Every WWE NXT TakeOver: Dallas Wrestler - Where Are They Now?

6. Shinsuke Nakamura

nakamura zayn
WWE.com

Wanna know why nobody cared about Austin Aries' debut? It's because Shinsuke MF-ing Nakamura debuted in the very next match! After tearing up New Japan for years, the 'King Of Strong Style' made a huge first impression in his now-legendary clash with Sami Zayn. 

Nakamura joined the main roster in 2017 following 2 runs with the NXT Championship. Within a year, he'd won the Royal Rumble and faced AJ Styles for the WWE Title at 'Mania 34. Alas, this would be as good as it would get. 

For some reason, Nakamura just hasn't worked on the main roster (for the most part). He's won a bunch of titles, sure, but he's never been able to recapture the magic of his explosive year in NXT. He occasionally turns up in big storylines, usually when WWE are trying to court a Japanese free agent, but you're more likely to find him surfing than wrestling these days.

His most recent major appearance was facing Styles again at Saturday Night's Main Event, but when your only recent notable accomplishment is being a bit-part player in somebody else's retirement storyline, then you know something is very wrong.

Contributor
Contributor

Jacob Simmons has a great many passions, including rock music, giving acclaimed films three-and-a-half stars, watching random clips from The Simpsons on YouTube at 3am, and writing about himself in the third person.