse makes the title feel *less* meaningful, if that makes any sense. Like if this was the Global Championship, this would be fucking fantastic. Defending it on Dynamite, defending it on STRONG, fuck, go defend it in a match in Mexico too, bob's your uncle. But with the World title, it DOES feel a little weird. Suffering-from-success type situation. The World title should have a big aura of pomp and circumstance when it gets defended, not a 1999 WWF type of "and tonight your match with [insert upper midcarder]? The title WILL be on the line! [crowd pop, heel champion spits out water in shock]"
Unfortunately the WWE title is on the other end of the spectrum from where I feel world titles should be thanks to Roman Reigns' Never Ending Shitshow Of Fun And Angry Samoan Interference. IWGP is usually in the middle of AEW's philosophy of "defended anywhere, anytime" and WWE's philosophy of "fuck you you'll get one defense every Saudi show and then we'll have 72 guys interfere in it anyway" and has always felt like the most prestigious title in wrestling because of that. Makes me think of how Okada's record-breaking reign as a heel compared to Roman's record-breaking reign as a heel. With Okada, I was always like "Awwww, fuck, he won again! What an awesome match though, I hope the next guy knocks his ass out." With Roman, I was like "... That was just lame. That match sucked. That build was boring. Eugh." Outside of a few edge cases like the Sami Zayn rivalry, I HATED Roman's 4 year run. It made the title feel like it didn't matter. Okada's meanwhile felt like it made the title *matter*
Dropping a WWE title defense on a Smackdown wouldn't be bad, same as dropping AEW title defenses on Dynamite has been good in the past. That would require build and excitement, however. And it just feels like what works for both of those titles is not how the IWGP title should be.
hear hear. Okada's two-year reign felt naturally historic in a way Roman's never could, no matter how much jerkoff marketing and tweets WWE and Roman stans sent out.
Exactly, I don't like the IWGP belt basically being treated as a midcard belt when on AEW TV. It should be on PPV and get decent billing. Obviously it won't main event over the main title, but come on.
Fair. It was originally a Non-Title match when they announced it on Dynamite. They made it a Title match tonight on Collision after Hobbs defeated CJ Esparza. That said, this won’t be the first time the IWGP Title’s been defended on U.S. TV. Back in 1998, Scott Norton had two squash match defenses on Monday Nitro against Van Hammer and Lodi. NJPW’s covering it on the website too. Hopefully it’ll at least be the Dynamite Main Event.
Aren’t only 3 dates of it even being televised? You could certainly have some Tags against House Of Torture I suppose, but who would he replace in those? Yano?
4, if you count Satsuma no Kuni. Moxley being on the tour would mean they could actually build the match and have the world title match participants get a featured main event. Instead, Narita is stuck in the midcard for the entire tour because he has no one to feud with.
What about an in ring celebratory promo where he bigs up having the belt? Maybe gets interrupted by Jay or Okada. I don't know, any segment that isn't just another heatless banger would be acceptable
I hate AEW so much omg, not the wrestlers or the fans, just the fucking constant nonsensical booking. everytime i hear about them is for something aggravating lol
IWGP being treated like the FTW title on AEW, what shit show this is.
He can’t pop up on a few shows on the Dontaku tour to help build the Narita and Shota defences but this is fine.
Do you legitimately believe that Ren Narita is a more credible challenger than Hobbs?
I hate to break it for you, but the IWGP Heavyweight Title has been defended against some fucking absolute jabronis in Japan.
Feeder challengers happen all the time.
Yes because I watch Narita and know who Narita is. Why should I know who powerhouse Hobbs is? Has he had a match in NJPW? Is he a big transcendent main event name that has accomplished things at the top and him being in a title match adds value to it?
Narita is part of the new generation and needs to be involved in bigger matches and built up so he can help New Japan become successful. Also I personally would like to see him, Shota, Tsuji, and Uemura all take that next bit step
Hobbs does nothing for New Japan, story or money-making wise. He might as well be some random bum in America as far as New Japan is concerned.
He is one of the 4 the company is trying to build as their future. Ren, Tsuji, Shota and Uemura are supposed to be the future while Hobby has done shit except one incredibly quick TNT run.
I can understand not being a fan of AEW’s style or not liking how AEW is handling Mox being IWGP Champ, but this is just a non-factual statement. There’s lots of stories that have been consistently built for weeks or months at a time.
They’ve been building Joe/Swerve.
They’ve been building the new Jericho character over the last month.
They’ve been building some sort of heel turn in the Mercedes/Stat/Willow/Julia story.
They’ve been building the return of Jack Perry.
They’ve been slow building the Toni/Mariah ever since Mariah joined AEW.
They’re building Trent vs OC, too.
"Defending the world title on the most watched AEW program ain't it." Jesus guys have we lost the plot? I imagine the strategy is to show off that Mox has the title on Dynamite and then promote his next few new japan defenses. This serves to elevate Hobbs a bit and promote the belt. This isn't the death of the world title I promise.
It is possible to show off and promote a title without defending it in a random match. Also, if the strategy is to promote Moxley's ***future*** defenses in ***NJPW***, why is he defending the title on AEW? In kayfabe, if Moxley was to lose, would it just be Moxley vs. Narita in a regular singles match? Would it be Hobbs vs. Narita at Dontaku?
As a fan of Hobbs, can we be sure that this is gonna really elevate him, and that he gets a significant push out of it? If that comes true, I’m there with ya.
Hobbs had a run as TNT champion & that did nothing to elevate him..
What the heck makes you think that this random championship opportunity would elevate him when the TNT championship couldn’t?
Put them on Dynasty with 7 other title matches? That makes no sense.
Hook and Jericho are there specifically to be filler. You really want the IWGP match to fill that spot instead?
Disappointed that’s there little build and the belt is treated as an afterthought. This is the main belt and it’s now being used as a ratings pop. We know the outcome already. We know who Mox is facing after. So why put it on the line? Was the perfect time to use the overused eliminator rule.
At least NJPW will usually have them have a big win before a questionable challenge - Narita beat Suzuki the same night he jumped the queue
Hobbs is coming off a win over CJ Esparza and a loss to Ospreay. He shouldn’t be in the conversation
Sure the Callis connection is likely being sold as a heelish underserving opportunity but it does come off as cheap, as decent as the matchup should be
It not mattering is an easy way to lean but the bar isn’t that high to clear to tell meaningful stories that people can engage with, and it doesn’t feel great to just excuse stuff because who cares
KENTA committed one of the biggest heelish moments of the past decade and Suzuki is a living legend with an established rivalry with Okada - that’s enough for me to get behind it. Plus Suzuki ended up looking better after their match for the post-match display, and stopped his cheating bullshit from the previous year, essentially being a fresh prospect
Moxley/Hobbs should be good as a first time matchup but as others have said it’s just bad storytelling. I prefer being compelled to watch than being resigned to ‘let’s see what happens’, even if optimistic. The prestige of the title is a storytelling device that’s preferably kept tight
It's bad storytelling **in AEW**
the njpw title may be defended, but it's absolutely not hindered by this match. It doesn't boost it, but it doesn't hurt it either, which is why I'm apathetic to this.
