5 NJPW Feuds Shinsuke Nakamura Could Walk Into Right Now

2. Kenny Omega

Chris Jericho Shinsuke Nakamura
NJPW1972.com

Shinsuke Nakamura stood opposite from Kenny Omega the night he assumed control of Bullet Club in 2016 - the 'King Of Strong Style' succumbed to the One Winged Angel before 'The Cleaner' became the leader with a hostile takeover at AJ Styles' expense.

It was the start of an amazing new chapter in the life and career of Omega, but the beginning of a relatively quiet ending to Nakamura's NJPW career. He concluded his business by the end of the month in a series of tag matches, without once interacting with Omega in the aftermath.

'The Best Bout Machine' has evolved since then in a manner almost diametrically opposed to Nakamura's self-styled scale-back. His rise to prominence as Kazuchika Okada-conquering IWGP Heavyweight Champion has been a critical and commercial boon for the organisation - he is performing at a level that justifies his place atop an organisation that still advertises itself as the "King Of Sports". Shinsuke, meanwhile, seemed to adopt a substantially more relaxed attitude as a 'Superstar' upon settling in on SmackDown Live! in 2017.

Omega's promos during this year's G1 have done away with the humility and contrition of his win - he exudes confidence on his face that can only be kicked clean off. There's a dapper gentleman in red that could prove the ideal candidate.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett