Record-setting night in London for a global crossover
London’s O2 Arena was loud, hostile, and ready. On a sweltering Sunday, the building hosted the first-ever cross-Atlantic edition of Forbidden Door 2025, and it didn’t just sell out—it set the venue record for a pro wrestling crowd with an announced 18,992 fans. That energy never dipped. AEW and NJPW, with partners CMLL and STARDOM, built a card that felt like a world tour delivered in one night, and then paid it off with title fights, surprise returns, and a main event that shook the steel.
This was also the first time the show landed in August and the first time outside North America. That matters. Forbidden Door has grown from a novelty into AEW’s annual wildcard—a place where dream matches aren’t teased, they’re booked. Add NJPW’s champions and stars, plus CMLL and STARDOM talent, and you get the kind of chemistry you can’t fake: different rulebooks, different rhythms, all colliding under one roof.
The Zero Hour pre-show did more than warm up the crowd. It showed the scale of the night. In the All-Star 8-Man Tag, Paragon, Yuya Uemura, and El Desperado found a groove late and put away Cru, Hechicero, and Josh Alexander. Ricochet, Bishop Kaun, and Toa Liona then beat Michael Oku, Kevin Knight, and Mike Bailey in a sprint that felt like a highlight reel you could barely track. The All-Star 8-Woman Tag gave Triangle of Madness and Megan Bayne a statement win over Willow Nightingale, Kris Statlander, Harley Cameron, and Queen Aminata. And in a tone-setter for faction warfare, The Opps held off Bullet Club War Dogs to retain the AEW World Trios Championship.
By the time the main card started, the O2 crowd had its voice. They sang, they booed, they roared. The commentary team of Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Bryan Danielson, and Jim Ross kept the pace crisp, while Justin Roberts and Takuro Shibata handled the introductions with the kind of intent you expect on a cross-promotional stage.
Main card: reunions, titles, and a cage match that crossed a line
The night opened with a reunion nobody thought they’d see in a match setting again: Adam Copeland and Christian Cage tagging together against Killswitch and Kip Sabian, with Mother Wayne lurking at ringside. London turned the entrance into a singalong and held it through the opening exchanges, where Copeland and Cage had to knock off a little rust. When they settled in, instinct took over. The veterans built to a slick combination finish and got the pin, a crowd-pleasing result that left just enough mystery about whether this was a one-night special or the start of another run.
The first major title defense of the night carried heavy emotion. “Hangman” Adam Page and MJF wrestled what felt like the end chapter of a long, messy book. Page defended the AEW World Championship, and the match swung through mind games, counters, and a late surge where both men knew the other too well. Page held on and kept the belt. The reaction said a lot: respect for Page’s grit, and a simmering curiosity about where MJF goes from here after coming up short when the moment felt big and personal.
The women’s division delivered a clear message next. “Timeless” Toni Storm made Athena tap to retain the AEW Women’s World Championship in a match that leaned into control and composure. Storm didn’t rush, even when Athena found bursts of offense. She picked her spot, locked in deep, and forced the submission. As a champion, Storm now has the kind of scalp that boosts her reign from strong to signature.
Dominance took a different shape in the TBS Championship match. Mercedes Moné outlasted three challengers in a multi-woman showcase that moved at a clip. She didn’t need a perfect night—she needed a cold one. Moné picked her moments, let chaos burn itself out, and closed. It’s the kind of defense that makes the next challenger think twice, because you don’t just have to beat Moné—you have to survive the traffic she manages so well.
The tag division flipped on its head when Brodido stunned The Hurt Syndicate to become the new AEW World Tag Team Champions. Upsets don’t land unless you believe the champions can’t be rattled. The Hurt Syndicate looked like a team built to grind out every close finish. Brodido cracked that aura with pressure and timing, then sealed the fall. Expect a quick rematch push and a queue of contenders who suddenly see daylight where the lane was closed.
NJPW’s centerpiece title got the technical showcase it deserved. Zack Sabre Jr. retained the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship against Nigel McGuinness in what can best be called a chess match in motion. Sabre countered strings with strings, feeding transitions into traps. McGuinness answered with clever shifts and veteran timing. The longer it went, the more it turned into a test of who could keep solving. Sabre did, and he left with the belt intact, a win that adds prestige against a name fans don’t just respect—they study.
Then came a meeting of pace-setters: Kazuchika Okada versus Swerve Strickland for the AEW Unified Championship. The style clash wasn’t a clash at all—it was chemistry. Strickland’s controlled chaos met Okada’s calm control, and the result was a classic that never felt stuck. Okada’s defense was as much about footwork and positioning as it was about impact. He kept Swerve a half-step behind when it mattered and walked out still champion, a point made clean in a division that doesn’t forgive hesitation.