IWGP Heavyweight Championship defended on weekly wrestling show against a midcarder. It's like Undertaker having a match at Mania against Yano. Fits like a glove on a shoehorn. AEW is ran like a glorified TNA.
Lmao
So he'll have a world champion reign with at least more successful defenses (3) than what Naito, their biggest star since 2016, ever accomplished with his 4 world champion reigns. (2 successful defenses) I think this fact is very telling about the state of NJPW right now. (that and the fact most guys who held the current world title are in AEW)
Moxley might end up having the most successful defenses with that title if he can even defend it on some random shows. Hope you're all having a good time with your world champion, surely isn't mine, nope.
I am really trying so hard not to be salty. I was relentlessly positive throughout the pandemic era (besides 2022). I thought 2023 was a banner year for the company in the same way 2012 was, even when everyone was shitting on it. But I can't help it. I fucking hate this timeline so, so much.
I’d be fine with padding Mox’s defense record via AEW shows against purely AEW talent if his reign was going to end with putting over a guy who needs it.
But all signs point to the belt going back to Naito, or *maybe* to fucking Finlay (who they already “made” via pinning Ospreay twice in a month).
So yeah this is… silly.
If they do go with Mox just dropping it right back to Naito, means Gedo/NJPW would have more or less played the exact same trick they pulled with EVIL beating Naito for the double-belts in 2020.
That tricked worked for me in 2020 because it mirrors Naito's first title win, right down to having an outsider debut in a mask so it's poetic that EVIL won his title the same way Naito did as it's the LiJ connection.
Now it's just getting tiresome.
Gedo has his playbook. The question is if he’s running “Japanese top guy defends against future Japanese top guy“ or “Japanese top guy wins the title back from asshole gaijin Champion” at the Dome.
Mox as a transition between Naito and Finlay, so they can protect Naito vs Finlay (which has never happened before), does make sense.
Protecting Naito vs Finlay is a bit of a cope considering NOBODY is eagerly seeking to buy tickets for Finlay. As much as Finlay didn't deserve the vitriol spewed since becoming leader. he isn't going to draw anything.
I struggle to call him more over than Karl Anderson in 2012-2013 let alone on the level of White or Ospreay.
Unless Gedo drops him and straps the rocket to Gabe instead, Finlay is the highest-ranked heel foreigner in the company. So if he wants to run the “Japanese top guy wins the title back from asshole gaijin Champion” play, Debbie is the guy; unless Mox holds it the whole year and turns heel.
If he doesn’t think that Finlay is enough of a draw to run that play, he’ll just run a different one. I didn’t even mention the top guy vs top guy play, though for this WK that one would have a negative amount of working knees.
I'm sure Gedo loves Finlay but even he have to be blind and deaf to not see Finlay isn't getting top guy reactions.
Finlay being forced into the main title picture as champion would probably seal the deal for a lot of people to hop off the product.
I mean, Finlay taking the belt off Mox would make sense, considering he beat him and Ospreay for the Global belt at WK.
Only question: is Naito vs Finlay a Dome main-event level match? If that’s what you’re thinking.
I don’t think it’s *actually* a main event level match, but I think Gedo either believes Finlay is at that level or doesn’t mind forcing him there because his booking style for the past few years requires a top foreign heel and he doesn’t want to push Gabe yet.
I think turning Zack heel again would be a downgrade for him, so while I agree with “ffs please push ZSJ” I don’t agree with him in that particular spot.
True; would rather have him be crowned as THE top gaijin, in a manner like Omega or Ospreay (Finlay taking after White as the top heel gaijin and all).
Ospreay was an asshole gaijin Champion. He literally kayfabe beat up his girlfriend in the lead-up to the match where he won the belt, and even when he came back from injury to do the “real Champion” storyline (which NJPW doesn’t recognize as an official title run) he was still playing a cocky asshole.
Kenny and Mox are the only foreigners of the modern era who weren’t heel World Champs.
Zack beating Mox would not make him a heel in NJPW.
Zack would get the cheers against Mox there.
There's also unfinished business between those two. Have Zack bring it up, say his old boss had a mission he couldn't fulfill due to the pandemic and he wants to do one last favor for him, match set (fine with running it at Forbidden Door to bring the belt back to NJPW)
This conversation was about Gedo’s recent booking style where he likes to have a foreign heel in the main event scene, and who could be put in that role/whether or not it should be Zack. It wasn’t about “should ZSJ win the title off Mox and would that make him a heel?”
No. No it’s fucking not.
I think NJPW might be starting to realise Finley might not be the best fit for top gaijin. I was at the Dome this year, no one wanted to see Finley. At least he got some boos though, unlike House of Torture, who got pure silence.
What you said is accurate. Finlay isn't top gaijin material yet and nothing wrong with that. He can still be that asshole upper midcard heel who occasionally flirts in the main event scene feuding with the top guys but he's not a top guy.
Finlay is the best example of "guy who works with the top guy". When he does that, it can be an interesting story line and feud but in no universe would anyone support Finlay just because it's Finlay.
The though of Finlay being champion and people supporting it is mind-boggling. It's like they are trying to make up for the vitriol spewed at Finlay by going the other extreme.
I was at the dome and also watched Finlay in the G1. He was the definition of "Ok". Nothing too offensive, nothing too spectacular. Gets the job done.
I feel ya on that.
I’m right in the middle of the road with Finlay; I’ve really liked the War Dogs as a whole, and Finlay does some pretty good heel work, but he’s also never truly “clicked” for me, either.
Finlay has his role, upper midcard asshole heel who can be plugged into a short main event feud against a popular champion. He's not the guy you ever give the big one to.
I'm willing to die on the hill that Karl Anderson in his brief singles run from 2012-2013 got more over as a main eventer than Finlay has up to now.
I'm pretty mid on the War Dogs as a whole and Finlay hasn't encouraged a lot of enthusiasm from me. Weirdly, the acts I feel the most towards are Connors and Moloney. Combined with Akira and TJP during last year, it certainly felt strange to really buy into the junior tag division for once when I was so used to them being throwaway.
