5. Using MMA Stars Properly
Brock Lesnar is widely considered to be one of, if not the biggest name in MMA, at least in North America. He has dominated UFC and garnered a lot of legitimacy as a bona fide bad ass. This, coupled with his previous history in WWE, makes Lesnar an incredible star. However, he wasnt used properly in WWE. Limited dates, boring TV confrontations that usually led to a walk-out, and jobbing out to Cena and Triple H in his first year back after being gone for 8 years all diminished his stature. It wasnt until after he ended the Undertakers Streak that people really started talking about Lesnar in a positive way again. What WWE could learn from New Japan in this regard is now to use an MMA star properly. In this case, that star is Minoru Suzuki, who is more or less the Japanese equivalent of Brock Lesnar, in more ways than one. First, Suzukis persona is that of the smack-talking, arrogant douchebag who thinks hes better than you, and hell tell that to your face. This in turn makes people hate him, because virtually everyone can relate to that experience. Secondly and more importantly, Suzuki can talk all that trash because he can back it up with enough fighting skill to snap you in half like a twig. You see, Suzuki was the co-founder of Pancrase, one of the first and most significant MMA organizations in Japan. He spent many years perfecting his fighting style, and has a considerable amount of legitimacy as a skilled fighter. His final record in MMA was 29-19. Suzuki, unlike Lesnar, is considered a regular on NJPW programming, and thus isnt deemed a special attraction by the companys top brass. While Lesnars skills make him unique in WWE, that doesnt justify having him appear very rarely, and giving him so much liberty in appearances. NJPW did the right thing with Suzuki: he appeared often and showcased his MMA-inspired badassery on a regular occasion, allowing his reputation among the NJPW faithful to grow organically, instead of relying on outside experience in another industry, which is what happened with Lesnar. WWE banked on fans knowing he was a legit fighter in UFC, instead of showcasing him frequently and booking him properly, which was very damaging to him in 2012. After the 'Inokism' catastrophe, NJPW learned from their mistakes and did things right the second time with Suzuki.