The main event arrived with a warning label. A Lights Out Steel Cage Match in AEW means the promotion won’t recognize the result in the records. It’s unsanctioned. It’s a promise that things can and will get ugly. Inside that cage: Darby Allin, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Will Ospreay, and the Golden Lovers—Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi—against Gabe Kidd, the Death Riders (Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli), and The Young Bucks. Weapons got involved early, and the pace broke open. Allin launched himself as if the cage made him bolder, not cautious. Tanahashi picked his spots. Omega and Ibushi blended rattling offense with timing that only comes from years together. The Bucks fired back with the kind of superkick storms that turn momentum into whiplash. Moxley and Castagnoli used the cage like a partner.
It delivered on the violence. It delivered on the spectacle. The babyface side found a final burst, cleared lanes, and scored the fall. That should have been the catharsis. It wasn’t.
The post-match scene flipped the mood. Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli took out Will Ospreay in a brutal assault that left him motionless and the crowd in disbelief. The arena went from celebratory to anxious in seconds. Then the next shock hit: Wardlow walked back into the picture and aligned with the Don Callis Family, giving the group dangerous new muscle. Before the buzz settled, Jamie Hayter returned, too—an emotional moment in front of a home-country crowd that’s been waiting for her music to hit again. One angle, three beats, and a dozen new directions to go.
Where does this leave the board? Ospreay and Moxley feel destined for a fight outside the safety of rules, and Castagnoli’s part in the assault makes any tag combination compelling. With Wardlow’s power in the Don Callis orbit, every interaction with Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi, or any Don Callis rival gets heavier. Hayter’s comeback reshapes the women’s picture in an instant. Toni Storm has a line of potential challengers, and a returning UK star will jump to the front of most shortlists. Mercedes Moné’s win means the TBS lane stays clogged until someone can outmanage her in chaos.
On the tag side, Brodido’s win creates a scramble. The Hurt Syndicate won’t take a loss like that quietly, which usually means a rematch scenario and a flood of teams trying to call their shot. Zack Sabre Jr. continues to reinforce the IWGP World Heavyweight Title with the kind of defenses that make future challenges feel harder, not easier. And Kazuchika Okada, calm as ever, remains the man at the top of AEW’s unified mountain, eyeing a division full of hungry contenders, Swerve among them.
The presentation matched the scale. Commentary toggled between call and context without talking over the moments. The ring announcing sold the stakes without overselling the sizzle. The layout of the card let matches breathe, then tightened when the story called for pace. By the time the cage descended, you could feel that the night was steering toward something bigger than a pinfall.
It’s hard to make nights like this feel different each year, but that’s what happened. The London crowd added a charge, and the cross-promotional chemistry did the rest. When you get Copeland and Cage teaming again, a world title defense that lands like a landmark, tag gold changing hands, a technical masterclass for NJPW’s top prize, a top champion in Okada standing tall, and a main event that ends in chaos and returns—there isn’t much left on the checklist.
If you missed anything, here’s a quick run-through of the key results and moments:
- Zero Hour: Paragon, Yuya Uemura & El Desperado def. Cru, Hechicero & Josh Alexander.
- Zero Hour: Ricochet, Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona def. Michael Oku, Kevin Knight & Mike Bailey.
- Zero Hour: Triangle of Madness & Megan Bayne def. Willow Nightingale, Kris Statlander, Harley Cameron & Queen Aminata.
- Zero Hour: The Opps def. Bullet Club War Dogs to retain the AEW World Trios Championship.
- Main Card opener: Adam Copeland & Christian Cage def. Killswitch & Kip Sabian (with Mother Wayne).
- AEW World Championship: “Hangman” Adam Page def. MJF to retain.
- AEW Women’s World Championship: “Timeless” Toni Storm def. Athena via submission to retain.
- TBS Championship: Mercedes Moné outlasted three challengers to retain.
- AEW World Tag Team Championship: Brodido def. The Hurt Syndicate to win the titles.
- IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. def. Nigel McGuinness to retain.
- AEW Unified Championship: Kazuchika Okada def. Swerve Strickland to retain.
- Main Event – Lights Out Steel Cage: Darby Allin, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Will Ospreay & The Golden Lovers (Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi) def. Gabe Kidd, Death Riders (Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli) & The Young Bucks.
- Post-match fallout: Moxley and Castagnoli brutally attacked Will Ospreay; Wardlow returned and joined the Don Callis Family; Jamie Hayter returned.
Forbidden Door promised unpredictability and delivered. The wins matter. The losses matter. But the images that will stick—the reunion pop, the Hangman breakthrough, Brodido’s upset, Sabre’s technical edge, Okada closing strong, and the cage aftermath—are the kind that change what you expect the next time the lights go down.