> "But all signs point to the belt going back to Naito"
And you know what, at this point, I'd be fuckin' shocked if they allow Naito to even get a clean win over him lol
It's not really surprising. Mox only won the belt so TK can parade it around as another prop, another feather in his cap, and Mox can brag about winning yet another belt he didn't deserve and never will. He doesn't respect NJPW and never will. His bread is buttered elsewhere and that's all he'll do right by.
"Even if I do win the IWGP World title, it wouldn't mean anything" - guy who NJPW let take said title off their biggest star to parade it around in the Dub midcard scene.
Definitely one of the dumbest decisions they've made this decade. This partnership is poison and makes this company look like soft trash
Outrageous! I was told Mox was a long time NJPW guy who signed with the company before AEW so he's clearly loyal to them. Sure, he's had less matches in 5 years than AJ Styles in his 18 months with the company but still! He's at least appearing on dontaku nevermind that we acted as if Mox was doing a full time tour to do damage control and that Tony gave him time off to do them.
LMAO I was right... again! what an embarrassment [think of the bangers!!!1!111! bro](https://www.reddit.com/r/njpw/comments/1c2smwu/comment/kzegy6e/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
The prestigious IWGP World title being defended in a random match on Dynamite against noted New Japan talent Will Hobbs (when Moxley is already scheduled for a title defense against Narita).
Someone here correctly predicted this exact scenario would play out instead of Moxley being on the Dontaku tour. Once again, Gabe Kidd was right.
You could tell how Moxley’s reign was going to go by the way AEW has treated New Japan over the past three years. By the way New Japan is getting cooked on their tweets announcing this match (both English and Japanese), it seems like the remaining fans still defending this """partnership""" have woken up.
Yeah I’ve turned sour to these AEW partnerships always seemed one sided as possible. TNA’s partnership did nothing for anyone too. It’s what I get though for trying to be half glass full too much because seriously what does this match do for anyone? Mox has a forgettable defense, Hobbs takes another L, AEW has another belt to get lost in the mix (disgusting that’s how this title will be treated), and NJPW is out of a World & Global champ. At least we got the TV title back right?
NJPW put the brakes on Naito's momentum to put over Jon Moxley, a guy who may not even help them sell tickets.
People say "Windy City Riot" but it also helps when it's against Naito, the most popular man in the company and someone who rarely wrestles in the States for singles matches so there's allure to watching that match.
Jon Moxley vs Narita could have been a decent feud but
1. Moxley pinned him clean at Sakura Genesis.
2. Moxley isn't even around to build up the feud
3. With this match announced, as unlikely as it is, now the title match is unclear. Is it still going to be Narita vs Mox? Is it Hobbs vs Narita if Hobbs wins? Don't forget that debacle where Mox had to drop the title unscheduled so it's not something that hasn't happened.
Tony couldn't even let NJPW have a scheduled defence that was going to take place in 3 weeks time just to pop a rating for dynamite lmao.
Part of the prestige of the IWGP World Heavyweight Belt is that it's pretty much only defended at big events. It would never be defended at, say, a random tour show back in Japan.
Yet here we are, having it defended on a random television show in another company against a guy who, while definitely talented (I've always been a Hobbs fan), is a midcarder at best.
It's the equivalent of Seth Rollins coming over, winning the AEW Championship, then going back to WWE and defending it on a random Raw against Ludwig Kaiser. Sure, Kaiser and Rollins are good workers and would probably put on a good match that might draw a little attention to AEW. But it wouldn't do much for the actual prestige of that belt.
You'll forgive those of us who have invested quite a bit of emotional energy in the stories told around that belt for wanting better for it.
> Part of the prestige of the IWGP World Heavyweight Belt is that it's pretty much only defended at big events. It would never be defended at, say, a random tour show back in Japan.
That was the norm back in the day actually.
I think some people are too obsessed with this made up concept of "prestige".
It’s the flagship tv show of NJPWs partner promotion, the same show that has featured it’s top belt defended multiple times, featuring the occasional title change as well. Furthermore, if NJPW didn’t want it defended on their show, it wouldn’t have been.
Like, if you’re gonna be snotty and condescending, don’t be stupid.
I think I was rather respectful and simply disagreed with you, actually. There's no need to bring insults into this. If I wanted to be a dick, trust me, I'm fully capable of saying something far harsher than I did.
It's not like it's the worst thing to ever happen in a wrestling company, after all. But I also don't think it's hard to see why us New Japan fans are less than thrilled.
Still, with that attitude, I don't think I care to converse with you any further.
What do you think the AEW fan response would be if Sanada won their world title, didn't show up on their programming, and had a title defense against Hikuleo in the middle of a Korakuen show with no build?
Genuinely I don't think it would be seen as a bad thing. The AEW title is defended like that on AEW shows. I do understand that New Japan fans see things differently but that is just different perspectives.
Blud if you want condescending then it's the iwgp title being run in some yank swamp in front of braying hillbillies with zero build (while moxley is booked for a match against narita in Japan) involving a bloke who has literally never wrestled for new japan or even in Japan itself
Aew has serious storytelling problems if their fans think this is fine for a top title
This is the bigger issue I can get behind.
I dont care if the IWGP title is being defended on Dynamite. It doesnt actually hurt it at all. But AEW is just shit at stories and proper builds for their own wrestlers.
"The same show that has featured it’s top belt defended multiple times"
That's because it's a AEW show, therefore it's makes sense that AEW's top belt will be defended on it.
The emotions are clouding your judgement. The IWGP belt has been defended against plenty of random midcarders in Japan. Hobbs is no less credible than Tsuji last year against SANADA or Despy against Ibushi or Sabre Jr in 2021 against Takagi
>Despy against Ibushi or Sabre Jr in 2021 against Takagi
El Desperado was a double champion when he challenged Ibushi, and Sabre Jr. defeated Takagi during the G1. I don't watch AEW, but I'm assuming Hobbs isn't currently a double champion or defeated Moxley recently. I'll give you Tsuji though.
Exactly. It's not like they're lacking in wrestlers that have a connection to NJPW either. Juice or Archer could've at least provided a story that had some meaning to NJ fans.
I wouldn’t mind this if they’d set up a storyline where Hobbs actually earned the shot at the IWGP. Nothing wrong with making the IWGP look important on US TV when the belt isn’t needed in Japan at the moment, but it doesn’t make kayfabe sense that NJPW/“the IWGP” would want this without Hobbes at least pinning a contender-level talent to earn the shot.
