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Zack Sabre Jr. retained the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship in the main event of AEW x NJPW Wrestle Dynasty. Just a day after he had completed his third title defense against Shota Umino in the almost 44-minute main event of NJPW Wrestle Kingdom, Sabre Jr. once more defended the title in the Tokyo Dome against AEW's Ricochet, who was returned to Japan for the first time since 2017.
The bout started fast with Ricochet wiping the champion out with a tope suicida before casting him back into the ring, attempting a pinfall as the match got officially underway. From there, it was very much a clash of styles as Ricochet sought to connect with fast-paced and high-flying offense in comparison to Sabre Jr.'s attempt to ground his opponent with technical grappling.
That remained the theme throughout the bout, capped off in the closing stretch as Ricochet sought to win the title with a 450 Splash, only for Sabre Jr. to avoid the move, follow up with a Michinoku Driver, and tie his opponent up for the verbal submission. His title retention on Friday night saw Sabre Jr. make history as the first non-Japanese wrestler since Brock Lesnar — defeating Shinsuke Nakamura in 2006 — to walk in and out of NJPW's annual Tokyo Dome show as the World Heavyweight Champion. To do so once again just a day later is a milestone unto itself.
Ricochet, meanwhile, has a feud with Swerve Strickland waiting for him in AEW. Last week's episode of "AEW Dynamite" saw Ricochet attack his foe with scissors, and Strickland has since responded with a cryptic Shakespearian quote.

