10 Wrestlers Who Never Should've Signed With WWE
3. Hideo Itami
Hideo Itami first started his career in All Japan Pro Wrestling, but when the bulk of the company's talent jumped ship to form Pro Wrestling NOAH, that's when he broke out. Legends like Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Jun Akiyama were the main draws, but the future was in the hands of men like Itami (then named KENTA) and Naomichi Marufuji.
By 2014, though, things were different. NOAH was in a tailspin that began when Misawa died in an in-ring accident and continued when many of the older stars left or retired. Even though Itami had taken his place as NOAH's ace, there was no one left watching. After a tryout with WWE (and with NOAH's blessing), he signed with the company.
Itami debuted for NXT later that year, and his arrival was treated like a big deal... at first. He was soon overshadowed by the debut of Finn Balor, though, and a shoulder injury suffered in spring of 2015 kept him out of action until this past June. WWE seemed to not know what to do with Itami upon his comeback, and earlier this month, he was injured again. There's no word when he'll be back.
Injuries are unpredictable, but had Itami gone to New Japan instead of WWE, he would have been a main-event player. Instead, he's truly got no momentum.