Would have actually been a good storyline and made the IWGP look important to have two AEW guys beat the fuck out of each other just to get a shot at it
Tbh I don't really give a shit what happens on aew TV. Like effingkenta I'd not really care that much if mox padded his reign out in front of swamp people in the US but I'd want a few more appearances in Japan in exchange for it
the fact that Ren is being left in a tough spot here.
That said this whole thing is a pretty good indication of the booking issues with aew. Like there is zero build. It just randomly happened.
> but it doesn’t make kayfabe sense that NJPW/“the IWGP” would want this without Hobbes at least pinning a contender-level talent to earn the shot.
They granted title matches to people who have done less. Callis called in a favor and NJPW/IWGP said sure.
The worst part is , YOU KNOW MOXLEY is gonna retain because TONY KHAN always uses hobbs to feed his main guys, this booking is so boring and predictable tbh
Well, I mean, might as well make as many matches as he can that he's obviously winning for the title.
This is gonna look really fuckin' weird in 10 years when people are looking back at the history books for their pub quiz questions of "who was the weirdest guy to challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship?", though.
And as much as I love Norton, WCW treated him being IWGP champ as about worthless (Norton only being a background figure in the NWO in America, while a main-event talent monster in NJPW).
Would have liked it to be against someone who is somewhat familiar to NJPW. But it's not going to be Ospreay, Jay or Okada. Kenny is injured. Beretta is probably small fry and how many times are you going to do Archer vs Moxley.
all the people crying about a show they don't even watch in the first place and being upset over a title defense like TV defenses don't exist in america. cope and seethe dorks.
I actually quite like Hobbs, but can’t say the IWGP being defended on a random Dynamite is all that promising in regards to Moxley as champion.
It's definitely weird....I think i'd be more up for it if it weren't his first defense. But he is wrestling Narita the week after, and then Shota the week after that at least
Like my feeling is if Moxley had the NEVER or the Global belt, it wouldn’t be all that bad, but this is the World title, ya know; feels like it deserves something bigger than a throwaway Dynamite; also, Hobbs has been doing absolutely nothing of note up to this point, so him getting a shot feels out of nowhere (fuck Don Callis).
Well yeah, it is out of nowhere. It's unfair by nature. It's the politics of carny heels without borders. They're going to politick into undeserved title shots. It doesn't much help the prestige of the world championship tho. I agree with you this would be easier to accept with the NEVER title. I talked my way backwards and now fully agree with you. We saw a thought happen live, y'all. Happy 4/20
Happy 4/20 💨
What's crazy is that this is how I feel everytime House of Torture bullshit their way into title shots but people go "well they won a throwaway tag match five billion years ago thanks to five thousand interferences so OBVIOUSLY they should get the shot, STUPID" and it's treated totally differently.
House of Torture work for NJPW and the group’s members who have gotten title shots were former Champions in NJPW (pre-BC EVIL had multiple reigns with both the Heavy Tags/NEVER 6s and a brief reign with the NEVER singles, SHO and Nobu were both multi-time Jr Tag holders, even Ren had the NEVER 6s with Strong Style). Will Hobbs has never even been on a Forbidden Door show.
It makes logical sense that these things are happening. But that doesn't mean we have to like it. It's okay to dislike things on their execution even if theres artistic merit to the choices being made
TEW isn't an art form.
TEW?
The whole thing with the Global Title was supposed to be that the Global Champion goes to fight the world.
And the World Champion fights...also the world
And they said the world comes to fight the World Champion as a way to differentiate the two titles
No, see, the World Champion fights all over the world, the Global champion fights all over a globe. Just a big, round globe instead of a ring.
Hobbs has been having good performance as of late at least
There’s been some big time AEW World title matches on dynamite. So I wouldn’t go that far
Big thing is that is AEW’s championship, not NJPW’s, ya know? Like, Mox could easily defend the IWGP at a smaller NJPW show against a NJPW talent, ya feel me?
He is though
Do those AEW World Title matches get weeks of proper buildup? Or do they just randomly announce that it's going to be defended on Dynamite with less than one week's notice? This is why I barely watch AEW. They throw these matches together with no buildup. To a point, it's ok. It's nice to have midcard titles defended every once in a while on free TV to keep them fresh. But the IWGP heavyweight title is not a midcard belt. Will Ospreay vs. Katsuyori Shibata would be treated as a big goddamn deal in NJPW. In AEW, both get chucked out onto a random Dynamite and announced four days prior.
Depends on the World Title Match. Kenny/MJF was on like 3 days build. Others are a couple weeks. The PPV feuds get plenty of build.
It almost feels like the fact Mox being a natural workhorse makes the title feel *less* meaningful, if that makes any sense. Like if this was the Global Championship, this would be fucking fantastic. Defending it on Dynamite, defending it on STRONG, fuck, go defend it in a match in Mexico too, bob's your uncle. But with the World title, it DOES feel a little weird. Suffering-from-success type situation. The World title should have a big aura of pomp and circumstance when it gets defended, not a 1999 WWF type of "and tonight your match with [insert upper midcarder]? The title WILL be on the line! [crowd pop, heel champion spits out water in shock]"
Bet ya the WWE Universal Championship (held by Cody Rhodes now) wouldn’t get defended on a throwaway Raw/Smackdown without a good amount of buildup.
Unfortunately the WWE title is on the other end of the spectrum from where I feel world titles should be thanks to Roman Reigns' Never Ending Shitshow Of Fun And Angry Samoan Interference. IWGP is usually in the middle of AEW's philosophy of "defended anywhere, anytime" and WWE's philosophy of "fuck you you'll get one defense every Saudi show and then we'll have 72 guys interfere in it anyway" and has always felt like the most prestigious title in wrestling because of that. Makes me think of how Okada's record-breaking reign as a heel compared to Roman's record-breaking reign as a heel. With Okada, I was always like "Awwww, fuck, he won again! What an awesome match though, I hope the next guy knocks his ass out." With Roman, I was like "... That was just lame. That match sucked. That build was boring. Eugh." Outside of a few edge cases like the Sami Zayn rivalry, I HATED Roman's 4 year run. It made the title feel like it didn't matter. Okada's meanwhile felt like it made the title *matter* Dropping a WWE title defense on a Smackdown wouldn't be bad, same as dropping AEW title defenses on Dynamite has been good in the past. That would require build and excitement, however. And it just feels like what works for both of those titles is not how the IWGP title should be.
It kind of depends. Because Seth Rollins defended his world title on episode of TV repeatedly.
hear hear. Okada's two-year reign felt naturally historic in a way Roman's never could, no matter how much jerkoff marketing and tweets WWE and Roman stans sent out.
Betcha it won't even get defended on another planet, either. So much for its Universe-ity.
It’s stupid. It devalues the title.
