Shinsuke Nakamura

[7.0] "If this were 2016, he would be like a 8 or 9, but since 2017, the king of strong style has been booked just terribly. But it could have worked, I feel like he should have 100% should have won at Wrestlemania 34, but ever since that lost, he fell lower and lower down the card to the point of not getting booked. Overall his stuff in Japan was nothing short of spectacular, but it just sucked seeing a star getting ruined so fast and so easily."

[10.0] "Shinsuke is an all time wrestling legend wrestling, the stone old steve austin of japan during his run. One of the best wrestlers, his strong style is top tier and putting on classics. one of the most charaismatic characters of all time."

[10.0] ""Shinsuke's a beast. Back in NJPW, he's a legend, tearing it up with classic matches. The guy's got the whole package: killer look, epic theme, and top-notch technical skills. But WWE? Feels like he should've done more. Still, that match with Sami Zayn? Pure gold, one of my all-time faves in WWE history.""

[10.0] "A man who exudes charisma from every pore. Of WWEs 2016 intake, he was possibly only outclassed in star power by AJ Styles, and his pedigree as the King of Strong Style in Japan truly is unshakeable, even after over half a decade of bad booking on WWEs main roster. It truly is a crime that McMahon will pay for (probably somewhere down the list, given the others) that Nakamura has not had a run with the big one yet, and at 44, I fear that he many never have that chance, but even so, he still manages to massively entertain any time he's in the ring."

[6.0] "Admittedly have not seen much of his New Japan but know that people rave about it. Definitely could up my rating once I see some of it. I dont know, definitely has personality and physical charisma, but with the language barrier its just difficult, as Im someone who likes to form a rating based both on working and mic skills, look, charisma, etc. Really liked his NXT work, his main roster WWE stuff just isnt for me I guess."

[8.0] "he has incredible character work no matter what and fully commits but when its bad its bad, when its bland, its fully bland. his wwe run has been 50/50 at times but you can always appreciate him"

[7.0] "Pre 2017, I would've gave him a higher rating but since then, he hasn't been the same he used to be due to his body being broken down because of his NJPW run. Still a fan of him but, he just isn't the same anymore sadly and that's why I gave him a 7 instead of it being higher"

[8.0] "In terms of WWE, no this would be a six. But because of his stuff in NJPW I have to give him an 8. Nakamura was a god in NJPW and to give him anything less than an 8 for that would be lazy. Great wrestler when he chooses to be but right now he is honing it in."

[10.0] "One of my favorite wrestlers. He was icon in New Japan. Shinsuke and Tanahashi ran NJPW when company was in hard times. And they saved NJPW. Shinsukes character and in-ring style was innovative and influenced a lot in the wrestling company. The match with Ibushi at WK was the match of the generation. After he moved to WWE, he became first Asian rumble winner and got a lot of championships. He was fan favorite when he was in NXT and his theme song made him fan favorite. His strong-style didnt work a lot in WWE but he still can make good matches when he faces superstars like Gunther, Seth, AJ, and Sami. And he still have charisma. I hope he become WWE World champion before he left WWE."

[6.0] "I'm not buying him as much as the rest of pro wrestling fans I guess. I know his resume, but his style doesn't click to me. Character from NJPW hasn't grown on me either and I don't like his work in the main roster. His NXT run was good and he thrived there, so why not rejuvenate the guy in NXT?"

[9.0] "Reinvented himself yet again, cutting promos in Japanese and being a dastardly evil heel. The Rollins and Rhodes feuds unfortunately just felt like filler for both of them until their Mania season feuds began but I really wish he'd beaten one of them at least once. He's getting on in age but he can still go, let him have a run at Gunther or Logan Paul's titles. Yes, he's a little more watered down in America and hasn't been able to express his charisma due to creative problems but he's still massively popular and clearly a good company man who will do whatever is needed."

[7.0] "Hes pretty good but like bro why does he lose so much like theyve done a pretty bad job at making him seem like a real strong opponent imo. Hes a pretty damn talented wrestler but I just don't see it get utilized and all of his promos seem like theyre funny by accident for some reason"

[7.0] "Good wrestler, had some good feuds and i feel like he is in his prime right now but i cant forget his 2021 IC title run where he defended his title like once in 3-4 months or something like that, and did nothing. I like his work now, he s a good upper mid carder"

[10.0] "Ein unglaublich guter Wrestler, der leider in der WWE sehr unter seinen Möglichkeiten eingesetzt wird. Er scheint sich aber in den USA wohl zu fühlen, also ist alles gut. Bei ihm bleiben mir besonders sein Royal Rumble Sieg 2018 und das Tables Match von ihm und Cesaro, gegen The New Day bei Extreme Rules 2020 in Erinnerung. Auch sein Last Man Standing Match bei Fastlane 2023 gegen Seth freakin Rollins, welches er leider verloren hat, war Weltklasse."

[10.0] "Shinsuke is great. Obviously in NJPW he is a legend, putting on classic matches. He has the look, obviously the banger theme, and he is brilliant technically. I feel like he should have accomplished more in WWE. His match with Sami Zayn is one of my faves in wwe history EDIT- HHH has made him into a great heel. Starting with the Rollins feud, they have started to let him cut promos in Japanese, and he is more menacing as a result"

[9.0] "while I will admit that Shinsuke is one of my favourite wrestlers of all time, I don't understand why people don't like him either. I originally saw him in WWE and then went to NJPW. While I think that his in ring style only really works with certain wrestlers, It doesn't mean its necessarily bad. I think that those who only saw him in WWE as his watered down self is why he has a few negative reviews. I love Shinsuke because of his overall demeanour, his slightly more realistic style and his Michael Jackson like swagger. Overall I think his perceived lack of charisma comes from those who've only seen him watered down, considering he managed to get over in WWE without every really talking much, that kind of helps. I think that his style may not be for everyone but it sure is for me. He's one of the best in NJPW's history for a reason. He's great period, just not everyones cup of tea, though a lot peoples. He in his prime is a (10.0) but even in his prime he phoned it in a bit. Now in his WWE days he still can go but isn't prime Nakamura"

[10.0] "Seeing Shinsuke Nakamura's run on the main roster in WWE makes me want to lower my score, but then I remind myself of his "King of Strong Style" run in New Japan Pro Wrestling and his run in WWE's NXT Brand and then I remember why he's one of my all time favorites. Shinsuke Nakamura has more charisma in his tiny pinky and most wrestlers have in their entire body, one of the all time best workers no matter if it's working the crowd or in the ring, he had it all in spades. I really hope he leaves WWE and goes back to NJPW or even consider giving AEW a shot, because I feel like WWE won't do anything with him despite still having it in the tank."

[7.0] "Some absolute classics in NJPW that was just before it hit its peak popularity in the west. Ooze charisma. The selfish part of me will also be frustrated he went to the WWE when he still had the tail end of peak. Fair play to him though, he immediately got to WWE, realised he could put in the bare minimum effort required and still get paid very well which is what you can do when the fanbase thinks the bar for a great wrestler is Seth Rollins."

[7.0] "Settled on his laurels upon reaching the main wwe roster, in part because of lackluster booking which greatly diminished his aura. Had an excellent career prior with classic matches against ibushi and others in japan that made him so desired. Has done some interesting character work this year against Rollins."

[9.0] "Been on a bit of a journey with Nakamura. Loved him on NXT, but found his move to the main roster a little uninspired and lacking the magic he showed on NXT. But recently, he's proven himself to be one of the most diabolical heels in the business. His character work is better than ever and has shown itself perfectly in the Rollins feud."

[6.0] "not a fan of his wrestling style at all! I don't know, maybe it is because of how WWE is using him or something else, but his matches sound so boring to me. he's not a bad wrestler at all, but I think he should've gone back to NJPW, and his style doesn't fit with the WWE."

[8.0] "Could be great, but WWE hasn't given him the best to work with since being called up to the main roster. His current character work is some of the best of his career, I'm hoping he can get at least 1 run with the big gold belt before he hangs his boots up, he has certainly earned it."

[8.0] "Loved NJPW Shinsuke where he put on bangers every night with guys like Okada, Tanahashi, Goto, Styles and Ibushi. Once he went to NXT he felt like a big deal. Main roster has been pretty inconsistent for him. He has pretty good character work and phenomenal in ring work, English mic skills are not the strongest."

[9.0] "Nakamura is a superstar, and it seems like only WWE doesn't see that. The guy was a legend in Japan, he has a star power that very few have, just look at his last fight in Japan, he has everything, from the theme to the look. I agree that there are better people than him in the ring, and that he was slightly overrated, but I love the strong style, it adds a lot to the character."

[7.0] "I liked Shinsuke Nakamura's NXT stuff, but I always feel like he underdelivers on the main roster. Got a fun character but he's had some REALLY bad luck on the main roster (being made to job to Mahal on PPV twice, dropping Cena on his head during the Smackdown match, Boogs' injury at Mania 38). The Royal Rumble win was a great moment, but the finishes to all of his non-Mania matches vs. Styles made him look like a jabroni. Insane how WWE could somehow muddy up a Styles vs Nakamura feud into a rivalry about punching each other's balls. And then Nakamura remained a heel for far too long. A lot of Nakamura's problems aren't really his fault, but I think he really phoned it in for a while. His stuff in Japan was incredible, but can't say the same for his WWE run."

[8.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura in his prime was probably among the best wrestlers of the last 20 years. He was a sensation, one of the most charismatic wrestlers and a killer worker that earned his moniker of "King of Strong Style". But after his loses against Jinder Mahal and his underwhelming match against AJ Styles he hasn't been a shadow of what he used to be. From his wrestling, to his mannerisms, his entrance doesn't feel special anymore. He doesn't feel special anymore."

[7.0] "Of course he was an incredible wrestler in japan, but i can't really give him a good rating for his recent years in wwe, it looked good at the start with him winning the rumble it couldve been an insane match against styles but no of course it had to be shit and what did they do after Nakamura lost? NOTHING that was just the end, now he is just a mid carder but now he isnt even that good in ring he got very lazy and clearly isnt that interested in wrestling anymore, sad to see he had a lot of potential to become one of the best wrestlers in wwe"

[10.0] "I went to my first WWE show in early 2016, ended up getting the Network, and watched Takeover Dallas for the fun of it. I'd seen on youtube that some japanese wrestler was coming to the company and was apparently really good. I can confirm that he was - indeed - really good. This man is the reason why I fell in love with the industry and still love it to this day. Endless charisma - which is amplified by the greatest theme and entrance in wrestling - and impeccable matches (His NXT debut at that same Takeover Dallas is literally my favorite match EVER). I can't give this man, who made this "silly fake stuff" real to me, anything other than a... 10/10"

[10.0] "One of New Japan's greatest ever stars. It saddens to me to no end what WWE has done with him. Undeniably, his middling WWE run has put a dent in his legacy, but I would encourage those who haven't seen it to watch his stuff in Japan. A fully unleashed Nak in the dub would be unstoppable."

[7.0] "Can't really give him higher than a 7, mainly due to him taking a mid-card title every other year just to NOT defend it."

[10.0] "Even though he's been watered down in WWE, Shinsuke is one of the best to step in the ring. Feuding with Tanahashi throughout all of it, putting on classic matches with AJ, Ibushi, and Okada while being the most charismatic superstar in wrestling at the time. My favorite match of his is against AJ Styles at Wrestle Kingdom 10"

[9.0] "New Japan Nakamura is one of my favourite wrestlers on the planet. He had insane charisma, he was an excellent in ring performer, had perhaps the best persona in the company; The only guy who was as charismatic and as popular as 2015 Nakamura would be 2017 Naito. WWE Nakamura is a mid tier performer, He never really resonated with the casual fans and WWE's in ring PG style didn't suit him. One of the greatest wrestler in history who is unfortunately marred by his WWE run."

[8.0] "Honestly I can't give Shinsuke higher than an 8. Anyone who becomes complacent at any point in their career for the inferred reason of money and winding down doesn't deserve as much respect as other wrestlers who do their best their whole career and never take the back seat for easy money. Regardless, Shinsuke still deserves massive respect because of how good he is. He's always been charismatic, had a connection with a fans, and been one of the most prolific strikers in pro wrestling. His promos are surprisingly still lacking immensely which is strange since many of my friends who have been in the US for far less time than him have more clear English than he does, I still find it hard to understand him, hell English isn't my native language either. So promo wise, WWE has no reason to put the world championship on a guy with bad promos unless he has a good manager. Other than that, fun to watch in the ring but not a legend by any means, there are many better in puroresu alone, probably the worst of the puroresu 3 musketeers to be honest."

[8.0] "Very dynamic in the ring and bags of charisma, it took Nakamura quite a long time into his career before he put it all together. Always been inconsistent but that seems to be through choice and he generally always turns it up in the big matches. An outstanding performer when he's motivated and has very much moulded his own unique style."

[9.0] "So viel besser als seine Einsetzung. Habe eine kleine Hoffnung auf ein dauerhaftes Japan Comeback irgendwann. Aber schön ihn gegen Muto zu sehen. Bei WWE wird Naka jetzt aktuell kaum eingesetzt und wenn in der Undercard. Schade, denn im Ring ist er mit seinem harten Stil so gut und hat eine Ausstrahlung, vorallem beim Entrance wie ein Mega Star. 9 weil man aktuell nicht mehr geben kann, aber wenn man ihn als Star inszeniert wäre eine 10 möglich."

[9.0] "He used to be soooooooooo good, but has fallen off a cliff since coming to WWE, specifically the main roster."

[10.0] "He has earned this rating on merit throughout his career. But today, truth be told, his handling has been pretty bad, but I always liked him."

[9.0] "Der größte Fan des französischen Fußball-Weltmeisters Kingsley "Cammaaaaaaannn! " ist bei mir ein zweischneidiges Schwert. Die Offensive des King of Strong Style ist sehr viel auf Kicks ausgelegt, was eigentlich gar nicht meinen Geschmack trifft. Aber als ich die großen Auftritte von ihm gesehen hatte, in denen er z.B. als Light-Version von Michael Jackson zum Ring kam, war ich direkt fasziniert. Der Typ hat eine unheimliche Ausstrahlung und Charisma von hier bis nach Kyoto. Auch im Ring verhält er sich so unheimlich gut, dass mir sein eigentlich ungeliebter Stil nur wenig auffällt. Bei New Japan absolut top, bei WWE darf er sein Können leider nicht voll ausspielen. Ein Run mit einem Heavyweight Title muss allemal drin sein. Er bekommt von mir nicht die Höchstnote, aber gute 9 Punkte."

[9.0] "NJPW Nakamura was god-tier. his work in WWE though has been lackluster. he was a star in NXT but mostly a mid-carder on the main roster. he won the Royal Rumble in 2018 but that did nothing for him. the match with AJ Styles was disappointing, considering their previous work. the match should've been a lot better and this should've been Nakamura's moment. he was extremely over with the crowd during this run but Vince didn't capitalize. after this loss, he just gradually fell lower and lower down the card. he had a few IC title runs but they were terrible. now he's just there. they have no idea how to use him. still a legend in Japan nonetheless."

[8.0] "His IC reign is preventing me from scoring him higher. That really ruined his recent memory. Sad tbh, he is a great wrestler."

[7.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is simply unsuitable for WWE. He manages to have good matches, but he sees very lazy, it would be great if he went back to NJPW, at least there he can be something. Here in WWE, it would only work if he fought harder, maybe this is the fault of the creative team, I don't know. But he does make a good name for the mid-card."

[8.0] "I would like to say that "The King of Strong Style" - Shinsuke Nakamura is a perfect wrestler. He is good in the ring, he can keep in touch with the audience and has a ring charisma - each of his actions catches the eye and is part of his character. But unfortunately Shinsuke also has disadvantages, he is very average on the microphone. He's been weak as a champion since he moved to the main roster - I know he was good at NXT, I don't know what it was outside of WWE, but he's bad right now. Especially his reign with the IC title was bad, the titles were rarely defended and his prestige dropped greatly."

[7.0] "Good in ring, carismatic, but his hability fell a lot when he went to the WWE. If you compare the matches between Nakamura x Styles in NJPW and WWE you will see the difference. May not be his fault, but the fact is a fact"

[5.0] "He's good in the ring, but also charismatic. But there is no more. He's not a character that amuses me, he's carried all the WWE titles he's won in a very boring way. I appreciate what he's done in NJPW, but sadly he hasn't had any flavor since coming to the WWE main roster."

"In meinen Augen ist Nakamura einer der besten der Welt. In Japan feierte man ihn einst wie einen Rockstar. Die Offiziellen waren durch und durch zufrieden mit ihm. Was er bereits als Erfolge hat ist beinahe unvergleichlich. Jetzt aber zum traurigen Punkt die WWE nutzt nicht sein Können. Klar jetzt kann man argumentieren das die das bei niemandem machen, aber sei? s drum. Ich bete einfach das er seine Karriere in Japan beendet am besten um dabei einen evtl zukünftigen Megastar Over zu bringen."

"Amazing wrestler, even if he hasn't had much of a chance to show it. Whenever he is given a chance he knocks it out of the park"

[6.0] "I'm sorry but let's be real here, the man doesn't try or seem to care anymore and hasn't for awhile. Nakamura of NJPW was borderline God-tier, a mesmerising combination of skill, toughness and charisma and no one, myself included could deny that or take his prior status away from him. The bitter truth however is if I were rating him purely on his WWE run, 5 AT BEST. Since coming to WWE he has maybe 2 memorable matches: his Rumble win and his NXT match with Sami Zayne... his first match I should add. Since then it's be going through motions, generic no thrills house show affair one after another. The obvious thing to do would be to blame WWE for mishandling him and while even I would make that argument to a degree, when you consider the likes of previous indie darlings Daniel Bryan, Sami Zayne, AJ Styles, Kevin Owens and hell, even Finn Balor and Samoa Joe, they have gone one to have many great and fondly remembered matches or at least moments, even when not booked in a main event spot, especially Styles who joined the same time. Is it a Japanese thing? As much as I could argue at WWE and their handling of her, sorry but Asuka still kills that argument dead. History will more than likely fondly remember the likes of Tajiri more than Shin in the Fed. It brings me no pleasure in writing any of this because hot damn, he was once out of the world, now he's just buried under it."

[3.0] "I don't get the fascination with Nakamura. The guy has an average look, mundane moveset (unless weak and/or contrived looking kicks do it for you), and nothing he does makes up for the fact he can't work the mic (of those limited on the mic due to a language barrier, the best make up for it through strongly conveying their emotion clearly and organically in the ring e.g., Hikaru Shida and Kairi Sane). I'm also still trying to figure out what is meant by his moniker "The King of Strong Style"? His male stripper-like attire? SIlly dance? Spastic looking facials? Mixture of mundane knees and kicks? 'Cause otherwise I'm at a loss."

[8.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura hat eine absolut einzigartige Ausstrahlung und weiß genau was er im Ring tut. Er wäre für mich auch ein glatter 10/10 Kandidat, aber seinen WWE Run kann ich nicht ausblenden. Sicherlich ist er ein Royal Rumble Sieger und hatte eine World Title Fehde, aber die Matches mit AJ Styles blieben den Erwartungen zurück und das Booking danach war einfach nur schade. Wieder einer der es kann, aber von der WWE nicht den Run bekommt, den er verdient hat."

[7.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura has an excellent charisma but his In-Ring has gone down a lot since his signing with WWE. There were some good matches in Nxt but in the main-roster there weren't really any."

[7.0] "it was interesting to watch him in 2016, but now it is absolutely uninteresting to watch him, his reign intercontinental title is absolute squalor. The same gimmick for many years has already gotten so fed up with the order, but for previous merits I will put 7"

[4.0] "It's very funny that just for being Japanese any wrestler gets several points in the final grade, and that's the only explanation for Nakamura to have such a high grade because for me he's the most overrated wrestler in history, he's been in WWE for more than 5 years and you can count on your fingers the great fights he fought"

"Shinsuke is so good. He always interests me with the way he acts in ring and his skills are just phenomena. Great wrestler."

[10.0] "For years, Shinsuke Nakamura was an all-time great caliber wrestler who had amazing matches all the time and was a god of charisma. He was a pillar for New Japan and an absolute frontline star for them. In NXT, he was still really good, had several really good/great matches, and his match with Sami Zayn will always be viewed as one of the best matches in NXT history, if not the best. I know his tenure in the main roster has been less than stellar, but I'm fine giving him a pass for that. The booking isn't his fault, he and he was a 37-year-old with 1, 500 matches in his career by the time he got there. He had tons of tread on his tires, and he still has some good matches here and there despite being in his 40s. Anyone who gives him below a 9 doesn't realize what a legend he was in New Japan and NXT, or doesn't care. He deserves all the props he gets for an amazing career."

[10.0] "NJPW Nakamura is one of the best of all time, too bad WWE ruined him in the eyes of WWE fans. Should go back to NJPW when he gets the chance"

[10.0] "Amazing talent, athletic, smooth, charismatic, everything you could ask for. Unfortunately, like most of these other comments have said, his WWE run has been a total bust. This guy deserves to be pushed to the moon, he may as well be the wrestling world's rock star. You can't help but notice how purely charming he is, his movements and mannerisms make the man."

[9.0] "The total package. Hard hitting rough as nails rock star. Watching him is like Watching Freddie Mercury. You can't not notice him."

[6.0] "In my opinion the wrestler is highly overrated. He is remembered for his unique style, but he doesn't impress me. He also does not speak English well, which is why he has a terrible skill on the microphone. I also dont see much charisma, it just doesn? t catch on, but often grimaces."

[8.0] "Nakamura is the king of strong style, being the best to use it and having a perfect character for his style, but lately he has been lost, if it were not for winning the Intercontinental title, it is not known what would have happened to him. Since he lost all of his main rivals in 2018 and early 2019 he has not made the headline again and his lack of English only makes things worse."

[10.0] "While you wouldn't necessarily know it based on his WWE run, Nakamura truly is one of the all-time greats. Combining excellent matches with unique, hypnotic charisma, peak Nakamura was must-watch wrestling."

[9.0] "His WWE run is obviously very disappointing but before that he was an amazing presence and wrestler. You can still see flashes of it today but he's not in an environment where it will ever amount to much."

[7.0] "Auch wenn ich NJPW nicht wirklich verfolgt habe, wurden seine Top-Matches natürlich angeschaut. Selbstverständlich macht er das was er da tut einzigartig. Aber in die Extase, der 95% der Wrestling-Fans verfallen sind, hat es mich nicht verschlagen und seitdem er bei WWE aktiv ist, fühle ich mich stark bestätigt. Mich reizt sein Stil einfach nicht. Natürlich habe ich schon viele gute Matches von ihm gesehen und mit seiner bizarren charismatischen Art ist er wahrlich ein Widererkennungsmerkmal. Aber im Gesamtpaket ist er mir persönlich nicht spektakulär genug. Ich schaue ihn mir dennoch gerne an und bin mal gespannt, wie seine erste richtige Storyline seit langem verläuft. Bisher fand ich das wirklich ganz interessant"

[10.0] "His WWE run is sad, but that's not on him, and nothing can take away from the greatness he achieved in New Japan. When he found his character he became one of the best in the world."

[9.0] "He's a legend in Japan. Good run in NXT, and unfortunately dissapointing in WWE. Too many knee strikes."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is such a good wrestler. He has both an awesome character and his gimmick makes wrestling feel cool. He electrifies any audience he is in and is one of my favorite babyfaces of all time. It is a crime that he hasn? t won a world title in WWE."

[9.0] "It's genuinely nice to see that even though he hasn't had much to really do for almost 5 years, fans still give Nakamura a lot of love. From around say 2013 to 2017, he was one of my favorite performers and one of the key guys who got me into New Japan. If you want to get into The King of Strong Style, check out his matches against Kota Ibushi at WK 9, AJ Styles at WK 10, and Sami Zayn at Takeover: Dallas."

[10.0] "While his WWE run may not have lived up to expectations, Shinsuke Nakamura remains one of the greatest wrestlers in recent history. Incredible in ring skills, with a unique charisma that translates in any language, and top level performer. Starting as a legitimately skilled strong style wrestler, he developed a rockstar like persona and almost unmatched charisma, becoming one of the most beloved performers since the start of the last decade. The days of frequent classic matches may be over, but his legacy will remain as one of the greats."

[10.0] "The 2016-2017 Shinsuke was my favorite superstar of all-time. He absolutely tore the house down against Sami Zayn, Samoa Joe, and Finn Balor in NXT. He had a character that connected with the fans. He also had one of the best theme songs and hyped everybody up when you hear the intro to it. He is a man who is so easy to love. I like his Smackdown face run and wanted a big push for him. The Jinder feud kind of ruined some of him. Everybody knew he was more than capable of beating Mahal and it was sad to see him lose. I still had hope for his redemption though. I was aesthetic when Shinsuke won the rumble. It was the push he needed and the push everybody wanted. That is until he turned heel. It was interesting at first but then turned sad. For 2 years, people wished babyface Nakamura would return. After his U. S. title reign ended I officially lost hope in Nakamura. WWE ruined a great superstar with loads of charisma and great in-ring talent. Nakamura had a decent I. C. title reign but I was sad to see it end. After the feud with Strowman, I thought he would be released because it looked like they had no plan for him. Then he won the Smackdown tag titles with Cesaro at Extreme Rules. I kinda liked the duo together but it was still a pretty random pairing. When they lost the belts, I waited to see if Nakamura would turn on Cesarobut it never happened and I saw no direction. Nakamura finally turned Face again and brought back his former theme song. I am happy to see WWE try and fix Nakamura up and he can finally work as The King of Strong Style again. I am ready to see what WWE has in store for the rest of Nakamura's career. Maybe a World Title reign. Who knows? He is and will always be a Japanese Wrestling legend. I see him returning to Japan after WWE for a short time but you can only pray."

[10.0] "Assets: Has an awesome image and boundless charisma (and his theme music has been solid in any promotion where he's worked. ) Is synonymous with the phrase "Intercontinental Champion. " Is revered by fans and contemporaries alike due to his exceptional in-ring abilities. - - - Flaws: Is not as decorated as the "main" champion despite having all the tools to be a main eventer. Can be something of an enigma as a performer, which can lead to off nights. May never demonstrate the top level promo skills desired by North American promoters. - - - Career Potential: Any major league wrestling promotion's Number 2 wrestler."

[10.0] "That man is a true living legend. In NJPW, he was a God, in NXT, he was a God but his talent was wasted in WWE's main roster after WM 34. Hopefully, he showed before he was a tremendous performer and that man is maybe one of the best ever to be in a wrestling ring. If I could, I would give him more than a 10."

[8.0] "an 8 only for his time wwe so far (excluding nxt), nakamura in njpw though was a whole different beast. his matches with tanahashi and okada were incredible. leading chaos as a villainous stable was amazing. so 10/10 for his time in new japan. but in wwe (again excluding nxt, only his main roster stuff) he wasn't the same king of strong style, he never won a world title which still shocks me to this day. he also had some horrible matches with wrestlers such as: aj styes, randy orton and kevin owens. while prior in njpw and roh his matches were good, i don't understand how Vince McMahon managed to ruin a man this bad... hey at least he's getting some sort of push now, not a good one but at least it's something!"

[8.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura's career ended when he left NJPW in such chaotic fashion back in 2016. Ever since he's effectively been in semi-retirement at the WWE, and that's how a different set of fans came to know him. In a way reminds me of Harley Race: he was pretty much a legend, a tough guy well known for his charisma, outstanding in-ring and character work who came to the WWE tempted by the juicy combination of a large paycheck and a lighter working schedule. Nakamura has avoided the ignominy which befell Harley Race, but more than one WWE fan has openly questioned why the WWE bothered hiring him since he doesn't add anything to the shows these days, and they are right to complain. This is not the same guy who battled almost to the death with Kota Ibushi, but damn he was good back then."

[10.0] "NJPW Legend. WWE fail. King of Strong Style. Legend of Puroresu. WWE need to be shamed for him. NAKA IS THE TOP."

[9.0] "Unfortunate he didn't win the WWE Championship when they could've put it on him two times. His NJPW was fantastic. Him and Tanahashi had to do a lot of heavy lifting in a time where NJPW didn't have the likes of Okada and Bullet Club."

[6.0] "I can't believe I am giving Shinsuke Nakamura this low rating but WWE killed his career & he didn't help either."

[10.0] "Ce mec vie le catch mange catch dors catch et ce qui est dur c est que il est pas régulier juste imaginer qu il nous sorte des match 5 étoile tout le temps ce serais peut être le meilleur catcheur japonais au monde. Sa musique d entrée wwe magnifique !"

[10.0] "Now I don't want to criticize WWE too much, but I don't know how they watered Shinsuke Nakamura down on the main roster. The man has the most infectious aura i've ever seen and he doesn't even have to speak. His matches were so interesting and different with his MMA style, I really wish he could show that off more"

[8.0] "Nakamura's too inconsistent to place any higher. A big problem with his workrate is that he CAN go sometimes, but sometimes doesn't do anything but the bare minimum in his matches. In a way, he's kinda like the modern day Genichiro Tenryu in that sense that some of his matches are golden, some just aren't, which is frustrating considering his selling and ring psychology can be masterful when he's motivated. He's not the guy who will go out and do as much as he can if he can, and while that mindset is good for preservation, it's bad when trying to deliver in a major match and not doing so, and this has been something that's been a problem before he was in the WWE, through it doesn't help that WWE's booking has taken him from over as hell main eventer to lower mid card act that's lucky to win one of the minor titles. I can't blame the guy for working 50% of the effort while getting paid likely 3 to 4 times as much as he was getting in NJPW. A great wrestler at his peak, Nakamura struggled to get over in NJPW due to being pushed too fast to the top: he's basically their Roman Reigns, except he eventually reinvented himself to the point that he was easily in the top three wrestlers over there. This hasn't worked in WWE, likely due to their creative restrictions, and that's his glass ceiling: how can you be the "King of Strong-Style" if you can't even be stiff? It's hard to see Nakamura getting anywhere else at the moment despite his natural talent both in and out of the ring."

[9.0] "Nakamura didn't make a big impact since his arrival in WWE, I think we all agree that his career comes down exclusively to his time at NJPW, where he was an absolute megastar and a monster of charisma. It's sad that he became such a lazy, he could have easily been World Champion, but, instead, the few reigns he had were nowhere near memorable. Even if he still has a few years left in this business, I think his career is pretty much over at this point and he will mostly be remembered for his amazing work at NJPW."

[7.0] "It's a shame he left New Japan. He isn't really doing anything in WWE except being a part of a low rate stable with a former Luchador and a Swiss man. Ever since he left New Japan, he did some really good stuff in NXT, but then left to join the main roster and decline. If he was still in Japan, my rating would be a 9, but for his popularity decrease in WWE, I have to give him a 7."

[10.0] "Excellent wrestler. Has a great mindset in the ring and performs well in the ring. One of the best modern day Japaneses wrestlers."

[10.0] "First of all. Happy Birthday to King Of The Strong Style! So why Shinsuke deserves to have a 10 points? Because he is a modern Jesus i can say! His look, his ring skill, his magnificent charisma- all of this saying that he is a world level top star"

[9.0] "King of Charisma. Shinsuke has an captivating presense unlike any other japanese talent in WWE history. His moveset is fitting and his 2018 heel run was one of the best parts of WWE for months."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura. Zwischen 2013 und 2016 einer der fünf besten Wrestler dieses Planeten, unzählige Klassiker bei NJPW, viele Matches von unglaublicher Wichtigkeit für das Image bzw. den Fortschritt der Liga (in den Westen), beispielsweise der Krieg gegen Ibushi bei Wrestle Kingdom 9, damals für viele DER Grund mit NJPW anzufangen, oder natürlich das große Dream Match gegen AJ Styles ein Jahr später zum Abschied beider Männer aus Japan. Was danach für Nakamura folgte war jedoch leider, salopp gesagt, die Rente: Er ging zur WWE, hatte einen letzten Klassiker gegen Sami Zayn in seinem allerersten Match und stellte danach das "Arbeiten" ein, er war nur mehr einfach da, tat das Minimum und kassierte sein Geld dafür. Dementsprechend kann und werde ich lediglich die NJPW-Zeit von Nakamura bewerten und dafür verdient er sich definitiv die Höchstnote, er wird trotz allem als einer der besten und wichtigsten japanischen Wrestler der Neuzeit in die Geschichte des Puroresu eingehen."

[7.0] "The comment immediately below hits the nail on the head, the WWE style doesn't suit Nakamura at all. Watching his matches in Japan he works very stiffly, WWE just won't allow it's main-event level talent to be beaten up. As a result Nakamura has had very few good matches on WWE TV. The best thing about his WWE main roster run has been his music and they even took that away from him. In a way Sammy Zayn is right about him being underused and not appreciated. We all know Japanese stars, no matter how big, struggle to connect with the fans in the arena and this is definitely holding him back. At the moment his work isn't very interesting at all."

[9.0] "He can be amazing in the ring, but ofter either he doesn't want to, or WWE's style limits him a lot. He has the ability to cut a good promo, but WWE don't allow him. His NJPW work is pretty amazing though, and it redeems most of what he did after it."

[9.0] "Another great talent with cool movements and gimmick being wasted by WWE. He could be a great world champion."

[8.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is one of the most popular symbol for Strong-style wrestling. At a time when I hardly followed any Japanese wrestling he was still a name alongside Thunder for me, which just tells you about his big popularity. During his time in New Japan, especially during the heights of CHAOS, he was an ace. Amazing personality development as well. Nakamura was the only guy who seemed even more related to coolness than Tanahashi. His time in NXT wasn't really impressive, but he still had some decent matches. While people are disappointed by his main-roster run in the WWE, I was surprised. I generally don't expect too much of wrestlers with language-barrier in the WWE. It's difficult for both sides. However since his heel turn he managed to kill the barrier for a period. Though the ultimate feud against Styles was disappointing, he used to be the most entertaining guy for weeks. In opposite, it was his wrestling in the main-shows that disappointed me. I'm still not sure what or who the cause is, but for a very long time in his matches he was lying down 70% of the match with hardly any offense of the opponents, while only towards the end his selling seemed reasonable. His offense was really limited to some of his shiny moves. Now at least his matches get more interesting and with his voice Sami Zayn I'm looking forward for what he achieves in his last years."

[8.0] "Was ist bitte mit Shinsuke Nakamura passiert? Bei New Japan mein absoluter Favorite und locker in der Top 3 Weltweit. Heute ist davon leider nichts mehr übrig. Man dachte sich bei seinem WWE Wechsel, dass wenn es ein Asiate schaffen wird dann er. Wie kann er bitte versaut werden, mit so viel Charisma und so gutem In Ring Work? Sein NXT Run zum Start war sehr gut. Außer dem Zayn Match zwar kein Match auf New Japan Niveau, aber dass hatte ich auch nicht erwartet ( Sehr gute Matches waren dennoch dabei). Der Callup war dann leider der Anfang vom Ende. Es folgte nach einer lahmen Fehde gegen Ziggler und Corbin die lang erwartete Fehde gegen AJ Styles um den WORLD TITLE bei WRESTLEMANIA! Die Matches in der Fehde waren jedoch allesamt enttäuschend und kamen nicht im entferntesten an ihr letztes Match bei Wrestle Kingdom ran. Danach folgte eigentlich bis heute eine absolute durststrecke von Nakamura, bei welcher er teilweise nicht einmal für die TV Shows gebooked wird und wenn er da ist, ist er einfach irgendein Dude der Wacky tanzt. Keine Standout Matches, keine Riesen Crowd Reaktionen und vor Allem wirkt er nicht mehr Special. Der KING of Strongstyle ist nurnoch ein solider WWE Midcard Wrestler. Für die Vor-WWE Zeit gibt es glatte 10 Punkte. Für den WWE Run vielleicht eine 7...."

[8.0] "Ever since he joined the main roster it seems Shinsuke just doesn't care anymore. So I can't give him the 10 he otherwise would have gotten."

[5.0] "Ich weiß nicht, aber ich bin alles andere als ein Nakamura-Fan. Wenn ich die letzten Jahre - seitdem er in der WWE ist, Revue passieren lasse, fällt mir nicht ein einziges Match ein, wo er wirklich abgeliefert hat bzw. welches mir im Gedächtnis geblieben ist. Das Einzige was ich mit ihm verbinde ist sein ständiges Rumgezappel, was nicht charismatisch wirkt, sondern womit er sich - meiner Meinung nach, eher zum Affen macht."

[9.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura largely changed the entire scope of NJPW. He brought a new charisma to that promotion that had never been seen from a home grown talent before. His stardom transcended the Japanese scene & he became wildly loved in the states at a time before NJPW was as viewed in the west. His glory days are behind him & his WWE run has essentially been an epilogue to the Shinsuke story."

[7.0] "Have always felt that Nakamura was the weak link of the "new Three Musketeers" with him, Shibata, and Tanahashi. He's had a few classics but nowhere near the caliber of those other two. Regardless, I still do highly respect his ability as a professional wrestler and his contribution to bringing New Japan to new heights."

[9.0] "He doesn't seem to want to really wrestle anymore, he just wants to surf and that's fine he earned that, but I can understand why some WWE fans who never watched him elsewhere find him overrated. He always was a little lazy at times but he just let himself go even more in WWE. However, I will never forget his main piece of work, I can't forget everything he did in NJPW. I can't forget who he really is: an insanely charismatic athlete who was great at both striking and grappling. A great rival for Tanahashi, awesome founder and leader of CHAOS, and the most iconic IWGP Intercontinental Champion. Now he wrestles only for money, it's like he is in retirement, but it's still unfair to judge him only on what he does in WWE wich is not an environment for japanese wrestlers. This guy is a legend for his work in NJPW."

[7.0] "Guter Worker in der WWE, seine Genialität aus der Japan-Zeit kenn ich nur von Erzählungen und kann ich somit nicht bewerten"

"It's very hard to rate Nakamura. If only you look at his carreer in Japan, he could seriously be a 10, or at the very least a 9. An incredible charisma, a very solid worker with a distinct style, a long story of great matches, he held a lot of important championships and elevated them most of time (especially the IWGP Intercontinental Title, which he managed to get on the main event of a Tokyo Dome show over an IWGP Heavyweight Title match at Wrestle Kingdom 8, which is really impressive). However, his time in the US is very tough to rate... Ever since he's in the WWE main roster, he's just not trying anymore. He's content with his low-to-midcarder status even if he could be one of the top 5 faces of the compagny easily. He's taking the garanteed money and he is enjoying his days off on the beaches of Florida, and who can blame him... He sacrificed his body wrestling in NJPW, and now he's basically enjoying his "retirement plan". I can understand that, wrestling is hard and it really takes a toll on your life. but I can't give him a fair rate because of that."

[8.0] "When Shinsuke is motivated he's a phenomenal hard-hitting wrestler. When he isn't motivated it's incredibly obvious and hurts his matches. His charisma is otherworldly. All in all a strong wrestler"

[9.0] "He's on a level that few wrestlers are on today. He's without a doubt worthy of a 9. I just hope to god WWE doesn't bury him when he's called up. Edit: Shinsuke is one of the all time great Japanese wrestlers, but as of today I would rate him at an 8 but that? s mainly because of how WWE handled him."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is one of my favorite wrestlers. His long run in NJPW is almost perfect, he grew up into a charismatic wrestler with good moves. His strongest performances in WWE are in NXT, not so much in the main roster so far except for a few matches. I really liked his feuds with Samoa Joe and AJ Styles and I think he is one of the greatest wrestlers in the world. My favorite match from him is Nakamura vs AJ Styles at WrestleKingdom 10."

