Shota Umino Accepts PAC’s Challenge for IWGP Global Heavyweight Title Match at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door 2026

As noted before, PAC recently issued a challenge to Shota Umino for a match for Umino’s IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship at AEW x Forbidden Door 2026, which takes place on June 28 at the SAP Center in San Jose, California.

Saturday’s NJPW Blue Justice XVIII event in Kimitsu, Japan featured Ryusuke Taguchi & Shota Umino defeating United Empire (Jake Lee & Zane Jay) in a tag team match. Following the match, a video featuring PAC issuing his challenge to Umino aired on the big screen. Umino grabbed a microphone and responded accepting the challenge to make the match official for Forbidden Door.

“The IWGP Global title is just that- global! I am ready to fight anyone anywhere in the world. PAC, I’ll see you at Forbidden Door, and I will prove that NJPW is the best!”

Current card for AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door 2026:

  • AEW Women’s World Championship – Starlight Kid vs. Thekla (c)
  • AEW Continental Championship – Bandido vs. Jon Moxley (c)
  • AEW World Tag Team Championship – The Dogs (Clark Connors & David Finlay) vs. Cage & Cope (Christian Cage & Adam Copeland) (c)
  • IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship – PAC vs. Shota Umino (c)
  • 2026 Men’s Owen Hart Foundation Cup Finals – Will Ospreay vs. Swerve Strickland
  • 2026 Women’s Owen Hart Foundation Cup Finals – Mercedes Mone vs. winner of Athena/Maya World
  • 12-Man Tag Team Steel Cage match – Team Briscoe (The Conglomeration (Mark Briscoe, Orange Cassidy, Roderick Strong, & Kyle O’Reilly), Konosuke Takeshita, & Darby Allin) vs. Team MJF (MJF & Don Callis Family (“The Jet” Kevin Knight, Kyle Fletcher, Jake Doyle, Kazuchika Okada, & Andrade El Idolo))
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kenny Omega