Will Shinsuke Nakamura ever capture the World Championship in WWE?

Despite some success on the main-roster, Shinsuke Nakamura hasn't tasted the top prize in Sports Entertainment just yet.

Will Shinsuke Nakamura ever capture the World Championship in WWE?

Shinsuke Nakamura can be a dark horse at Money in the Bank (Image Credits: Bleacher Report)

WWE has a few Japanese wrestlers on their wide elite-level roster. Top of the list are Shinsuke Nakamura and Asuka. Where on one hand, the Empress of Tomorrow has enjoyed enough success on the main-roster, her male compatriot has suffered miserably. Nakamura made his epic SmackDown debut on the very first edition of blue brand post WrestleMania 33.

He was red-hot coming from a successful NXT run on his back. The main-roster crowd was quick to acknowledge The Artist and for the first few months, Shin wrestled his way up the ranks. Within an incredibly short span of time, he pinned legends like Randy Orton and John Cena in singles competition. Based on Nakamura’s initial booking, fans developed high hopes from the Kyoto born wrestler.

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The brightest of days for Nakamura came at WrestleMania 34 when he faced his arch-nemesis from Japan, AJ Styles. Both juggernauts wrestled a clinic, which however received an anti-climatic conclusion. Styles retained his WWE Championship and Shinsuke Nakamura turned heel during the aftermath. It was there when the former NXT Champion went downhill. The creative team seemingly lost interest in him and he got demoted to some mid-card feuds.

Although he won some B-level straps following that, Nakamura never got inserted into a World Championship program ever again. However, considering Triple H is now running the creative, anything is possible. Hunter has been a true appreciator of NJPW’s former pride and that could prompt a reclamation for Shinsuke Nakamura.

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Shinsuke Nakamura hasn’t been on television since last year

Shinsuke Nakamura to appear more on WWE NXT
Shinsuke Nakamura on Smackdown (Image Credits: WWE)

Seemingly, there are no creative plans for the Japanese at the moment. He last wrestled against Santos Escobar in November in a first round matchup for SmackDown World Cup on FOX. However, Shin lost the match and disappeared from television.

Back in August, The King of Strong Style challenged Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship. In a match that received widespread appreciation from the WWE Universe, Nakamura fell short. Ignoring the result, that bout was a proper wrestling exhibition, which allowed both superstars to showcase their diverse arsenal.

It’s clear, when WWE tries with Shinsuke Nakamura, he always delivers. They just need to come up with a proper working plan for him inorder to escalate his struggling WWE career into the next orbit. It remains to be seen what’s next for The Artist under the new regime.

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