Naoya Nomura

[5.0] "It sad to see how Naoya Nomura hasn't really evolved but actually declined. Four years into his wrestling career I've had him as a ten rated wrestler but not anymore. He hasn't been good for over 3 years"

[9.0] "One of AJPW's most preeminent tag team specialists, he has shown in the past that he could be more than that, that he could be on par with someone like Kento Miyahara if given the chance by the bookers. I hope they do give him a run at the top prize some day, as he is one of the best technicians AJPW has ever seen since the exodus in 2000."

[10.0] "this is my guy, i love naoya nomura so much and i am so glad he's back in ajpw. loved him since 2016 and his 2018-19 run was amazing, champion carnival 2019 specifically where he beat suwama and unfortunately lost to jake that same night was fantastic and both of his matches against kento (especially the second one) were both ***** in my opinion, his matches in CAPTURE have been amazing but i really hope he wins the triple crown this year, he's my favourite wrestler in the world."

[9.0] "Starting in late 2018 and throughout 2019, Naoya Nomura emerged as clearly the best wrestler in AJPW other than Miyahara. While wrestlers like Suwama, Jake Lee, or Zeus were great at the time, it was Miyahara who always made them look like stars. But it was different with Nomura: when he wrestled Kento in a big match, it was Nomura who was making himself look like a star. Then he suffered that horrible neck injury in early 2020, leaving him sidelined for two years, to the point where almost everyone believed he would never wrestle again. But he came back last December (albeit on a part-time schedule), and he hasn't lost a step in his absence. He might not be pushed as an up-and-coming potential ace in AJPW any more, but he is as great as almost anyone in a big match."

[9.0] "The most promising and the BEST wrestler in AJPW. Nomura is unpolished but has fantastic babyface selling to invest fans in his struggles. He became a serious potential star with his first title challenge against Miyahara, and he solidified his claim for future Triple Crown champ with his great CC performances against Suwama and Jake and his second title challenge against Miyahara. The kid is BURSTING with infectious passion, and the only thing actually holding him back from stardom is AJPW's poor booking, given how obsessed they are with pushing Miyahara at everyone else's expense. They had plenty of time from 2016 - 2018 to build Nomura up as the plucky youngster who was many steps below Miyahara yet destined to one day rival him, but they instead ignored him all the way until 2019 when they finaly realised that they *gasp* needed more than just one star to actually grow the company. They then began rushing -- and thus wrecking -- his main event build-up by giving him far too many big losses in too short of a period (e. g. two Miyahara title-challenge losses, the CC finals playoff loss, the RR 2nd-round loss, and the RWTL finals loss, all in just 9 months). They therefore haven't properly laid the groundwork for him to step up and become a star in 2020 (which is what I can only assume they're planning), because how can the guy who can never win a big match reasonably then go to being the champion only a year later? And if they DON'T plan on making him champ in 2020, and 2019 really was just the start of his build-up as a serious star, then AJPW will likely be even more stale by the time they finally pull the trigger on him, at which point him being champion will mean nothing. They backed themselves into a corner to where they NEEDED to rush his push, which was bad enough, but then they also messed up by *poorly* rushing him as well. I hope they can book his eventual first reign well; he's too great to be passed over in favour of Miyahara or even Jake."

[9.0] "Naoya Nomura is one of the greatest wrestlers in AJPW, he has an awesome look and a pretty good moveset. I think he can be a little bit poor with timing, but that can be fixed."

[9.0] "Nouya Nomura is currently growing on me. His wrestling performance is always consistent and his match always good and entertaining. He is currently grooming as the top star and rival of Kento Miyahara and I can't wait to watch his future progression."

[10.0] "Now that AJPW has gotten him out of the rookie phase, allowing him to showcase more of his talent, he is becoming one of the most consistent workers of AJPW. He is over, tough, really intense and always shines whenever is allowed to."

[8.0] "Really starting to come into his own. Had a solid CC tournament and has turned that into an overall very good 2018. He may always be seen as the "other Nomura" because of Takuya being incredible but Naoya is no slouch either."

[7.0] "Ever since his breakout match w/ KAI vs Strong BJ last year, Nomura's been a pretty strong highlight in most of the things he's been in and I'm glad AJPW has been giving him growth opportunities since then with his All Asia run, Ryouji Sai feud, and currently a strong Champion Carnival run in the star-studded A Block. Nomura's at his best trying to go toe-to-toe with the big guys he's trying to become - he can take a beating but when he dishes it back out it's hard not to root for him. The fire he's been very consistently bringing is very great; he's got a good mix of strength and size, the latter of which helps play into his underdog nature as his physique is still developing (in an awkward bulk phase atm) as is his wrestling which is vastly improved over this time last year when he was pretty much 'just there'. My main concern with Nomura is that he's been pretty slow to develop and break out. His moves feel a little light and he has a thing where it's almost that he's unsure of himself? He's 24 and has plenty of time to develop but his peers grew faster than he did so I do wonder about how he'll develop and be pushed in the next few years."

[8.0] "Naoya has all the tools to become one of the greatest wrestlers in AJPW, he's got a bright future as a potential ace and he brings some of the best in ring work with him, the match against Strong BJ at Summer Explosion was easily one of the best if not the best match on the card, he knows how to sell well and is going to be a key figure in the revival of AJPW in the coming years, definitely a guy to keep tabs on."

[4.0] "Let's see. Naoya's a decent worker, and I can't deny it. He is entertaining and all, but I can't really get into him. NEXTREAM is a great and fresh faction, but him and Jake Lee are like the two dudes that I don't really "comprehend" their gimmicks. I know that they are trying to make NEXTREAM the new Four Pillars of Heaven, and Naoya's supposedly the new Taue; but I don't see even a bit of Taue on him when it comes to him as a whole. Now that he is champ with Yuma, I can finally get into him; but as of now, I can't totally enjoy watching him wrestle. Adequate, satisfactory, alright. Overall, not above the average."