[8.0] "Nakamura is truly great, a main event talent for sure, but WWE doesn't take his seriously and the fact that he's okay with this definitely drop him down. Nakamura can put on 5 star matches, and hes a violent wrestler with electric charisma, but lately his style has been re formed for the PG era and he's going the way of Hideo Itami which is a shame. He needs to move back to Tokyo and fight Tanahashi before they get too old."

[5.0] "This guy has to be the most overhyped, mediocre wrestler of today. I have never been able to fully get into any of his one on one matches. At least in WWE, he seems to be phoning in all of his matches. His promos can be sort of funny."

[7.0] "He's capable of putting on MOTY level matches when he's motivated to, however those occasions are very rare, or in the case of his WWE run, outside of his debut match, never. I've never been the biggest fan of his mannerisms, but it at least makes him unique and stand out, which is something very few on the current WWE roster do."

[0.0] "Matches are unwatchable. He was marginally acceptable as a face and a total failure as a heal. His movements in the ring look odd and uncoordinated. Facial expressions are laughable. Any skills are overlooked since his unorthodox style is so difficult to watch. A lot of fans love him and his style, I find his matches a waste of air time."

[6.0] "Man, his WWE run has been meh so far. I understand that he joined WWE and didn't want to do much, but yeah, it is still very underwhelming for me. He is so bland and forgettable. Sometimes I even forgot him and his US title run. He didn't put much effort in his matches. He just relied on charisma and crowd reaction and barely tried. Since his debut match with Sami Zayn, pretty much everything he has done feels the same. You can blame his booking to same extent but even when he got WWE title matches, yet he still failed to do something exciting. And even in NJPW, he didn't always 100% bust his ass in the ring. So I downrate him some points."

[5.0] "The most OVERRATED Wrestler ever. Shinsuke Nakamura has had absolutely zero good matches on the main roster since joining Smackdown Live in April 2017. He needs to improve his mic skills and have some character charisma. He is very BLAND."

[8.0] "I've never been a big fan of Nakamura since his days in New Japan, but he's a good wrestler... when he wants to. I think he's a man from a single company because his style does not fit well with many rivals outside New Japan's strong style and that's his fault, not the evil WWE."

[9.0] "The WWE doesn't exist, I like to think that Shinsuke's career ended in 2016 and since then he's earning some big money in the USA showing a little bit of what he can do. The fact that he's the most successful Japanese in America with 2 NXT Titles, a Royal Rumble and a US Championship is very weird, he won a lot but he rarely looked like a big deal and even his clean wins on Cena and Orton weren't treated as such, then after WM they totally dropped the ball on him, like if Vince said ok we have the arab deals, screw Japan, and depushed him and Asuka. However, before leaving NJPW he was in my top 5 of favorite wrestlers in the world and we shouldn't forget who in the hell Shinsuke Nakamura is, aka a f*cking rocking badass."

[8.0] "Needs to go back to Japan ASAP in my opinion. He's become stale in WWE and his career is not moving forward while he's still under Vince's control."

[6.0] "Since joining Smackdown, Shinsuke's interest in the ring seems to be dwindling greatly. The charisma is still there but he's becoming more and lazy in his mannerisms. The United States Championship does nothing for him either and, in total, it's a far cry from everything else the man has accomplished."

[8.0] "Shinsuke's WWE run has been a disappointment, and he deserves his share of the blame because it's been obvious since day one that he's just unable or unwilling to work above a certain level. His 8 rating is based almost entirely on his time in New Japan."

[8.0] "Sehr charismatisch und in Japan eine Legende. Er heißt nicht umsonst King of Strong Style, was er in der WWE leider aber nur bedingt zeigen kann. Ich finde die WWE könnte ihm mehr Freiheiten lassen und ich hoffe sehr auf sein Match mit Aj Styles bei WM 34."

[8.0] "While i'm not really a fan of what he's done since joining the main roster, you can't deny that he's excellent when in the right environment. His track-record is full of excellent matches such as the ones against AJ Styles, Sami Zayn and Kota Ibushi. It just feels as though he's holding back in the ring right now. His heel turn, though initially cool quickly grew tiresome due to the repetitive use of low blows. I've seen what Nakamura is capable of and I hope he adjusts and can replicate his past excellence."

[10.0] "In NJPW Nakamura was an elite level worker on the level of Styles and Tanahashi and the guy just had charisma oozing out of every pore of his body. Now I get why people who have only seen his WWE work thinks he sucks, in the biggest promotion in the world Nakamura has almost treated it as a low effort retirement job as he sleepwalks through matches and sticks to doing only his signature spots. But since we are suppose to rate wrestlers looking at their career as a whole then for his time in Japan he still gets the 10/10 for me."

[7.0] "Ich muss dazu sagen das ich hier den WWE Nakamura bewerte. Ich mag seinen Style nicht so sehr. Teilweise langsam. Und sein Move Set wird in der WWE eingeschränkt. Es kann natürlich sein das ich ihn eigentlich besser einschätze aber in der WWE hatte er bisher noch kein Match was mir im Kopf stecken geblieben ist"

[7.0] "Nakamura has had a lot of great matches in Japan but ever since coming to WWE he's been quite underwhelming to me. Even back when he worked in Japan, he only put on great performances for big matches. Still a good worker obviously, but not as great as he used to be."

[5.0] "His top end stuff in njpw was amazing as he knew when to turn it on but he still phoned it in way more than he should have. His series with Goto, many matches against Tanahashi and most of his IC title defences not on big shows were him coasting on his otherworldly charisma. It's one of the reasons many folks weren't too excited for his wwe run as it's been mostly that. Booking him like they did against Jinder, Corbin and Ziggler didn't help him but his lackluster performances didn't help either. Yeah he's been better as a heel but it's too late for him. I still like him but he's finally been exposed to a larger audience for what many in the past criticized him for."

[5.0] "Nakamura is one of the more difficult wrestlers to write a comment for. It has been mentioned by others many times, although worded in different ways: while he can exceed expectations in some matches, he falls below them in most others. His match with Ibushi at WK9 was a five-star classic for me, but he has yet to come close to that with his years in WWE (the closest being his match with Sami Zayn, and that was his debut match! ). He's getting older, and he sought to move away from NJPW because he felt he had accomplished everything, and no longer wanted the pressure to put on epics in the ring anymore. Oh, and he wanted money too, of course. That's nice, but I don't like it. Each time there has been a moment to prove what he can do, he has failed. With WWE wrestlers, one could blame Vince, the road agents, the writers, or a wrestlers' opponents on why they're not working, but in this case I blame everyone, including Nakamura. There 'was' so much hype surrounding him, and now I couldn't care less. The whole low-blow saga with Styles was irredeemable trash and exemplifies everything that's wrong with WWE. It was a slap to the face for the fans for expecting a dream match they never got, it was WWE proving how much they hate their fans, and it was (probably) Vince with his childish humor thinking it was the funniest thing in the world that they kept hurting each other's wee-wees. The fans deserve better. So for me to rate Nakamura, I would have to give him an 8/10 for his time in NJPW, and his current run in WWE a 2/10 for failing in such spectacular fashion to impress, leading to a median rating of 5/10."

[10.0] "[Ursprgl. Bewertung:]"He's eleven! " - NXT-Crowd während einem Match gegen "The Perfect Ten" Tye Dillinger. Das sagt eigtl. alles aus was man zu Shinsuke Nakamura sagen kann. Egal welche Skala man anlegt für ihn müsste man sie um mindestens einen Punkt erhöhen. Da das hier nicht möglich ist 10/10! [Update 11. 05. 2017] Shinsuke Nakamura hat leider schon bei NXT nach dem großartigen Match gegen Sami Zayn immer wieder abgebaut. Er war immer noch auf hohem Niveau, aber irgendwie fehlte was. Seine zwei Titelruns waren in meinen Augen Bullshit. Hier wurde der Moment des "Zum zweimaligen NXT Champion"-Werden einer Hometown-Houseshow geopfert. Bezeichnend auch, dass Shinsuke Nakamura der einzige NXT Champion ist, der sich keine einzige Titelverteidigung auf die Fahne schreiben kann. Zudem fand ich persönlich das Selling seines Beins absolut schwachsinnig in beiden Matches gegen Roode. Im Main Roster geht er im Moment in meinen Augen ziemlich unter. Das ganze "The Artist known as"-Gedöns empfinde ich zumindest als nervig und den Hype um Zayn vs. Nakamura neu zu erschaffen gelingt auch nicht. Bei NXT war Shinsuke bekannt als er angekündigt wurde und man sah ihn davor auch nicht, ehe er dann kam. Die Neugier war da und man lieferte. Im Main Roster kommt Shinsuke Nakamura in jeder Episode seit dem Call Up vor und macht doch nichts relevantes. Warum man ihm auf den Weg zwischen WM33 bis Backlash nicht zumindest ein Match gegeben hat verstehe ich einfach nicht. Für den "Downfall" bei NXT und seinen verhaltenen Start bei SmackDown ziehe ich 2 Punkte ab. Damit sind wir bei 9. [UPDATE: 26. 06. 2018]: Ich geb wieder 10! Der Heel-Turn war, auch wenn er sich nicht in Gold auszahlte (WWE Championship Fehde) dennoch Gold wert über die "Eier-Fixierung" sehe ich mal großzügig hinweg..."

[9.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura ist der Wrestler mit den meisten Charisma auf der ganzen Welt. Das Gimmick wo er "spielt" ist so perfekt und glaubwürdig, dass man Ihn trotz übertriebenen Gestiken ernst nehmen muss. Seine InRing Fähigkeiten sind auch überragend, was er eindrucksvoll in seinem ersten Match gegen Sami Zayn bewiesen hat. Der King of Strong Style versteht es mit dem Publikum zu interagieren wie kein anderer. Das einzige Probleme ist seine Englische Aussprache, die er aber mit seiner Gesichtsmimik gut ausgleichen kann. Bin gespannt wie die WWE mit diesen japanischen Superstar im Main Roster umgehen wird, bin aber zuversichtlich das er auch hier überzeugen wird und vielleicht der erste offizielle japanische WWE Champion wird."

[9.0] "Nakamura ist die Heel Rolle auf dem Leib geschneidert. Man auch wie er mit Spaß diese Rolle spielt. Dieser Mann hat tonnenweise Charisma, darüber brauchen wir nicht zu Reden. Was mich stört, dass er zu wenig zeigt oder nicht mehr zeigen darf. Deswegen kriegt er erstmal nur die 9"

[7.0] "In 2018, Nakamura seems to have so much to offer as his career potentially winds down. Unfortunately, I'm often left wondering if there really is more, or I'm buying into the hype and promise. After a truly comprehensive match at Mania 34, Nakamura's time on Smackdown is yet to (low) blow me away."

[10.0] "His run as The King Of Strong Style and leader of CHAOS was fantastic, especially 2012-2016. Continued that success in NXT with some fantastic matches with Roode, Joe, Balor, Aries, and his sensational debut against Sami Zayn. Seems to have lost his luster a bit on the main roster but I have no doubt that he can get back to greatness."

[7.0] "I love this guy. Nakamura do not have to make more effort to be loved more because Nakamura already is a man on the top. He's doing the best he can. Even in a dumpster like WWE, he can keep his presence in shape, but i think that now people are getting less interested in him. This is not his fault. The whole thing is relevant to the company he works for. The best opponent to face Nakamura was AJ. I think that match was a big time failure. People wanted to see this match but the result was a disaster because they wrestled in other company and to diffrent crowd. They already gave their best match at WK10. It would be different if they were wrestled in Japan not in the America again. Of course there is a big difference between NJPW and WWE. WWE will never be like NJPW. You can put someone on midcard or maincard never makes any difference. Serious matches can not be done in places where there are no convincing and logical stories."

[6.0] "Nach 2 Jahren WWE werde ich ihn nun auch mal bewerten. Aber nur seine WWE Zeit, da ich nicht jeden Wrestler vom Anfang bis Ende verfolge. Gleich vorneweg: Das beste Match war auch gleich sein erstes gegen Zayn. Das ist schon mal bezeichnet. Trotzdem ist er auch charismatisch mit typischer Japaner Mimik und auch sein Theme ist gut. Leider wars das auch schon. Am Mic, was bei WWE ja wichtig, ziemlich schwach. Und auch seine Fehden bzw. Matches mit Roode, Ziggler, Mahal & Styles z. B. empfand ich eher als Totalausfall (Mahal) bis Durchschnittskost (Roode). Und im Ring(US Mainstream Bereich) kann er, aus meiner Sicht, einen Styles nicht das Wasser reichen. Vlt. bringt sein Heel Turn etwas."

