10 Fascinating Facts About WWE In 2018

9. Royal Rumble Made NXT History

Braun Strowman The Miz Longest WWE TV Match Ever
WWE.com

Shinsuke Nakamura was a surprise Rumble winner when he danced around gleefully and pointed at the big neon WrestleMania 34 sign in 2018. Fans in attendance were thrilled to see the Japanese star pave the way for more fun to come with Asuka though. Oh, and Shin even made WWE history by winning.

He was the first former NXT Champ to win the famous match type.

This was a landmark moment for the third brand. It'd always had a love/hate relationship with the main roster, but now one of their top stars had arrived on Raw/SmackDown with aplomb. Not only that, but he'd won the Rumble and was going to 'Mania. The remarkable rise of Naka doesn't stop there.

Shin won the NXT belt a mere four months after his WWE debut, and won the Rumble just nine months after first popping up on the main roster following WrestleMania 33. This was obviously the most fruitful period of his entire career in the promotion. Class!

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.