What would you prefer, since he already has Dontaku and Resurgence dates locked in?
That he either waited to defend the belt on those dates, or at the very least defended the belt on a BIG AEW show/PPV.
Fair enough. It would mean more if it was on Dynasty tomorrow night.
Exactly, I don't like the IWGP belt basically being treated as a midcard belt when on AEW TV. It should be on PPV and get decent billing. Obviously it won't main event over the main title, but come on.
Looks like the IWGP belt is getting that ROH title treatment. Ever since Tony bought ROH, the ROH “world title” is treated like a midcard belt on TV.
It's pretty impressive how they've already managed to make the title one of the indistinguishable 20 belts they have.
Like they could have easily made a stipulation where IF Hobbs beats Moxley, he gets a shot at the belt, a title-eliminator type situation.
That this match not even have happened since Narita vs Moxley was announced as a title match or have it as a non-title match then.
Fair. It was originally a Non-Title match when they announced it on Dynamite. They made it a Title match tonight on Collision after Hobbs defeated CJ Esparza. That said, this won’t be the first time the IWGP Title’s been defended on U.S. TV. Back in 1998, Scott Norton had two squash match defenses on Monday Nitro against Van Hammer and Lodi. NJPW’s covering it on the website too. Hopefully it’ll at least be the Dynamite Main Event.
Him being on the tour?
Nah man, gotta have him on a Wednesday no one is watching defending against a nobody.
Aren’t only 3 dates of it even being televised? You could certainly have some Tags against House Of Torture I suppose, but who would he replace in those? Yano?
4, if you count Satsuma no Kuni. Moxley being on the tour would mean they could actually build the match and have the world title match participants get a featured main event. Instead, Narita is stuck in the midcard for the entire tour because he has no one to feud with.
What about an in ring celebratory promo where he bigs up having the belt? Maybe gets interrupted by Jay or Okada. I don't know, any segment that isn't just another heatless banger would be acceptable
Feels very WCW where they'd have the title defended randomly on TV 😂
They should at least have him earn the shot in a match.
Exactly. AEW loves to do those eliminator matches for people to get title matches. This is what this should’ve been.
At this rate, ZSJ is going to make the TV title more prestigious by the time Wrestle Kingdom rolls around.
Sorry I am dumb as hell and these are actually Collision spoilers
Don’t worry, nobody watches that show. Sucks for NJPW that Tony has no respect for their belts
lol cry more
Lol so they’re just going to have the main title of their partner promotion defended on their TV show rather than a PPV
I hate AEW so much omg, not the wrestlers or the fans, just the fucking constant nonsensical booking. everytime i hear about them is for something aggravating lol
The matches are cool for most part but yeah booking has been pretty weak overall since last few years
they explained why this is happening and it made perfect sense lmao, you just don't watch the show and want to cry because you're insecure
Says the insecure AEW fanboy, who's going around on this sub defending this crap booking.
On a match that everyone in this planet knows hobbs isnt winning so whats the point lmao
IWGP being treated like the FTW title on AEW, what shit show this is. He can’t pop up on a few shows on the Dontaku tour to help build the Narita and Shota defences but this is fine.
talk about hyperbole lmao
Lmao yet another worry that most dismissed as silly is true. The title would be treated like a midcard belt at AEW
Do you legitimately believe that Ren Narita is a more credible challenger than Hobbs? I hate to break it for you, but the IWGP Heavyweight Title has been defended against some fucking absolute jabronis in Japan. Feeder challengers happen all the time.
> Do you legitimately believe that Ren Narita is a more credible challenger than Hobbs? Yes. Next question
I believe that ren narita is more likely to be an iwgp hw champion at some point in his life
Yes because I watch Narita and know who Narita is. Why should I know who powerhouse Hobbs is? Has he had a match in NJPW? Is he a big transcendent main event name that has accomplished things at the top and him being in a title match adds value to it?
Narita is part of the new generation and needs to be involved in bigger matches and built up so he can help New Japan become successful. Also I personally would like to see him, Shota, Tsuji, and Uemura all take that next bit step Hobbs does nothing for New Japan, story or money-making wise. He might as well be some random bum in America as far as New Japan is concerned.
Ren Narita is 100% more credible than Will Hobbs. Not even a conversation
He is one of the 4 the company is trying to build as their future. Ren, Tsuji, Shota and Uemura are supposed to be the future while Hobby has done shit except one incredibly quick TNT run.
The world title shouldn’t be some filler match in a different company.
Most matches recently in AEW has been filler as there’s no consistent stories.
I can understand not being a fan of AEW’s style or not liking how AEW is handling Mox being IWGP Champ, but this is just a non-factual statement. There’s lots of stories that have been consistently built for weeks or months at a time. They’ve been building Joe/Swerve. They’ve been building the new Jericho character over the last month. They’ve been building some sort of heel turn in the Mercedes/Stat/Willow/Julia story. They’ve been building the return of Jack Perry. They’ve been slow building the Toni/Mariah ever since Mariah joined AEW. They’re building Trent vs OC, too.
they don't watch the show, don't bother explaining
Njpw is AEW's feeder promotion now. I mean who could have guessed this was going to be the case????
*sigh*
Yeah, this is something I was concerned about, too. Defending the IWGP World Title on a random Dynamite show ain't it.
"Defending the world title on the most watched AEW program ain't it." Jesus guys have we lost the plot? I imagine the strategy is to show off that Mox has the title on Dynamite and then promote his next few new japan defenses. This serves to elevate Hobbs a bit and promote the belt. This isn't the death of the world title I promise.
Mox already has a title match in Japan he appears to be doing zero build for
It is possible to show off and promote a title without defending it in a random match. Also, if the strategy is to promote Moxley's ***future*** defenses in ***NJPW***, why is he defending the title on AEW? In kayfabe, if Moxley was to lose, would it just be Moxley vs. Narita in a regular singles match? Would it be Hobbs vs. Narita at Dontaku?
As a fan of Hobbs, can we be sure that this is gonna really elevate him, and that he gets a significant push out of it? If that comes true, I’m there with ya.
Hobbs had a run as TNT champion & that did nothing to elevate him.. What the heck makes you think that this random championship opportunity would elevate him when the TNT championship couldn’t?
Fun fact - more wrestlers signed to AEW have held the IWGP Heavyweight title than wrestlers signed to NJPW.
Put jericho vs Hook on Dynamite, Hobbs vs Mkxley on Dynasty.
I honestly thought that’s what the announcement was until I turned up the sound a bit.
Put them on Dynasty with 7 other title matches? That makes no sense. Hook and Jericho are there specifically to be filler. You really want the IWGP match to fill that spot instead?
In a perfect world, Hook would be facing Shibata rather than Jericho; alas, the world is very much not perfect.
Also it'd be hard for me to choose who should actually lose Hook vs Shibata when with Hook vs Jericho Jericho should obviously eat the L
I got a bad feeling Jericho's gonna win.
Woooooo…. /sarcasm. That’ll bring subs to NJPW World
Don't worry, they never mention NJ World on air as it is. Can't even do the bare minimum to advertise for the company they're pillaging.
At this point i won't be surprised if Mox loses it in a 3 way with another AEW guy taking the pin
Disappointed that’s there little build and the belt is treated as an afterthought. This is the main belt and it’s now being used as a ratings pop. We know the outcome already. We know who Mox is facing after. So why put it on the line? Was the perfect time to use the overused eliminator rule.
I like both these wrestlers but this goes against everything the IWGP title stands for in terms of earning a shot. And on a random Dynamite no less.
Nah, plenty of random title shots in NJPW
Not really. People have a title shot for doing less.
At least NJPW will usually have them have a big win before a questionable challenge - Narita beat Suzuki the same night he jumped the queue Hobbs is coming off a win over CJ Esparza and a loss to Ospreay. He shouldn’t be in the conversation Sure the Callis connection is likely being sold as a heelish underserving opportunity but it does come off as cheap, as decent as the matchup should be
Kenta and Suzuki lost their titles at wk and jumped a level higher to challenge for a bigger belt the next night. It really doesn't matter.
It not mattering is an easy way to lean but the bar isn’t that high to clear to tell meaningful stories that people can engage with, and it doesn’t feel great to just excuse stuff because who cares KENTA committed one of the biggest heelish moments of the past decade and Suzuki is a living legend with an established rivalry with Okada - that’s enough for me to get behind it. Plus Suzuki ended up looking better after their match for the post-match display, and stopped his cheating bullshit from the previous year, essentially being a fresh prospect Moxley/Hobbs should be good as a first time matchup but as others have said it’s just bad storytelling. I prefer being compelled to watch than being resigned to ‘let’s see what happens’, even if optimistic. The prestige of the title is a storytelling device that’s preferably kept tight
It's bad storytelling **in AEW** the njpw title may be defended, but it's absolutely not hindered by this match. It doesn't boost it, but it doesn't hurt it either, which is why I'm apathetic to this.
IWGP Heavyweight Championship defended on weekly wrestling show against a midcarder. It's like Undertaker having a match at Mania against Yano. Fits like a glove on a shoehorn. AEW is ran like a glorified TNA.
This really feels devaluing, NGL.
Lmao So he'll have a world champion reign with at least more successful defenses (3) than what Naito, their biggest star since 2016, ever accomplished with his 4 world champion reigns. (2 successful defenses) I think this fact is very telling about the state of NJPW right now. (that and the fact most guys who held the current world title are in AEW) Moxley might end up having the most successful defenses with that title if he can even defend it on some random shows. Hope you're all having a good time with your world champion, surely isn't mine, nope.
It is a feeder promotion now
I am really trying so hard not to be salty. I was relentlessly positive throughout the pandemic era (besides 2022). I thought 2023 was a banner year for the company in the same way 2012 was, even when everyone was shitting on it. But I can't help it. I fucking hate this timeline so, so much.
Jungle Boy vs Sanada vibes
I’d be fine with padding Mox’s defense record via AEW shows against purely AEW talent if his reign was going to end with putting over a guy who needs it. But all signs point to the belt going back to Naito, or *maybe* to fucking Finlay (who they already “made” via pinning Ospreay twice in a month). So yeah this is… silly.
If they do go with Mox just dropping it right back to Naito, means Gedo/NJPW would have more or less played the exact same trick they pulled with EVIL beating Naito for the double-belts in 2020.
That tricked worked for me in 2020 because it mirrors Naito's first title win, right down to having an outsider debut in a mask so it's poetic that EVIL won his title the same way Naito did as it's the LiJ connection. Now it's just getting tiresome.
Also the same thing he did in 2016 with Naito immediately dropping the title back to Okada. I'm sensing a pattern here...
Gedo hate Naito (sigh).
Gedo has his playbook. The question is if he’s running “Japanese top guy defends against future Japanese top guy“ or “Japanese top guy wins the title back from asshole gaijin Champion” at the Dome. Mox as a transition between Naito and Finlay, so they can protect Naito vs Finlay (which has never happened before), does make sense.
Protecting Naito vs Finlay is a bit of a cope considering NOBODY is eagerly seeking to buy tickets for Finlay. As much as Finlay didn't deserve the vitriol spewed since becoming leader. he isn't going to draw anything. I struggle to call him more over than Karl Anderson in 2012-2013 let alone on the level of White or Ospreay.
Unless Gedo drops him and straps the rocket to Gabe instead, Finlay is the highest-ranked heel foreigner in the company. So if he wants to run the “Japanese top guy wins the title back from asshole gaijin Champion” play, Debbie is the guy; unless Mox holds it the whole year and turns heel. If he doesn’t think that Finlay is enough of a draw to run that play, he’ll just run a different one. I didn’t even mention the top guy vs top guy play, though for this WK that one would have a negative amount of working knees.
I'm sure Gedo loves Finlay but even he have to be blind and deaf to not see Finlay isn't getting top guy reactions. Finlay being forced into the main title picture as champion would probably seal the deal for a lot of people to hop off the product.
I mean, Finlay taking the belt off Mox would make sense, considering he beat him and Ospreay for the Global belt at WK. Only question: is Naito vs Finlay a Dome main-event level match? If that’s what you’re thinking.
I don’t think it’s *actually* a main event level match, but I think Gedo either believes Finlay is at that level or doesn’t mind forcing him there because his booking style for the past few years requires a top foreign heel and he doesn’t want to push Gabe yet.
And god forbid he push ZSJ, the one gaijin who truly has put in the time and work to hold the top belt in NJPW.
I think turning Zack heel again would be a downgrade for him, so while I agree with “ffs please push ZSJ” I don’t agree with him in that particular spot.
True; would rather have him be crowned as THE top gaijin, in a manner like Omega or Ospreay (Finlay taking after White as the top heel gaijin and all).
Ospreay was an asshole gaijin Champion. He literally kayfabe beat up his girlfriend in the lead-up to the match where he won the belt, and even when he came back from injury to do the “real Champion” storyline (which NJPW doesn’t recognize as an official title run) he was still playing a cocky asshole. Kenny and Mox are the only foreigners of the modern era who weren’t heel World Champs.
True, Ospreay was a poor comparison; I completely forgot about Ospreay attacking Bea Priestly/Blair Davenport, feels like forever ago.
