10 Reasons Shinsuke Nakamura's WWE Run Will Fail
2. Culture Clash
Can WWE book a foreign babyface as a top star?
It seems such a dated question in 2017, but the company still remains marooned in a land that time forgot when it comes to promoting somebody of less-than-familiar descent (some variant of American, Canadian, British, you know the drill) as a babyface to build the company around.
It's a minor miracle that Nakamaura has avoided the pan-flute music and martial arts-inspired persona having made the leap from NXT, such is Vince McMahon's fascination with outdated stereotypes. If Shinsuke is ultimately to wear the WWE Title for a significant amount of time in the near future, it's more likely to be as a 'sneaky' heel, utilising the help of an equally devious manager who throws salt in his opponents eyes, or at very least intentionally mispronounces words to create cultural separation with the audience.
WWE would be going against their own formula to promote Nakamura as 'The Guy' a la John Cena, Roman Reigns or even AJ Styles. It's an uphill climb, and not impossible, but if the company's current preoccupation with Jinder Mahal's ethnicity above all else is anything to go off, little has truly changed over thirty progressive years.