The most recent installment of WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event was expected to be the kind of show you could skip without missing anything of major consequence. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles was the most attractive match on the card, but was so hastily thrown together that I figured it to be little more than a minor pit stop on Styles’ retirement tour.
Expecting a decent match between these two was a given. Expecting them to produce a legitimate banger was not on my bingo card.
It was a reminder of just how good Nakamura can be when motivated. The general consensus across the board is that this match removed the sour taste left behind by their 2018 feud.
For those in need of a refresher, Styles and Nakamura had an incredible match at New Japan Pro Wrestling’s January 4, 2016 Tokyo Dome show. Shortly thereafter, both gave their notice and departed for WWE. Styles would debut on the main roster a few weeks later at the Royal Rumble while Nakamura debuted in NXT that spring. Fans who followed both of their careers longed for a Styles vs. Nakamura rematch on WWE soil.
They got their wish at WrestleMania 34 and it wasn’t anything like fans expected. They had an average match at best and their subsequent rematches didn’t exactly light the world on fire. You knew the feud was cooked when its most memorable moments revolved around Nakamura trolling Renee Paquette.
Their feud was a microcosm of Nakamura’s WWE career. Despite being a genuinely charismatic performer, and great wrestler, nothing he’s done outside of his initial NXT run has captivated me. I cannot place blame on the booking. He’s been given chances, but has consistently underperformed and shows a lack of fire that other top guys possess. Someone with Nakamura’s look and ability should’ve been a permanent main event fixture by now.
Both Styles and Nakamura came to WWE within a couple of months of each other, and their career trajectories couldn’t look more different. One became an all-time great and the other is someone you often forget is still employed by the company due to his long stretches of absence on television.
Nakamura would have to rank high on any list of the biggest disappointments of modern WWE history, which is a shame. His SNME match with Styles proved that he can hang with the very elite in WWE when he wants to.
While I’m happy I got to see this version of Nakamura again, I can’t help but think about the greatness I’ve been robbed of seeing for the last several years.
- Read more of Jeuron’s work on Substack: https://substack.com/@jeurondove