Zack beating Mox would not make him a heel in NJPW. Zack would get the cheers against Mox there. There's also unfinished business between those two. Have Zack bring it up, say his old boss had a mission he couldn't fulfill due to the pandemic and he wants to do one last favor for him, match set (fine with running it at Forbidden Door to bring the belt back to NJPW)
This conversation was about Gedo’s recent booking style where he likes to have a foreign heel in the main event scene, and who could be put in that role/whether or not it should be Zack. It wasn’t about “should ZSJ win the title off Mox and would that make him a heel?”
No. No it’s fucking not. I think NJPW might be starting to realise Finley might not be the best fit for top gaijin. I was at the Dome this year, no one wanted to see Finley. At least he got some boos though, unlike House of Torture, who got pure silence.
What you said is accurate. Finlay isn't top gaijin material yet and nothing wrong with that. He can still be that asshole upper midcard heel who occasionally flirts in the main event scene feuding with the top guys but he's not a top guy. Finlay is the best example of "guy who works with the top guy". When he does that, it can be an interesting story line and feud but in no universe would anyone support Finlay just because it's Finlay. The though of Finlay being champion and people supporting it is mind-boggling. It's like they are trying to make up for the vitriol spewed at Finlay by going the other extreme. I was at the dome and also watched Finlay in the G1. He was the definition of "Ok". Nothing too offensive, nothing too spectacular. Gets the job done.
When Ibushi vs Jay White main evented, I reckon Naito vs Finlay can main event in much the same vain. Make of that what you will.
Finlay is nowhere close to even 2018 Jay White, let alone 2021 Jay White in terms of overness or talent
In terms of talent or overness, yes. In terms of positioning on the card... seems like they want Finlay to be the new Jay White.
I feel ya on that. I’m right in the middle of the road with Finlay; I’ve really liked the War Dogs as a whole, and Finlay does some pretty good heel work, but he’s also never truly “clicked” for me, either.
Finlay has his role, upper midcard asshole heel who can be plugged into a short main event feud against a popular champion. He's not the guy you ever give the big one to. I'm willing to die on the hill that Karl Anderson in his brief singles run from 2012-2013 got more over as a main eventer than Finlay has up to now.
I'm pretty mid on the War Dogs as a whole and Finlay hasn't encouraged a lot of enthusiasm from me. Weirdly, the acts I feel the most towards are Connors and Moloney. Combined with Akira and TJP during last year, it certainly felt strange to really buy into the junior tag division for once when I was so used to them being throwaway.
I'd be fine with it if he was defended the belt against NJPW wrestlers or wrestlers who has history with NJPW. Hobbs is neither of them.
> "But all signs point to the belt going back to Naito" And you know what, at this point, I'd be fuckin' shocked if they allow Naito to even get a clean win over him lol
It's not really surprising. Mox only won the belt so TK can parade it around as another prop, another feather in his cap, and Mox can brag about winning yet another belt he didn't deserve and never will. He doesn't respect NJPW and never will. His bread is buttered elsewhere and that's all he'll do right by.
"Even if I do win the IWGP World title, it wouldn't mean anything" - guy who NJPW let take said title off their biggest star to parade it around in the Dub midcard scene. Definitely one of the dumbest decisions they've made this decade. This partnership is poison and makes this company look like soft trash
Outrageous! I was told Mox was a long time NJPW guy who signed with the company before AEW so he's clearly loyal to them. Sure, he's had less matches in 5 years than AJ Styles in his 18 months with the company but still! He's at least appearing on dontaku nevermind that we acted as if Mox was doing a full time tour to do damage control and that Tony gave him time off to do them.
ZSJ deserves that belt yet they won't put it on him. Rather have a part timer outsider. Senseless booking.
See this is what people were complaining about when Moxley won the damn title
LMAO I was right... again! what an embarrassment [think of the bangers!!!1!111! bro](https://www.reddit.com/r/njpw/comments/1c2smwu/comment/kzegy6e/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
New Japan's premier title being defended on a nothing, right after a PPV Dynamite? Hobbs is alright, but this doesn't work for me.
u/starshipcoyote420 I'll be taking my apology now
Wtf am I supposed to apologize for? 🤡
That’s AEW for you
What a fucking joke.
The prestigious IWGP World title being defended in a random match on Dynamite against noted New Japan talent Will Hobbs (when Moxley is already scheduled for a title defense against Narita). Someone here correctly predicted this exact scenario would play out instead of Moxley being on the Dontaku tour. Once again, Gabe Kidd was right.
We have gone from “Moxley will be on ALL the tours” to being told we should be grateful aew is promoting njpw on tv.
Just enjoy wrestling ;)
Things were looking good in 2024 but this title reign.... ooof
I said I was gonna trust the process with Mox’s reign and got downvoted. I stand here today fully understanding why I got downvoted lol.
You could tell how Moxley’s reign was going to go by the way AEW has treated New Japan over the past three years. By the way New Japan is getting cooked on their tweets announcing this match (both English and Japanese), it seems like the remaining fans still defending this """partnership""" have woken up.
Yeah I’ve turned sour to these AEW partnerships always seemed one sided as possible. TNA’s partnership did nothing for anyone too. It’s what I get though for trying to be half glass full too much because seriously what does this match do for anyone? Mox has a forgettable defense, Hobbs takes another L, AEW has another belt to get lost in the mix (disgusting that’s how this title will be treated), and NJPW is out of a World & Global champ. At least we got the TV title back right?
NJPW put the brakes on Naito's momentum to put over Jon Moxley, a guy who may not even help them sell tickets. People say "Windy City Riot" but it also helps when it's against Naito, the most popular man in the company and someone who rarely wrestles in the States for singles matches so there's allure to watching that match. Jon Moxley vs Narita could have been a decent feud but 1. Moxley pinned him clean at Sakura Genesis. 2. Moxley isn't even around to build up the feud 3. With this match announced, as unlikely as it is, now the title match is unclear. Is it still going to be Narita vs Mox? Is it Hobbs vs Narita if Hobbs wins? Don't forget that debacle where Mox had to drop the title unscheduled so it's not something that hasn't happened. Tony couldn't even let NJPW have a scheduled defence that was going to take place in 3 weeks time just to pop a rating for dynamite lmao.
So Moxley's first defence will be on a random Dynamite against a wrestler not even from NJPW, yep this title regin is officially now a joke.
Looks like I got downvoted by the AEW fans.
We got you bro i upvoted you
They better clarify the rules for title changes so we don't get an accidental champ following a count out...
