>No offense to Tana, but that wasn’t the most high profile
>match they had on the table for Punk. NJPW probably doesn’t
>want Okada, Naito, or Jay White to lose to him, so Tana was
>tapped for the job cause he’s a big name and can still go.
>That’s how the “politics” of these shows work. Both
>companies have their guys that can’t lose and their guys
>that can. You match them up from there so that everyone is
>happy. Mox is a big guy in both companies, he probably ain’t
>losing.

the point isnt that Tanahashi might beat Punk, just that it would happen. the idea that theyve constructed this nonsense in a way that seems specifically designed to kick it down to road to Labor Day, but arent going to actually do that, is confusing to me.

>>also, the new champion is gonna be rolling around in the mud
>>with 2point0 3 days later?
>>that doesnt make any sense to me.
>
>I don’t see how that’s an issue when it’s Mox we’re
>talking about. They also booked Blood and Guts before they
>knew the extent of Punk’s injury.

right, but they dont have to make a participant the interim champion

>They’re not planning out a 2nd forbidden door, dude.
>They’re rolling with what they have for the first one. Tana
>was booked to lose and still is. They’re not worrying about
>a future Tana vs. Punk match rn.

is that not what everyone wanted to see 9 days ago? they dont have to do a 2nd forbidden door. theyd just need Tanahashi to come back one time as interim champion, and then everyone gets to see the thing Dynamite dangled in front of them. might even get some actual heat this summer without MJF, which seemed impossible.

>Idk what you’re saying here. Yes, this was all poorly
>planned, and on top of that they have injuries to deal with,
>so they’re booking on the fly. But with this match, there is
>an angle that they are not responsible for. NJPW has been
>teasing Tana/Mox for a year (Mox has been acting like Tana has
>been ducking him). When Punk went down, this is the direction
>they chose. That doesn’t mean Mox is gonna lose. If I were a
>betting man, I’d put a lot of money on Mox.

well then this doubly confusing, because they seem to be building their own weekly TV around what you say is a NJPW storyline. Tanahashi, with a win over Moxley and a summer of "taking the belt back to Japan", is a much more appealing All Out opponent for Punk imo than Moxley becoming champ again after beating a battle royal winner and someone who's never been on American TV.