10 Toughest WWE Superstars Of The 21st Century
4. Shinsuke Nakamura
With a unique look, a believable style and an entrance that exudes star power from the opening note, Shinsuke Nakamura is on track to become one of the biggest stars in WWE today. Simply put, Nakamura is the real deal. What many may not realise, however, is that Nakamura is also the real deal outside of professional wrestling.
As his offensive wrestling moves may allude, 'The King of Strong Style' is pretty handy in the world of Mixed Martial Arts. Having studied Vale Tudo shortly after entering the world of pro wrestling in 2002, Nakamura made his MMA debut in December that year.
With a record of three wins, one draw and one loss, Nakamura achieved a pretty decent level of success in the world of MMA. The fact that his one loss came in his debut fight against Daniel Gracie of the legendary Gracie family adds context to the defeat, while his stalemate against Alexey Ignashov was vindicated with victory in the subsequent rematch.
Nakamura has gone on to incorporate his MMA training into his wrestling style and, despite his last MMA bout taking place a over a decade ago, he has retained many of the techniques. With fighter's instincts and a well-oiled repertoire, Nakamura is one guy not to be messed with.