10 Most Devastating WWE Superstar Injuries Of 2015

9. Hideo Itami

Itami suffered his shoulder injury at a very bad time, as he was featured prominently alongside Finn Balor. The two were excellent as either opponents or partners. But Balor began eclipsing Itami, and the Japanese fighter needed something to really elevate his NXT career, which had begun to flounder a little. He definitely did not need an injury to set him back. Itami€™s shoulder injury set him back an estimated four to six months, and he€™s due back on NXT any day now. But in the time he was gone, NXT simply moved on without him as if his absence wasn€™t even a big deal. Balor became NXT Champion, Apollo Crews made his debut, and the main-event scene in NXT is becoming larger and full of competitors. Itami, meanwhile, appeared at NXT TakeOver: Respect and barely got any reaction whatsoever from the otherwise focal Full Sail crowd. One would hope that isn€™t a sign of how his stock has fallen. Itami was a major signee for NXT and was an enormous star in Japan beforehand. Hopefully this injury doesn€™t set him too far back and he€™ll be able to bounce back and be a major player on the brand going forward.