[8.0] "Ein ikonischer Entrance Theme, ein recht einzigartiger, authentischer Kampfstil und ein gewisses Charisma mit Starappeal, das zeichnet den guten Shinsuke aus. Von seiner Japanzeit habe ich nicht allzu viel gesehen, weiß aber das er sich dort zu recht seine Meriten gesammelt hat. Bei WWE hat er mich bislang leider nicht zu 100% überzeugt. Das mag auch an dem nicht optimalen Booking liegen, aber auch Shinsukes eigene Leistungen haben mich nicht groß vom Hocker gehauen. Letzter Beweis dafür war das Wrestlemaniamatch gegen Styles. Ich hoffe sein jüngster Heelturn kann ihm mehr Profiltiefe verleihen und mich nachhaltig von ihm überzeugen. Wenn die WWE ihn dann auch etwas gescheiter einsetzt bin ich recht zuverlässig, denn wie oben beschrieben hat ein Nakamura alle Qualitäten die es braucht um over zu kommen, auch als Japaner in Amerika. Vorerst aber "nur" 8 Punkte für den King of Strong Style."

[7.0] "Abgesehen von seinem Debüt gegen Sami Zayn, das sicher zu den Top 5 Matches des entsprechenden Jahres gehörte, überzeugt mich Shinsuke Nakamura leider nicht wirklich bei der WWE. Dass er Charisma hat ist unbestritten, technisch ist auch wenig an auszusetzen, allerdings wirkt er im WWE-Ring regelmäßig unmotiviert und lustlos. Ich hoffe, er findet irgendwann wieder vollständig in die Bahn und überzeugt uns wieder so sehr, wie er es in Japan getan hat."

[6.0] "Two years in WWE and his best match is still his debut match, almost every other performance has been pretty underwhelming. I use to go with the typical reasoning that he lacks motivation but that may not be the case. It might just be that Shinsuke Nakmura while a capable wrestler is extremely inconsistent and not that great overall."

[3.0] "In WWE, he is not who he used to be. With each transition, became more boring times in two. In NXT everything was not so bad, but on SmackDown this lazy, uninteresting log. Place him in the mid card and nothing more. It is unlikely that WWE will be able to come up with something, and Nakamura, constantly showing boring matches, will only show their discontent, like his fans."

[7.0] "After WM it is clear to the blindest of us that he is a level or 2 levels below other japanese wrestlers like Naito, Okada or Minore Suzuki. Charismatic charm to no end earn him a higher than average rating."

[7.0] "Very hit and miss. His work can be very lethargic and lazy when unmotivated and he can jut have a match where he is going through the motions. But when he is highly motivated, he can be an excellent wrestler and can have outstanding matches. His mannerisms at times are wonderful to see but in WWE, he seems to over do it in a way to compensate for his lack of english which is a shame and gives off a bad impression on people and new fans who've not seen him before. In New Japan, he was highly charismatic and he could make you pop before even doing a move. Excellent wrestler, highly charismatic but has motivation problems and sometimes over does it."

[7.0] "Often lazy in the ring, especially with other established performers. Watch him vs Bobby Roode in NXT if you need a good nap."

[9.0] "Shinsuke is the King of strong-style for good reason. He has put on numerous classic matches over the years in both Japan and NXT. Although it hasn't quite translated to main roster WWE, he has too much natural talent and charisma for that to last. Great on the mic even with a language barrier."

[9.0] "The King of strong style was a King while in Japan, without any doubt. And he remained a king even in NXT. But since he is in WWE's main roster, he has been nothing but a pawn, and his in ring work is suffering from that. His stiff offense, his sheer technique, has become quite weak. And his victory of the Royal Rumble match comes out of nowhere. I still hope the best for him, but he's not the king anymore."

[8.0] "Über Nakamura kann man sagen was man will aber definitiv muss man zugeben, dass er einen einzigartigen Stil in allen Bereichen hat. Im Ring gibt es kaum einen (vor allem im westlichen Bereich) der so wrestlet, jedoch ist das für mich dadurch noch kein technisch hervorragendes Wrestling. Im Vergleich mit den großen Technikern, ist Nakamura im Ring zwar gut aber nicht auf einem Niveau. Allerdings kann er trotzdem unglaubliche Matchstories erzählen. Charismatisch ist er auch. Ich finde es schwer ihn am Mic zu bewerten, denn als Japaner hat er klar einen Nachteil in den USA und in Japan wird auf Micwork ohnehin nicht viel Wert gelegt, was wiedereinmal zeigt, dass solche Bewertungsmaßstäbe (Technik, Micwork, Charisma, Schauspiel etc. ) seine Grenzen spätestens bei den Grenzen zwischen zwei Ländern überschreitet. Alles in allem ist er gut, aber für mich kein Top Mann. In allen Belangen gibt es weitaus Bessere und auch aus dem japanischen Raum gibt es definitiv stärkere Wrestler. Dennoch ein sehr guter. 8/10."

[9.0] "All that is keeping him from a 10 is his style not clicking with some of the WWE roster. In NJPW he was one of their biggest and brightest stars, who made the IWGP Intercontinental belt mean something. In WWE he has had good matches in NXT but still hasn't had that "classic" match on the main roster, which is a shame because he is definitely one of the top 5 most talented guys on the roster."

[10.0] "Alleine der Entrance ist 10 Punkte wert. Ansonsten ist S. Nakamura ein Charakter, den es so kein zweites Mal gibt. Leider wird er bei der WWE nicht vernünftig gebooked, aber wir wissen alle zu was dieser Mann im Stande ist. Er hat schon so viele legendäre Kämpfe hinter sich, und sein Kampf bei NXT gegen S. Zayn war auch göttlich. Ich würde ihn gerne mit kreativer In-Ring Freiheit gegen AJ Styles, Finn Balor, Samoa Joe oder Kevin Owens sehen. Das einzige was er braucht ist jemanden, der im Ring das Tempo und Niveau mitgehen kann. Ansonsten wirkt er befremdlich und zu stiff für die WWE (ich denke an die Kämpfe gegen B. Roode). Ein richtiger Knaller wäre wohl auch die Paarung Nakamura gegen A. Black."

[9.0] "Eigentlich ja ein klasse Wrestler. Das steht außer Frage! In-Ring-technisch großartig, Charisma ohne Ende vorhanden. Seine Arbeit in NJPW ist auch Extraklasse. Er hat schließlich diverse Klassiker mit Tanahashi, Ibushi, Okada und auch AJ Styles zu verzeichnen. In der WWE aber hat es nicht ganz Klick gemacht. Versteht mich nicht falsch sein bisherige NXT-Run ist schon gut und ich werde seine Mic-Skills aufgrund seiner Herkunft nicht zur Wertung ziehen, aber sein Storytelling ist teilweise suboptimal. Sein Selling war in seinen Matches gegen Aries, Balor und Joe zum Teil sehr inkonsistent was sich negativ auf die Matchqualität ausgewirkt hatte. Ich würde Samoa Joe als MVP dieses Jahres ansehen, würde aber sagen dass Nakamura auch sehr, sehr weit oben liegt. Zunächst vergebe ich ihm 9 Punkte. Das kann sich allerdings natürlich auch ändern. Mal sehen wie er sich in NXT und dann später im Main Roster noch macht. Edit: Wollt ihr mich eig vera*schen? Jemand, der unzählige Striche macht, um auf die nötige Zeichenlänge kommt. Personen, die Shinsuke erst seit nem höchstens nem Jahr gesehen haben. Das ist die typische WWE-Fan-Mentalität, die heutzutage leider vorherrschend ist. Leute, bitte unternimmt was gegen unqualifizierte Bewertungen oder wenigstens gegen Spammer. Das, was hier nämlich abläuft ist Bewertungsverzerrung von aller Feinstem."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is one of the most charismatic wrestlers I've ever seen. In the "Strong Style" category, he is in the top spot. He did a great job at NJPW where he won 3 IWGP Heavyweight Championships. Many classify him as lazy, but in fact he's little motivated in WWE because he can not use his strong strikes. He is my favorite wrestler and I still want to see him again in New Japan."

[9.0] "Neben Okada mein Lieblings Mitglied bei CHAOS. Hab bis jetzt kein schlechtes Match von Nakamura gesehen der Mann rockt einfach nur. Einer der akutell besten Heels bei NJPW und einer der besten Wrestler der Welt. Edit: 24. 08. 2017 Muss ihm aktuell einen Punkt abziehen. Er darf einfach nicht der sein der er bei NJPW war. Ich warte jetzt einfach weiter ab wie es mit ihm bei der WWE weitergeht."

[3.0] "Auch ich kann nur die WWE-Zeit beurteilen und auch ich finde ihn nicht wirklich spektakulär. Keine Ausstrahlung, kein Charisma und ein dafür viel zu theatralischer Entrance. Am Mikro auch sehr zurückhaltend. Von seiner angeblichen In-Ring-Qualität habe ich bisher auch noch nicht viel gesehen, außer den immer gleichen Kicks und Kneestrikes, die einfach langweilig sind. Für mich total überbewertet."

[10.0] "One of the greatest wrestlers of his generation, Shinsuke Nakamura had many legendary matches in New Japan Pro Wrestling where he was one of the top stars for many years and the founder of the CHAOS faction. Among his most legendary matches are his many matches against his arch-rival, New Japan's 4th generation ace Hiroshi Tanahashi, and the G1 Climax Final against Kazuchika Okada. It was sad to see him sign with WWE and its very hard to watch his matches now because he's clearly holding back, even in the match against Cena."

[3.0] "Diesen Herren kann ich nur für seine WWE-Zeit bewerten und muss sagen, dass er mich extrem langweilt. Der Entrance gefällt mir, ansonsten finde ich diese ewige knee gestrike ziemlich lahm. Am Mic hat er es sehr schwer. Hoffe die WWE lässt ihn irgendwann noch mehr Moves auspacken. Dann gibt es von Onkel Bernd bestimmt mehr Punkte."

[5.0] "Boring matches ever since the Sami Zayn encounter in NXT, poor mic work that only really got exposed after leaving the overly raucous Full Sail crowds, no character to speak of, forced "charisma" supposedly coming from meaningless gestures."

[9.0] "My favorite wrestler. He's killing it in WWE. In NJPW he was better. But he is still a great wrestler"

[3.0] "Früher fand ich Shinsuke echt cool, so 2012-2013 als gelangweilter King of Sleeze aber momentan seh ich nichts tolles in Shinsuke Nakamura, er ist oft gelangweilt und zeigt dies auch im Ring, was für mich ein klares NO ist, es bezahlen leute Geld um dich zu sehen und dann ist er so dreist ist ist ne Frechheit. Und seine Knee strikes sind in Vergleich zu Naoki Tanizaki und Yoshihiro Takayama lachhaft"

[8.0] "EDIT: Dem NJ Nakamura könnte man nichts anderes als 10 geben. Aber seit jetzt gut einem Jahr (Juni'17) liefert er einfach keine guten und erinnerungswürdigen Performances und Matches ab. Den King Of Strong Style Titel hat er wahrscheinlich schon abgegeben. Doch nun zu den immer Positiven. Mr. Charisma ist er alle mal und bei SDL hat er jetzt wieder vielleicht die Möglichkeit auf volle Stufe zu kommen. Gebe deswegen extra "nur" 8 um das Ganze offen zu halten."

[7.0] "Ist gut im Ring aber leider ist es so wie es andere schon sagen... Die Kämpfe in Japan waren nun mal viel besser als bei der WWE. Auch am Mic nicht so stark."

[7.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura in New Japan was one of the best wrestlers on the planet at the time, in that his charisma and character transcended language barriers, not to mention that the stories he told in ring were varied and exciting and his execution of a running knee, his Bomaye (Kinshasa) can only be equalled by Austin's Stunner or Michael's Superkick in satisfying, visceral finishers. In WWE so far the majority of his work has been very good. His Sami Zayn match was one of the best matches WWE has ever put on and his program with Samoa Joe was my favourite Samoa Joe programs. However, since the beginning of the Bobby Roode rivalry I have noticed that Nakamura has become repetitive in the stories he tells, obnoxiously obvious in his no selling and seemingly unenthused in his matches. Some people level this issue with WWE forcing him to hold back on "strong style", but strong style when you break it down is a lack of pulling punches. If Shinsuke Nakamura cannot work great matches without hitting his opponent for real, or pulling off one or two dangerous moves then one has to wonder if he truly is that great. I do believe that Shinsuke is one of the best workers today, but he needs to put more effort into his matches and show the WWE audience that he is not just style over substance."

[6.0] "Don't deserve such a high rating. He really bores me on the mic, his entrance is so long and annoying. At least, he's really good in the ring. That's all."

[9.0] "One of best wrestlers in the world. In NJPW he's became the legend with best matches with Kota Ibushi, Hiroshi Tanahashi, AJ Styles and Kazuchika Okada was *****. In WWE very good matches with Samoa Joe, Bobby ROOOOOOOde and 5 star match with Sami Zayn."

[10.0] "This guy is really good. His only problem is the fact that he can't speak english properly, which stops him from becoming a major player in the WWE, However, his run on NJPW is enough to award him with a 10/10."

[10.0] "Charisma is second to none. Kenny Omega is the only other active guy I can think who even falls in the same category right now as far as that's concerned. I love his look and his move set, and all things considered I think he gives a darn good English promo. There's no questioning his tools in the ring; but I will say his matches in NXT really got repetitive towards the end of his run there and I'm hoping to see far more variance in his story telling on the main roster."

[8.0] "Good wrestler with great charisma but unfortunately, he doesn't manage to adapt his style when he came to WWE, too stiff, too dangerous. Furthermore, his booking sucks ! He seems to be invicible and he doesn't let any opportunity to his opponent in the ring. He always wins with the same pattern: domination, domination and domination ! Maybe it would be better for him to lose his title and go to the main roster ..."

[8.0] "I know it's very unpopular opinion, but I find Nakamura somewhat overrated. As much as he is charismatic, when it comes to in-ring work, he is nowhere near the level of guys like Tanahashi, Shibata or Ishii. Also, when he came to WWE it became visible that he has big problem with finding chemistry with most wrestlers when they meet for the first time."

[4.0] "Finde Shinsuke Nakamura einfach nicht so charismatisch wie viele andere. Sein Einzug (vor allem bei NXT Takeover Events) finde ich meist immer ziemlich geil, aber sein Move-Set gefällt mir dagegen kaum. Außerdem fand ich keines seiner Matches bei Takeover Events sehr gut (vor allem Roode vs Nakamura blieb für mich deutlich hinter den Erwartungen zurück). Ich kann aber durchaus verstehen, warum ihn sehr viele Leute so sehr mögen. Er spricht mich einfach nicht so an."

[8.0] "Nach diesem NXT Jahr sind die ursprünglichen 10 Punkte nicht mehr zu verantworten. Nach seinem Debüt hat er im Ring nur gelangweilt, der WWE Stil schadet ihm da extrem und auch, dass er noch keine gute Story bekommen hat, hilft wenig. Aktuell läuft Shinsuke auf Sparflamme, hoffentlich ändert sich das in den Main Shows schnell und er kann wieder unterhalten. 8 Punkte gibts nur, weil der NJPW Nakamura so grandios war und er trotz allem sehr charismatisch ist"

[9.0] "For a time I'd have put Nakamura in my top ten. While that time has come and gone hes still pretty high on my all time greats list. As far as I'm concerned it wouldn't be too hard for him to become a 10/10 again, but as things are going now hes been on something of a decline since coming to the WWE, and I think that's because hes being used to help enhance HHH's NXT (though that's rumored to be changing very soon). Hes had good matches with Roode, solid stuff with Joe and even a great debut with Zayn but he hasn't been given the chance to show that special 'IT' that he has. Hopefully when hes moved up to the main roster he'll be given that chance."

[9.0] "Ich sehe den NJPW Nakamura einfach nicht in WWE Nakamura, wobei Charisma und Ausstrahlung unverändert geblieben sind. In-Ring-technisch kommt er bei weitem nicht an seine NJPW Matches an (ausser das mit Sami Zayn). Man merkt wie sein Stil unter der WWE "leidet" und es bleibt abzuwarten was daraus wird wenn er in den MainRoster aufsteigt. Ich hoffe ihm wird ein Manager zur Seite gestellt bis die Sprache fließender wird. Daher gibt es "nur" 9 Punkte."

[8.0] "Ich hielt Nakamura eigentlich für einen der besten Wrestler weltweit. Doch nun nach 10 Monaten bei WWE muss ich echt sagen, dass er mich extrem enttäuscht hat. Er ist zwar immer noch unfassbar Charismatisch aber hat meiner Meinung nach extrem im Ring abgebaut. Vorallem das Selling ist teilweise sehr schwach und da er enorme Sprachprobleme hat, ist es teilweise echt schwer sich auf ein Match von ihm hypen zu lassen. Ich würde mir wünschen, dass man ihm Paul Heyman zur Seite stellt (Nach dem Main Roster Aufstieg). Alles in allem komme ich auf folgende Bewertung InRing: 9/10 (Jedoch hat er starke Probleme beim selling) Charisma 10/10, MicWork (für WWE wichtig): 3/10 und Ausstrahlung 9/10."

[8.0] "Despite being an all time great of japanese wrestling, the only reason I rate Nak lower than his average is because his ring work seems to suffer in the WWE system. Very few people in the promotion can match his style and workrate which makes stellar Nakamura matches a rarity."

[9.0] "Nakamura is an excellent technician and swimming in a pool of charisma. You could make a perfectly valid case for him being the best wrestler in the world today, unfortunately, I cannot in good conscience give him 10 points because he's in the WWE. His matches there aren't terribly impressive, even though he is immensely over."

[9.0] "Shinsuke is great. He really goes all out in his big matches, had loads of classics in his career. Only reason I won't give the full 10 is because he's been outperformed by his opponents ever since joining WWE, and his selling is non existent most of the time."

[9.0] "After his lackluster performances vs. Austin Aries, Finn Bálor & Samoa Joe, I feel like I shouldn't rate him so high, but I really can't give anything less than 9 to Shinskay. I feel like at this point the whole "most charismatic dude around" thing is a meme, but there is no denying that he is charismatic - he just has lost some of his charm ever since joining WWE, ever since after his debut vs. Zayn, his entrance, his motions & basically everything have just felt so robotic to me. And just as I mentioned, he got badly outperformed by Aries, Bálor & Joe in his big matches - his selling in those matches was bad, and that's something that is a problem for him in general, he has always been a pretty bad seller, it doesn't often completely take me out of his matches, but, for an example, the match vs. Bálor was heading towards ****+ territory, but then Shinsuke did his thing, shrug off Bálor excellent leg work, and what we got (in my opinion) was a really good ***3/4 match. The selling is a big reason why I feel like I shouldn't be giving him a 9, but here we are; I just can't deny some of the classic matches & performances he has had vs. the likes of Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi, Tomohiro Ishii, Sami Zayn etc, etc. Nakamura is great."

[10.0] "Shisnuke Nakamura is the other reasaon i started following New Japan back in 2015. This man is a great wrestler and puts MMA style in wrestling for which he is known as King of Strong Style. Very agile, brutal, athletic, charisamatic and has the ability to pull out best even from a undercard guy. his bouts with Tanahashi, Styles, Kota Ibushi and Kazuchika Okada are suggested to watch."

[10.0] "An absolutely brilliant wrestler. He has charisma every wrestler wishes they could have. It just oozes off him and he doesn't even have to speak. Inside the ring, one of the best. Has a tendency to coast in TV and house shows (which isn't a bad thing given his body), whether it be NJPW or WWE, but whenever it's time for him to show up, he exceeds expectations. Nakamura is basically the wrestler I show to people who are casual viewers or aren't into it at all. An amazing, generational talent. His strong accent makes his future on the main roster hard to predict, but there's comfort in knowing that if the WWE somehow manages to fail with Shinsuke, he'll just go right back to being a star in New Japan."

[7.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura ist gut und überzeugend im Ring. Aber ich finde er spielt sein Gimmick einfach zu übertrieben. Dieses Overacting ist manchmal extrem nervig. Ich frage mich wie der Kerl sich im Main Roster schlagen wird? !"

[9.0] "Im Ring definitiv eine 10, Charisma und seine Ausstrahlung sind grandios. Einziges Problem ist sein Micwork. Ansonsten kann die WWE sehr froh sein ihn unter Vertrag zu haben und ich denke bald findet er auch seinen Weg ins Main Roster. 9/10"

[8.0] "Er ist ein richtig starker Techniker, wenn nicht, dann ist er DER Techniker! Ich bin sehr überzeugt von ihm. Charisma, Ausstrahlung... er hat alles! Nur am Mic sieht es für ihn mager aus. Zudem ist er auch gehyped wie sonst was, er mag gut sein, aber viele übertreiben es auch. Ich gebe 8 Punkte, er ist ein sehr starker Techniker mit allen drum und dran, bloß am Mic fehlt es!"

[8.0] "Nakamura is a really good wrestler, with good striking, a fantastic character and an over-the-top mannerism mixed with a natural (scary) charisma which is the reason why he's always overrated by the fans. While I think that he's just magnetic - as soon as he comes out in the ring you can't take your eyes off him - his in-ring work is pretty much average. He has surely delivered great matches in the last three years, but always with great, great, great wrestlers such as Sami Zayn, AJ Styles and Kota Ibushi, probably three of the top 10 wrestler today. That doesn't mean Nakamura isn't good, it's just that he has to find the guy who can sell his style. His matches with Goto or Fale weren't any good and the same goes with the most of his matches in NxT. Nonetheless, he'll have a great future, since that charisma and that "it" factor will make him the most successful japanese wrestler in the US."

[10.0] "No words for this incredible wrestler. The best I've ever seen, watch Namamura v Zayn on NXT Takeover. It was so good. Just a tip to see what he's got. Also watch WK 10 Main event vs AJ Styles"

[10.0] "Maaybe a tiny bit overrated, but damn. Shinsuke is a once in a lifetime wrestler/charismer. The second he arrived in NXT, the crowd couldn't stop chanting "holy shit" and "this is awesome" for a reason. His ring psychology and in-ring style are pure beauty and he even speaks English pretty well for a Japanese guy. If Vince or Dunn don't screw it up, Naka could be the biggest merch draw since Cena."

[2.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is the definition of overrated. I'm not saying he's a bad wrestler like Randy Orton but except doing retarded faces and being stiff, he doesn't do much. Or is it maybe I just don't get Shinsuke Nakamura. I never saw him do something outstanding, he can have decent matches but he has to be with a good wrestler."

[10.0] "The one things i worry about on him is that his flamboyant fun personality can tirn people off him, one you see a full match of his these problems are rectified. He is also a great man to hold a title, just look at what he did to the NJPW Intercontinental title."

[10.0] "Charismabombe trifft wohl am meisten auf Shinsuke Nakamura zu. Er hat eigentlich alles, was ein WWE Champion braucht und deswegen hoffe ich, dass er zukünftiger Champion wird. Im Ring hat er es auch absolut drauf und sein Mic Work ist einzigartig und ist zusammen mit seinem Gimmick einfach super. Volle 10."

[10.0] "I followed him since 2006 approx. and always liked his work, but he didn't receive too much praise in the past because of his (then) low charisma. Fortunately he improved his personality to levels of excellence and found an in-ring style that fits his character, becoming an excellent striker with lots of charisma, mannerisms, psychology, kicks, and knee strikes like his amazing finisher, the BomaYe-Kinshasa."

[9.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is the superstar who saved me from quitting pro wresting for good and i thank him because then i would have missed this new era that the wwe is entrenched in. Nakamura's match with Sami Zayne is the greatest match that i had witnessed in the last decade of wwe and one of the few matches that made me cry. The match was a beauty. These two were artists and that wrestling mat was the canvas. Nakamura is one of the greatest if not the greatest in ring wrestlers of all time. His mic skills are the weak point but he makes it work so it does not hurt him to much and this is a man that does not need to speak because everything else in his repertoire speaks so well for him. He has a great look and his entrance and them is the greatest i have seen since the Undertaker's. Shinsuke Nakamura is the king of strong style, the prince of NXT and the man that saved pro wrestling for me."

[9.0] "Nakamura was so boring for such a long time that I'm almost struggling to warrant giving him a 9. But nah. He was always a strong in-ring worker, even when working at a charisma deficit, and after revamping his persona completely, he's just been a joy to behold. A standout character not just when placed in America, Nakamura was also a complete anomaly in Japan, being by far the biggest oddball out of all the major league main eventers, and yet he's managed to combine his bizarre energy and charisma with hard-hitting, believable offense. As impressive and daring an evolution as I've ever seen in wrestling, and I have to say I didn't expect him to be as big a hit with the international audience as he has turned out to be. Kudos for truly hitting it out of the park in his major US debut."

[8.0] "Technisch einfach ein perfekter Wrestler, dazu hat er auch noch einen individuellen Look und eine interessante Ausstrahlung. Finde sein MicWork allerdings etwas melodramatisch, da wäre etwas weniger Getue manchmal besser."

[10.0] "Ein unglaublicher Kerl. Schräges Gimmick, bringt dieses perfekt und mit unglaublich viel Charisma rüber. Braucht keine Worte um zu fesseln und zu begeistern. Bringt zusätzlich ein technisch beeindruckendes und sehr intensiv anmutendes Moveset mit, welches er auch sehr gut getimet und präzise an den Mann bringt. Dann noch das sehr gute selling und wir haben hier ein wahres Rund-um-wohlfühl-Paket für jeden Wrestling Fan. Mittlerweile Suche ich vergeblich nach dem 15 Punkte Button, denn nur so lässt er sich beschreiben... Dieser Man packt selbst auf das Beste noch eine Schippe drauf!"

[10.0] "Hier muss es 10 Punkte geben. Der King of Strongstyle ist einfach ein genialer Typ. Charisma pur und eine beeindruckende Härte in seinen Moves. Eine Bewertung bekommt er jetzt, weil es ihm gelungen ist, seinen Stil in die WWE mitzunehmen. Hab kein ansatzweise schwaches Match von ihm gesehen. Seine Promos sind zwar eher witzig und seine Vielzahl an Moves, die auch Finisher sein könnten, macht ein gutes Storytelling schwierig, aber das gleicht sein Können einfach wieder aus. Für mich der beste "reine" Wretsler im Moment."

[6.0] "I may be alone in saying this: while I do think he's more than satisfying in the ring, but I think that he may be entirely lacking in the mic skills departement. Not just lacking "some", I'm not even sure the guy can go beyond some stock phrases. That's a gigantic minus in an entertainment-oriented product like the WWE. 10s are for top guys... and unfortunately, I don't get the "top guy" vibe. He may be become an oriental sensation like Steamboat, some high-profiler for the occasional MOTN, if they keep pushing him like they are doing, but at the end of the day I don't see him getting at the top of the game at all."

