Why Bully Ray Stops Short Of Calling Omega-Ospreay Forbidden Door 2023 A Masterpiece

Though the match took place just days ago, the AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door bout between Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay is already being called a modern classic by some wrestling fans. While "Busted Open Radio" co-host Bully Ray had a great many positive things to say regarding the match, the former ECW star isn't quite ready to apply the "masterpiece" label just yet. Speaking on the SiriusXM radio show, Ray explained his thought process and what he believes held the match back.

"There was something that went on in the match that was a bit glaring to me, that took away from comparing that match to the Mona Lisa," Bully said. "Something happened that, for me, was just like — I don't understand why they did this."

The moment in question? The involvement of Don Callis near the culmination of the match. Bully pointed out that the match before Omega and Ospreay involved Saraya and Ruby Soho getting ejected from ringside, which was problem number one for the Impact star.

"Don Callis, about 20 minutes [after getting ejected], comes back down to the ring," Bully continued. "And what did the referee do?"

"Nothing," co-host Mark Henry responded.

Bully stated that referee Paul Turner should have begun threatening to disqualify Ospreay when Callis returned ringside, and the failure to do so was one of his biggest knocks against the match. The radio host went into depth explaining exactly why this is a bad thing for a wrestling audience.

"You force me, mentally, out of the story," Bully stated. "I'm so immersed in what is going on, and now I see a manager come back that got thrown out? I'm immediately saying, 'Okay, why's the referee not throwing him out?' You've taken my attention and you've forced it on something that it should never be forced on."

To take things a step further, Bully pointed out that Callis got physically involved in the match after returning from ejection. It once again caused him to think about the referee's lack of authority in the match.

"There's no logic," Bully said. "They could have done it the right way, because if they had brought Don back down and went right into the spot that led to the finish, then it could have made sense. But Don was down there entirely too long. [It] takes all the credibility off the ref that they worked so hard to get on the ref, because the ref did throw Don Callis out."

While Bully was adamant that he loved the match, the radio host was not shy about criticizing elements of it. Circling back to something he'd said earlier in the conversation, Bully talked about comparing the match to Leonardo Da Vinci's famous Mona Lisa.

"I can't put the picture of the Mona Lisa up, because this is not the Mona Lisa," Bully said. "I wanted to, so bad, compare that match last night to one of the finest pieces of art known to humanity, but I couldn't because of that five minutes in time at the end where it seems like AEW ... [doesn't] want to follow the rules or the regulations of keeping the credibility on the referee." When asked by fellow "Busted Open" host Dave LaGreca what Bully would rate the match on a scale of one to ten, the Impact star had an answer ready immediately.

"Nine," Bully replied. "Dude, I was gonna put up a picture of the Mona Lisa. It's the Mona Lisa! It's the finest piece of art on the planet, and when I'm watching that match last night, I'm like, 'This is one of the greatest matches I've ever seen,' because it gave me everything." Bully lauded the performance of both Omega and Ospreay, but the involvement of Callis kept the match from perfection in his eyes.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.