10 Crucial Booking Steps Needed To Save Hideo Itami’s WWE NXT Career

10. Allow Him To Wrestle In Long Matches Whenever Possible

Itami€™s wrestling style is centered on having long matches instead of short ones. After all, he was trained in NOAH, where the best matches were, at the absolute least, around fifteen minutes long. Those kinds of contests allowed for both participants to showcase different moves and psychologies, creating more well-rounded wrestlers. And it€™s in those kinds of matches that Itami should be placed as frequently as possible. Wrestling in short, five-minute matches doesn€™t do anyone any favors. It€™s only on rare occasions that those kinds of matches actually tell a story. In Itami€™s case, since he€™s having such a hard time adapting to the €˜WWE style€™, he should first showcase his skills in matches that he€™s more familiar with, i.e. longer matches with more drama, stiffer striking and high-risk spots. This would be based on the philosophy of €˜impress the audience as much as possible in as short a timeframe as possible€™. Since he hasn€™t wrestled in a long singles match yet, now is the time to allow Itami to showcase what he can do. By giving him a bit more freedom in his matches, and by giving him more time, Itami would be able to put on the same kinds of dramatic matches that made him famous in the first place.