[10.0] "NAKAMURA! NAKAMURA! NAKAMURA! This guy is perfect. He's been called the king of strong style for a reason. His matches are stiff. He's got so much charisma that makes him such a great wrestler. In his few promos he's had so far in NXT, he showd that he can be pretty good at them, even though he doesn't speak english so well. There is a very bright future for this guy!"

[10.0] "Sometimes, the best gimmicks are the most difficult ones to describe. Bradshaw was a cowboy, Tyler Breeze is a supermodel, Dean Ambrose is an unpredictable extremist... but Shinsuke Nakamura is just Shinsuke Nakamura. He's utterly unlike any other wrestler in the world, and it's impossible to take your eyes off him. His style is simultaneously flamboyant and vicious; flashy and technically sound; beautiful and hard-hitting. Sometimes it seems like he's almost dancing, but at the same time, he carries himself with the deadly aura of an MMA fighter. He's got every possible facet of his presentation nailed down, from his facial expressions to his gestures to his selling to his moveset. I can't think of a single possible criticism to attach to this man, and I genuinely think he's one of the best wrestlers in history. I'm giving him a perfect 10, and that's a score I virtually never distribute. Nakamura deserves it."

[9.0] "Verfolge ihn erst so richtig seit er bei NXT ist, das allein hat aber gereicht um mir zumindest einige seiner wichtigsten Matches bei NJPW anzuschauen. Sein Moveset ist zwar bisher limitiert (worden), wobei es nur eine Frage der Zeit ist, bis er sein wahres Können entfalten darf, aber am Ende spielt es keine Rolle, wie viele Moves er tatsächlich zeigt. In seinem Debütmatch und auch später gegen Austin Aries hat er eindrucksvoll bewiesen, dass er Geschichten im Ring erzählen kann und das Wichtigste in einem Wrestlingmatch verstanden hat - die Psychologie dahinter. Abseits seines In-Ring-Könnens ist er eine Urgewalt an Ausstrahlung und Persönlichkeit. Kaum ein zweiter bei der WWE kann behaupten so viel "Uniqueness" zu besitzen. Selbst am Mikrofon weiß er zu überzeugen, nicht vielleicht mit enorm viel Inhalt, aber allein die Art und Weise, wie er seine inhaltlich aufgrund der Sprachbarriere limitierten Promos hält, katapultiert ihn weit über andere in der aktuellen WWE. Wenn die Oberen bei der WWE es zulassen, kann uns was Großes mit Nakamura bevorstehen. Verdient hätte er es allemal."

[9.0] "Probably one of the greatest Japanese talents in the business today. His charisma and personality are unique, and his in-ring is top notch. While he may not be on Misawa's level, he's probably amongst the elite of his generation"

[9.0] "The King of Strong Style, Shinsuke Nakamura is one of the most entertaining wrestlers in the world. Each and every match he has is just so fun to watch. He's so unique and different!"

[10.0] "To think he started off as an charisma-less, Inoki shoot style clone! One of the best, if not the best wrestlers of his generation, Nakamura simply is the definition of charisma in wrestling. In the ring he is exciting to watch and makes every little move look meaningful. Having worked all over the world from Japan to the US to to Mexico to Europe and even Australia, Nakamura has shown he can adapt to any style. Even with WWE's history of booking Japanese wrestlers, if there was ever a wrestler who had the potential to overcome this, it is Nakamura."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamure is a very talented and successful WWE Superstar. He uses a basic move set, yet somehow finishes off an opponent. Even though he has a basic move-set, I think, that why focus on the move=set when you see the talent of a champion inside of them; Nakamure does just that. Nakamure has power and potential and should really be given a title shot, so the only downside is that he has a basic move-set which is a minor setback in my opinion. In conclusion, Shinsuke Nakamure is a 10 in my opinion."

[10.0] "Er ist der beste Wrestler der Welt. Das ist Fakt. Ein absoluter Gott, was Charisma und Selling angeht, was InRing Skills angeht und was seine Style, den Strong Style angeht. Ich hatte erst Angst, dass die WWE ihn in seinem Move-Set zu sehr einschränkt, doch NXT Takeover Dallas hat mich eines Besseren belehrt. Ich freu mich drauf seinen Werdegang in der WWE zu verfolgen, da ich schon sehr lange Fan von ihm bin. Ich hoffe auf einen schnellen Aufstieg ins Main-Roster und darauf das er auch dort seine Stiffen Moves zeigen darf. mehr muss man zum Wrestling-Gott nicht sagen! #bestintheworld"

[10.0] "Der beste Wrestler der Welt! Ohne wenn und aber! Sogar Rollins und Styles müssen sich hinter ihm einordnen!"

[6.0] "The King of Strong Style, the Child of God. One of my favorite wrestlers of all time... In Japan. Ironically enough, I have to judge him as an american wrestler, now. In NJPW he'd be valued a 9, if not a 10. In WWE... well, a lot less. I can't fathom why most people believe that moving to WWE was the right choice for him. He is up a steep and vey narrow cliff. I can see him working with an extremely talented manager and reaching the uppercard in the main roster. But, realistically, he will receive the Neville treatment. So, undoubtedly, he is the kind of talent that can't be spent on a promotion which drastically prefers some mic work over the in-ring work. See Danielson's case, or how WWE is using El Generico/ Zayn and Steen. WWE has a terrible history of underused/ gimmicky Japanese wrestlers confined to the undercard to boot, so I'm not feeling like he has a chance. He'll have a good time in NXT because he's an awesome athlete, and then my prediction is that he'll pack up his things and go back where he belongs, battling Okada and Tanahashi he'll still lack the mic skills WWE demanded to connect with the American audience (unless he pulls a 04 Benoit's or a Daniel Bryan's kind of miracle, I sure hope he does)."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is a complete package, he have the look, the ring ability, the charisma and a devastating finishing move, I hope he succed in NXT."

[7.0] "I too think Nakamura Shinsuke-san can be quite inconsistent at times, but he is mostly very fun to watch too in and out of the ring. Hopes he comes back to NJPW though... really missing him! >. <"

[9.0] "'Swagsuke' is a bit of an enigma. His contests with the likes of Hiroshi Tanahashi, AJ Styles and Kota Ibushi have received international acclaim, and his ability to connect with ALL audiences is second to none. Unfortunately Nakamura tends to not show up in the 'lesser' matches - this was especially evident in the conclusive years New Japan Pro-Wrestling career. There is no doubt World Wrestling Entertainment have executed a coup by signing this veritable international star - after a promising start to life in America Nakamura seems to have received the Sasha Banks treatment and is meandering through pointless bouts. The 'King of Strong Style' will undoubtedly be ensconced in Pro-Wrestling History for eternity. Nakamura is a legendary superstar, though he needs the correct treatment for him to bring his bevy of phenomenal performances. Either way, this man is too cool to care about trolls whom give him an insulting rating on this website."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura ist der Prototyp im Wrestling. Und das nicht nur in Japan, wie es mit vielen japanischen Westlern ist, Nein, er konnte mit seinem Auftreten überall auf der Welt Erfolg haben. Aber zum Wrestler selbst: Im Ring ist Nakamura überragend. Seine harten, stiffen Kicks und Knees spiegeln die Art des Strong Styles perfekt wider. Und mit seinem Charisma, seinem Aussehen und den herausragenden schauspielerischen Fähigkeiten kann er eine ganze Halle und auch die Zuschauer packen sodass man nicht mehr weg schauen kann. Was für ein Glück das ich ihn vor zwei Jahren auf YouTube gefunden habe. Seitdem ist er mein Lieblingswrestler. Hoffentlich kommt er nochmal nach Europa, ich will in unbedingt mal live sehen."

[9.0] "Auch, wenn er weder im Strong Style catcht, noch als FAKT der beste Wrestler der Welt ist, Baschtey, muss man Nakamura-san den höchsten Respekt zollen. Ich persönlich war zwar immer mehr ein Fan seines ernsteren Matten-Catcher Gimmicks in jüngeren Jahren (denn so habe ich ihn auch lieben gelernt), aber ich kann die Faszination von den ganzen jüngeren Puroresu Fans verstehen. Im Ring glänzt er durch seine großartige Offense, sein exquisites Timing, und das große Drama, dass ihn sogar für die hohen New Japan Standards hat herausstehen lassen. Wünsche viel Erfolg in den großen WWE Brands. YEAOH!"

[10.0] "One of my favorite guys working today, he adds a tremendous amount to whatever he's involved in. His early work is not as inspiring but still good and I'd say he's one of the best in the world right now. He's a great pickup for WWE of course and hopefully they make the most of him. First ever Japanese WWE Champion? We can only hope."

[10.0] "Überragende Ausstrahlung, saucooles Gimmick, starke In Ring-Skills und ein toller Finisher. Golden Boy."

[10.0] "Schon als ich ihn zum ersten Mal in Japan gesehen habe, als ich einmal ein Event von dort gesehen habe, fand ich ihn einfach Göttlich. Sein Auftreten ist einfach perfekt, da fragt man sich schon fast, wie er das macht. Dies zeigt sich auch bei den Reaktionen bei NXT. Ich mein, klar, jeder von NXT kannte ihn, da NXT einfach die geilste Crowd hat und mir es so vorkommt, als ob 80% der Halle Smartmarks sind. Ich mein eher sein erster TV-Auftritt. Der machte meiner Meinung nach Finn BalorŽs heftig Konkurrenz. Das war sehr episch. Mich hat der Auftritt auf jeden Fall in den Bann gezogen. Ich weiß nicht, wie er am Mic ist, aber ich erwarte da nicht sehr viel, und dass ist nicht böse gemeint. Ich weiß einfach nicht, ob Shinsuke gut englisch spricht und sich gut artikulieren kann."

"Hat eine gewisse Perspektive, einer meiner Lieblingswrestler zu werden, jedoch ist es noch zu früh für eine Bewertung, da ich ihn erst 1x bei NXT gesehen habe... Persönliche Ausstrahlung soweit ich beurteilen kann ein ganz taffer Typ (? /10 Punkte), das Gimmick verspricht Lust auf mehr (? /10), die Moves die ich bisher gesehen hab sind fast nicht mehr zu toppen (10/10). Micwork kann ich noch nicht beurteilen (? /10). Gibt bei mir einen Gesamtwert von ? /10 Punkten. Update folgt"

"Kann noch keine Bewertung abgeben, da ich ihn aus Japan nicht kenne. Aber ich muss einfach einmal was zu dem Kerl sagen. In der letzten Zeit kamen wieder und wieder Wrestler aus Japan zur WWE, die im Internet in die höchsten Höhen gehoben wurden. Man erzählte von unglaublichen In Ring Skills... sogar von Charisma.. Doch jedes mal wurden die dadurch hohen Erwartungen leider untertroffen. Aber dieser Kerl... So viel Charisma habe ich lange nicht gesehen. Ohne einen einzigen Ton zu sagen kann er bereits eine Crowd auf seine Seite ziehen, oder zumindest die Aufmerksamkeit wirklich jeden einzelnen Zuschauers auf sich ziehen. Er ist anders, aber es ist nicht nur sein Auftreten, es ist natürliches Charisma... Dazu kommt sein In Ring Style, von dem ich bisher auch nur einige Clips auf Youtube und das Match mit Zayn kenne.. aber auch in der Hinsicht überzeut der Kerl auf ganzer Linie. Das hier.. ist vielleicht die beste Verpflichtung aus Japan seit die ECW in den 90ern in Japan shoppen war. Aber wie gesagt. Vielleicht ist es zu früh.. und vielleicht ist das gerade nur Hype. Wir werden sehen."

[10.0] "Amazing wrestler. Full of charisma and even with a language barrier can connect with any crowd. He also is capable of having show stealing matches with anyone."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura, I think, might one day be considered as the greatest wrestler that ever lived. He has the charisma of a Mega-Star like Michael Jackson and he is one of the most talented wrestler in the world. He already offered us the best matches in wrestling history in NJPW and he has the potential to do the same in WWE. Star-presence, charisma, talent, strong style, story-telling; all of those are exceptionnal with him."

[10.0] "Ok man hat mich überzeugt. Hatte schon n Kampf gesehen, aber das gestern nochmal. Der ganze entrance. Einfach hammer. Für mich der beste Wrestler der Welt."

[10.0] "Just watched his NXT Dallas debut and trust me he retained all the greatness we saw in NJPW one of the best matches I've ever seen"

[10.0] "WOW, einfach nur WOW. Was dieser Mann kann können nur wenige, wenn überhaupt. Diese Präsenz, diese Ausstrahlung. Dieser Mann ist einfach Phänomenal. Man kann der WWE nur gratulieren, sie haben den besten Wrestler den es im Moment auf der Welt gibt verpflichtet. Würd mich allerdings nicht wundern wenn er in der WWE floppen würde. Denn Shinsuke ist zu "unique" für die WWE, zu speziell ist sein Kampfstil, seine stiffness, sein gesamtes Auftreten passt einfach nicht zur WWE. Ich wünsche ihm viel Erfolg und freu mich dass er seinen Traum nachgeht, aber WWE könnte die falsche Entscheidung sein."