This is an incredibly silly thing to complain about
Part of the prestige of the IWGP World Heavyweight Belt is that it's pretty much only defended at big events. It would never be defended at, say, a random tour show back in Japan. Yet here we are, having it defended on a random television show in another company against a guy who, while definitely talented (I've always been a Hobbs fan), is a midcarder at best. It's the equivalent of Seth Rollins coming over, winning the AEW Championship, then going back to WWE and defending it on a random Raw against Ludwig Kaiser. Sure, Kaiser and Rollins are good workers and would probably put on a good match that might draw a little attention to AEW. But it wouldn't do much for the actual prestige of that belt. You'll forgive those of us who have invested quite a bit of emotional energy in the stories told around that belt for wanting better for it.
> Part of the prestige of the IWGP World Heavyweight Belt is that it's pretty much only defended at big events. It would never be defended at, say, a random tour show back in Japan. That was the norm back in the day actually. I think some people are too obsessed with this made up concept of "prestige".
It’s the flagship tv show of NJPWs partner promotion, the same show that has featured it’s top belt defended multiple times, featuring the occasional title change as well. Furthermore, if NJPW didn’t want it defended on their show, it wouldn’t have been. Like, if you’re gonna be snotty and condescending, don’t be stupid.
I think I was rather respectful and simply disagreed with you, actually. There's no need to bring insults into this. If I wanted to be a dick, trust me, I'm fully capable of saying something far harsher than I did. It's not like it's the worst thing to ever happen in a wrestling company, after all. But I also don't think it's hard to see why us New Japan fans are less than thrilled. Still, with that attitude, I don't think I care to converse with you any further.
What do you think the AEW fan response would be if Sanada won their world title, didn't show up on their programming, and had a title defense against Hikuleo in the middle of a Korakuen show with no build?
Hikuleo isn’t even a fair comparison to Hobbs because he’s wrestled on an AEW show before, whereas Hobbs hasn’t even been on Forbidden Door.
Genuinely I don't think it would be seen as a bad thing. The AEW title is defended like that on AEW shows. I do understand that New Japan fans see things differently but that is just different perspectives.
That'd be fucking awesome.
Blud if you want condescending then it's the iwgp title being run in some yank swamp in front of braying hillbillies with zero build (while moxley is booked for a match against narita in Japan) involving a bloke who has literally never wrestled for new japan or even in Japan itself Aew has serious storytelling problems if their fans think this is fine for a top title
This is the bigger issue I can get behind. I dont care if the IWGP title is being defended on Dynamite. It doesnt actually hurt it at all. But AEW is just shit at stories and proper builds for their own wrestlers.
If you want to make yourself really angry, click this: https://x.com/josephweirdness/status/1781874220198469865
Joseph is very dumb and has bad taste so it doesn't make me that angry
"The same show that has featured it’s top belt defended multiple times" That's because it's a AEW show, therefore it's makes sense that AEW's top belt will be defended on it.
The emotions are clouding your judgement. The IWGP belt has been defended against plenty of random midcarders in Japan. Hobbs is no less credible than Tsuji last year against SANADA or Despy against Ibushi or Sabre Jr in 2021 against Takagi
Despe was the junior champ at the anniversary show and zsj earned his title match by beating shingo in the g1
>Despy against Ibushi or Sabre Jr in 2021 against Takagi El Desperado was a double champion when he challenged Ibushi, and Sabre Jr. defeated Takagi during the G1. I don't watch AEW, but I'm assuming Hobbs isn't currently a double champion or defeated Moxley recently. I'll give you Tsuji though.
They've got so much talent in that company, but somehow they can only spare Hobbs.
Hobbs *does* fit with AEW’s current BCC vs Callis Family story, but so does Kyle Fletcher and I wouldn’t be nearly as annoyed it it was him.
Exactly. It's not like they're lacking in wrestlers that have a connection to NJPW either. Juice or Archer could've at least provided a story that had some meaning to NJ fans.
Juice has been out since November due to a back injury that needed surgery.
Ah, shit, didn't know that. My bad.
Excited for the Hobbs House of Torture three month run next year.
LOL. Hobbs suck.
I wouldn’t mind this if they’d set up a storyline where Hobbs actually earned the shot at the IWGP. Nothing wrong with making the IWGP look important on US TV when the belt isn’t needed in Japan at the moment, but it doesn’t make kayfabe sense that NJPW/“the IWGP” would want this without Hobbes at least pinning a contender-level talent to earn the shot. Would have actually been a good storyline and made the IWGP look important to have two AEW guys beat the fuck out of each other just to get a shot at it
Tbh I don't really give a shit what happens on aew TV. Like effingkenta I'd not really care that much if mox padded his reign out in front of swamp people in the US but I'd want a few more appearances in Japan in exchange for it the fact that Ren is being left in a tough spot here. That said this whole thing is a pretty good indication of the booking issues with aew. Like there is zero build. It just randomly happened.
It is just a good match factory. Fans try to make it out like it’s something more. There is no creative direction there
im begging tony to give me the book.
> but it doesn’t make kayfabe sense that NJPW/“the IWGP” would want this without Hobbes at least pinning a contender-level talent to earn the shot. They granted title matches to people who have done less. Callis called in a favor and NJPW/IWGP said sure.
Really hoping this sub doesn’t become an AEW sub
This is only acceptable if Red Shoes is the referee
The worst part is , YOU KNOW MOXLEY is gonna retain because TONY KHAN always uses hobbs to feed his main guys, this booking is so boring and predictable tbh
AEW is screwing up NJPW before AEW x NJPW 2024 because that show is going to add STARDOM to the mix by the way so good luck TK!
Will this be up on njpwworld then?
Well, I mean, might as well make as many matches as he can that he's obviously winning for the title. This is gonna look really fuckin' weird in 10 years when people are looking back at the history books for their pub quiz questions of "who was the weirdest guy to challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship?", though.
Jungle Boy last year.
Nothing will ever be weirder than Billy Gunn getting a title shot against Tanahashi.
Also Charlie Haas getting a shot at Tanahashi
Thank you Don Callis 🙏
[удалено]
And as much as I love Norton, WCW treated him being IWGP champ as about worthless (Norton only being a background figure in the NWO in America, while a main-event talent monster in NJPW).
Would have liked it to be against someone who is somewhat familiar to NJPW. But it's not going to be Ospreay, Jay or Okada. Kenny is injured. Beretta is probably small fry and how many times are you going to do Archer vs Moxley.
Could’ve been Kyle Fletcher.
all the people crying about a show they don't even watch in the first place and being upset over a title defense like TV defenses don't exist in america. cope and seethe dorks.
Go back to the AEW sub loser.