10 Dominant NXT Forces (That Were Ruined Immediately On WWE's Main Roster)
2. Shinsuke Nakamura
The enigmatic Shinsuke Nakamura arrived in NXT in 2016 and had an instant-classic match on his debut against Sami Zayn at TakeOver: Dallas.
The NXT fans immediately fell in love with the unique Japanese star and he had a successful run on the yellow brand, becoming the first two-time NXT Champion after feuds with Bobby Roode and Samoa Joe.
He eventually arrived on the main roster the night after WrestleMania 33 with fans licking their lips at the numerous dream matches that Nakamura could have with WWE's biggest stars.
Nakamura's run began with uninspiring feuds against Dolph Ziggler and Baron Corbin and then somehow got worse from there.
An immensely damaging defeat against Jinder Mahal at SummerSlam 2017 did nothing but begin to erase the magnetic aura that Nakamura had arrived with. He was mercilessly sacrificed in a desperate attempt to establish Mahal, a career jobber, as a legitimate World Champion.
The experiment failed and Nakamura was an unfortunate victim of some unforgivable booking that damaged him beyond repair.
Underwhelming matches against AJ Styles further damaged his reputation and long-time fans of the former New Japan star are left to wonder what might have been.