Ranking Shinsuke Nakamura’s 10 Best WWE Matches So Far

Company canvasses have already been graced by 'The Artist'

shinsuke nakamura
WWE.com

By just about every measure, Shinsuke Nakamura was risky business for WWE. Symbiotically, WWE was risky business for Shinsuke Nakamura.

Despite his obvious and incredible talents, the 'King of Strong Style' was not traditionally the sort of performer that would be given the freedom to get over using the things he could do, and based on prior precedent would likely be forced to face certain harmful prejudices highlighting areas in which he struggled.

Truthfully, there have been some early wobbles since his enigmatic arrival on SmackDown Live! two nights after WrestleMania.

Subtle alterations such as a font change on his TitanTron and the ugly 'Vibe' t-shirt added to WWEShop.com were palatable enough, but a sudden over-reliance on referring to the 'King of Strong Style' as 'The Artist Known As...' and the befuddling decision to have him speak with his mouthguard in were altogether more troubling.

Akin to AJ Styles in experience and pedigree, Nakamura could have emerged immediately onto the main roster after signing in early 2016, but the decision to afford him some seasoning on NXT provided a year's worth of matches and moment that established an entirely separate legacy for the New Japan icon.

With a pay-per-view promoted entirely around his maiden encounter with Dolph Ziggler, the company would be well served to review where things have already gone so right. Amassing a fabulous selection of encounters up and down the developmental brand, Shinsuke was a 'WWE Superstar' the moment he stepped out on to the NXT stage.

10. Vs Tye Dillinger (NXT TV, April 13th 2016)

shinsuke nakamura
WWE.com

A short but memorable encounter between NXT's two latest main roster graduates was the highlight of a rotten set of television tapings at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center the day before WrestleMania 32.

Just 24 hours after his breathtaking debut (more on that later), 'The King of Strong Style' wrestled twice in one day in front of an Axxess crowd that would go down as the poorest in the developmental brand's televised history.

The usually white hot NXT product played mostly to silence from a crowd of WWE gift shop enthusiasts and those waiting to grab a picture with Randy Orton, but the magnificence of Nakamura and increasingly-relatable Tye Dillinger lifted the audience to a more acceptable decibel level.

Still a mysterious figure, Shinsuke was able to confuse and delight in equal measure, with his unique method of mind games overawing 'The Perfect 10'. A memorable moment for both, Nakamura joining Dillinger in his own 'Ten' taunt was a superb moment of realisation for Tye. Rattled by his opponent's demeanour, he'd fall to the Kinshasa minutes later.

His contest with Elias Samson later that day (taped to air a fortnight later as the crew bottled a full month of television) couldn't compete, but was notable again for rare crowd participation thanks again to the dynamism of the enigmatic new Japanese star.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett