Hiroshi Tanahashi Reveals Two AEW Stars He Wants To Work With

TOKYO, JAPAN - JANUARY 05: Hiroshi Tanaashi enters the ring during the New Japan Pro-Wrestling at Ota-City General Gymnasium on January 05, 2023 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)

Although he will be squaring off against MJF for the AEW Championship at The Forbidden Door 2 this weekend, Hiroshi Tanahashi has his sights set on a couple of other high-profile AEW matches as well.

During a recent Sports Illustrated interview, the NJPW star spoke about wanting one-on-one matches with Claudio Castagnoli and CM Punk.

Featured below are some of the highlights.

On Claudio Castagnoli: “Castagnoli is a great wrestler. I know that he used to team with Shinsuke Nakamura, and that was an emotional link for me. Iโ€™d love to have a singles match against him.”

On CM Punk: “And I want to wrestle CM Punk since I couldnโ€™t do it last year. I have wrestled Bryan Danielson once before when I was younger. But with him being one of the top wrestlers in the U.S. and the world right now, Iโ€™d love for us to go again.”

On what fans can expect from The Forbidden Door 2: “Fans can look forward to seeing a classic, traditional NJPW style in the ring.Whatever expectations you have, I guarantee Iโ€™ll go beyond them. So get ready.”

Check out the complete interview at SI.com.