Francesco Akira was supposed to be on AEW TV alongside his United Empire stablemates.
Although there were many New Japan Pro Wrestling stars that appeared on AEW TV in the weeks leading up to the Forbidden Door pay-per-view, there were still some notable names missing. Among those was Francesco Akira.
In a new interview with Cultaholic, Akira was asked about if there were ever plans for him to pop up on the popular wrestling program alongside his stablemates.
"There was, but unfortunately we’re working on my visa stuff now, because I’ve never been to the U.S, but I just joined New Japan. There’s a process you need to do before getting to America. I think Forbidden Door was one of the greatest shows of the last ten years to me. Every match delivered, especially the United Empire matches. We’re working on it, I would love to come to America especially for STRONG and defend [these] championship[s] too with TJP in America."
On June 20, Akira and TJP captured the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles from Six or Nine (Master Wato & Ryusuke Taguchi). The win marks the first time that both TJP and Akira have held a championship within the confines of New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Tetsuya Naito was a big star that was absent from Forbidden Door. According to Naito himself, he wasn't invited to the event. Click here to learn more.
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