[10.0] "Was soll man zu Nakamura noch sagen? Er ist für mich der beste Wrestler auf der Welt. Er ist super im Ring und hat ein riesen Charisma. Ich hoffe, dass die WWE ihn nicht versauen lassen wird, da er für mich ein klarer Main Eventer ist."

[10.0] "Ganz gewiss nicht umsonst der King Of Strong-Style. Nakamura ist für mich einer der besten Wrestler der Welt. Seine Moves sind sauber und stiff zugleich, er ist eine Offenbarung in Sachen Charisma und beherrsch das Story-Telling während eines Matches perfekt."

[10.0] "BEST IN THE FUCKING WORLD I cried my eyes out watching his last yeaoh and i hope wwe treats him correctly he is easily one of the best ever i cannot wait to see hims face sami and hopefully he gets a match with aries"

[10.0] "Für mich gibt es aktuell keinen besseren Wrestler auf der Welt, seine In-Ring Skills sind sehr stark! Einige sind der Ansicht, dass er Okada nicht das Wasser reichen kann, allerdings finde ich Nakamura stärker im Ring."

[6.0] "He has a lot of talent indeed but his ego is too big, so if he is going to lose a match to someone he judges ''inferior'' to him he sells very bad to monkey wrench the match and make the ''inferior guy'' not get over."

[10.0] "The greatest wrestler that NJPW had to offer IMO. From a great character to amazing in ring ability, Nakamura can do it all. He can even speak English well. Half of me is excited to see him in WWE, the other is afraid on what they'll do to him."

[10.0] "Hat sich von einem von einem sich optisch kaum von anderen Midcardern zu unterscheidenden Mainstreamwrestler in den 00ern zu einer Ikone des modernen Puroresus gemausert. Dazu werden zum ersten seine Strong-Style Moves beigetragen haben, die seine Kämpfe näher an MMA-Fights bringen als bei den meisten anderen. Dann ist da, zweitens, sein Selling. Adam von Whatculture merkte an, dass er eine gehörige Portion Shawn Michaels in sich trägt. Wer das immer grandiose Selling mal gesehen hat, weiß, dass da was dran ist. Drittens, und meines Erachtens am Wichtigsten, ist das unglaublich hervorragende Gimmick. Dieser "Freddy Mercury meets Voldo von Soul Calibur"- Verschnitt ist einfach so exzentrisch und hervorragend, dass er mit quasi nichts bisher bestehenden vergleichbar scheint. Bei NJPW war er bereits mit dafür verantwortlich, dass sich mehr und mehr westliche Wrestlingfans das Fernost-Produkt mal näher anschauten. Bei WWE könnte er dann auch der erste Wrestler aus Japan werden, der den Durchbruch schafft... so denn Vince will."

[10.0] "Nakamura is the best wrestler in the world but it dod take him a while to get to be this good he really didn't come into his own until around 2012 in the years before that he was just the king of strong style not that much personality but then in 2012 he mixed the king of strong style and his inner self which showed how much charisma and he was so just crazy with everything he had something inside of him that he just realesed and when he mixed it with his great in ring skills he turned into the best in the world so to end this rating i will say if you don't like Nakamura then you don't like great wrestling"

[10.0] "This guy is the complete package when it comes to wrestling. There's not a single flaw to how he presents himself in the ring. WWE is in for a ride when he gets there officially."

[10.0] "Holy Shit. Mehr ist nicht zu sagen. Der Mann hat Ausstrahlung ohne Ende. Technik, aus der man 10 Wrestler bauen. könnte, ist teilweise es Stiffes Arschloch... Alles was Japanisches Wrestling ausmacht in Perfektion."

[10.0] "Dieser Mann, ist mit Abstand DER beste Wrestler der Welt! Keiner ist so charismatisch, keiner workt so gute Matches wie Shinsuke. Alleine wenn man dem schon bei seiner Entrance zuschaut bekommt man gute Laune, dieser Mann macht einfach Spaß, besonders wenn der dir regelmäßig ein 5-Star Match nach dem anderen um die Ohren haut. Er ist neben Tanahashi der einzige der zurzeit wirklich an japanische Legenden wie Misawa, Kobashi & co. rankommt. Egal welcher Gegner, Shinsuke workt mit jedem ein klasse Match, er kann den Gegner perfekt stark darstellen, ist ein richtig guter seller, seine Matches sind jedes mal so spannend aufgebaut und besitzten diesen "roten Faden", jede Aktion hat einen Sinn. Die Kurzfassung: Er ist der beste Worker der Welt! So einen wie ihn wird es so schnell nicht wieder geben! #YEAOH!"

[10.0] "The greatest practitioner of strong style today, and perhaps the greatest wrestler, period. No living performer can strike as well as him, nor does anyone match his charisma. His submissions, technical ability, and psychology are all top-notch."

[7.0] "He had to resort to stupid body jerks and shit to appeal to the masses. The more serious Nakamura is dead. Sadly. King of Strong Style.. modern strong style perhaps. He is the last link to the creaking hull that is New Japans strong style. He comes nowhere near Hashimoto in popularity or strong style. The Kawada in the relationship he has with Tanahashi."

[10.0] "Nakamura ist für mich - trotz seiner mitlerweile 35 Jahre - die Zukunft von NJPW. Umso unverständlicher für mich, dass er sich im G1 Climax Finale gegen Tanahashi geschlagen geben musste. Das so lange aufgebaute Match zwischen ihm und seinem CHAOS Stable-Partner Okada wäre perfekt für Wrestle Kingdom im nächsten Jahr gewesen. Aber egal, Nakamura wird dennoch bald wieder IWGP Heavyweight Champion werden, da bin ich mir sicher."

[10.0] "Nakamura hat durch den Profilwechsel zum eiskalten Vollstrecker endlich seinen Platz an der Spitze von New Japan Pro Wrestling eingenommen. Jedoch sehe ich ihn trotzdem immer noch nicht auf einer Höhe mit Tanahashi. Super Wrestler, der mit alles und jedem ein tolles Match aufbauen kann. BOMAA YE~~! Update Post-Climax 2015: Würde es Tana nicht geben, dann wäre er für mich der mit Abstand beste japanische Wrestler seit Misawa, Kobashi und Kawada. So reicht es ganz knapp hinter dem Ace zu Platz 2. Er ist einfach eine Charisma-Bombe, der IMMER zu unterhalten weiß."

[10.0] "The perfect mixture of skill and crazy charisma. Shinsuke grabs your attention from the moment he walks through the curtain and keeps you entertained until he walks back through it."

[10.0] "King of Strong Style, yes he is! Hard kicks and tremendous submission specialist ever i see in NJPW today"

[9.0] "The most charismatic and flamboyant Japanese wrestler around and maybe the most charismatic and flamboyant wrestler period. its funny how just a few years ago he was a relatively bland character. Totally reinvented himself in recent years with elaborate costumes, gyrating movements, and eccentric mannerisms. Has the larger than life persona that makes him more marketable in the west than other Japanese stars. Good on the mike and his matches are elevated because of his showmanship. His gimmick is hard to describe. He's part gangster, part rock star, part MMA fighter, part ladies man, part wild eyed maniac. And if that's not enough, he's also one of the top workers in the world. His MMA background gives him an air of legitimacy. Lightning quick, supremely athletic, super smooth and graceful with an innovative offense. Any downsides? Well he has let his physique go in recent years. Founding member of the stable CHAOS and the self proclaimed "King of Strong Style". Hugely popular and should regain main event status in the coming years."

[9.0] "One of the best current talents in the world; and overall [pretty much] the dude that draws you completely to what he's doing. But, since I'm giving a 9; this leaves room for something. Not exactly all the time are you're drawn, because Shinsuke tends to occasionally "mail in" matches instead of putting on show after show after show. Sure, he does it with his swag and countless entrances/attires. Though, he never is 100% consistent through a year of wrestling."

[10.0] "Einzigartig, mit nichts auf der Welt zu vergleichen, ein Phänomen. Dieser Mann ist pure Unterhaltung, gepaart mit Stiffness und perfektem Timing. Vielleicht nicht jedermanns Sache, aber Nakamura ist aus meiner Sicht der momentan beste Wrestler der Welt"

[10.0] "Just an outstanding wrestler Shinsuke is the total package he can high fly he can brawl and he's a great technical wrestler. One of my favorites right now. We know him, we love him. Nakamura has spent the last 13 years in New Japan, capturing the IWGP Heavyweight Championship 3 times, IWGP Intercontinental Championship 4 times and the IWGP Tag Team Championships. Nakamura has also made appearances in ROH, and promotions in Australia and Canada."

[10.0] "Since getting into NJPW relatively recently, Nakamura has quickly become one of my favorite wrestlers to watch. A great striker and technical grappler in the ring with MMA experience adding legitimacy to his style; he also shows a keen understanding of psychology and in-ring storytelling, and simply oozes charisma and showmanship. One of the best all-around talents out there today."

[10.0] "When you talk about pro wrestlers oozing charisma, there is no need to look any further than The King of Strong Style. A larger than life personality that combines the exuberance of Freddie Mercury with the showmanship of Michael Jackson, Nakamura is truly a one of a kind talent and one of the, albeit stiffest, most gifted workers in any promotion around the world. Yeaohhh"

[10.0] "Don't f*ck with Shinsuke! Der Mann ist einfach nur göttlich! Ein Garant für gute bis Weltklasse-Matches und seine Präsenz in und um den Ring trieft ihm förmlich aus jeder Pore! Nakamura ist das, was ich unter einem wahren "Sports-Entertainer" der heutigen Zeit verstehe, denn er beherrscht sein Handwerk perfekt und ist in jedem Match zu 100% in seinem Gimmick. Seine Matches gegen Okada, Ibushi, Tanahashi könnte ich mir wieder und wieder reinziehen. 10 Punkte und das ist fast noch zu wenig!"

[10.0] "Charisma, Strong Style und eine wahnsinnige Aura, die ihn umgibt. Dazu erst 34. Bester Wrestler der Welt momentan. Einfach überragend."

[10.0] "Ich muss meinen Kommentar noch einmal korrigieren. Nakamura ist nicht der beste japanische Wrestler - er ist der beste Wrestler der Welt. Das Abgefahrene an Nakamura ist, dass sein Storytelling so verdammt virtuos und seiner Zeit in jeder Hinsicht voraus ist, dass man nicht einmal Japaner sein muss um von seiner Aura und seiner überlebensgroßen Präsenz mitgerissen zu werden. Nakamura kann eine Halle mit seinem Charisma füllen und in der Hinsicht kann selbst Tanahashi, dessen bisherige Paradedisziplin das war, inzwischen nicht mehr mit ihm mithalten. Was das Können im Ring angeht ist die personifizierte Revolution des Strong Style ohnehin jedem Zweifel erhaben. Hart, aggressiv, agil, überraschend, unorthodox, explosiv und mit einem immer brennenden Funken Strong Style hat Nakamura in Form des KuneKune auch wrestlerisch etwas völlig Neues, nie Dagewesenes geschaffen, das aber doch irgendwie vertraut wirkt, das nicht gezwungen oder überfüllt wirkt, wie die Stile von beispielsweise Tanahashi und Okada und das ihn in seinem besten Alter bereits als zukünftige Legende designiert. Nebenbei einer der am bedachtesten agierenden Wrestler im Ring, die ich in etwas mehr als 30 Jahren Wrestling, gesehen habe, mit einem unheimlich guten Gespür für den Matchaufbau, psychologische und inszenatorische Aspekte."

[10.0] "Impressive Strong Style wrestler with a tone of Charisma. Have the ability to main event and create 30 min+ fight. His knee strikes are crazy and he can do some good mat wrestling . The most Charismatic Japanese wrestler by far."

[10.0] "Wow, der Kerl hat definitiv was drauf. Er ist wahnsinnig variabel und kommt aktuell so gut wie kein anderer bei den Fans an. Ich muss noch ein wenig mehr im Ring sehen, aber ich fühle bei ihm Star-Potenzial, welches ich lange nicht erlebt habe. UPDATE: Fast 3 Jährchen später muss man sagen: Shinsuke F*CKING Nakamura ist DER japanische Star der letzten Jahre. Ich sehe ihn noch vor Shibata, Tanahashi, Okada, ja sogar vor Honma (höhö). Dieses unendliche Charisma, vereinigt mit perfekten In-Ring-Performances wird wohl nur Shawn Michaels nachempfinden können. Strong-Style, Mat-Wrestling mit Submission-Variationen der Superlative, klassisches Puroresu, er verpackt einfach alles in einer charismatischen Allrounderbombe. Superintensiv, glaubhaft, variabel - einfach großartig in allen Belangen. Selten war ich mir so sicher, dass jemand die 10 verdient hat!"

[10.0] "Der andere beste Wrestler der Welt. Ich kann mich einfach nciht festlegen wer besser ist: Nakamura oder Tanahashi. Genau wie Tanahashi großartiger Wrestler, super Austrahlung und Charisma."

[10.0] "Shinsuke Nakamura is not just an ordinary Japanese talent who is really good in-ring, and has amazing technical ability. What separates Nakamura from other talent is the amazing amount of chrisma he conveys through large and big actions. As someone who does not speak Japanese an kind of interview means nothing to me as it just looks like people talking. But it is different with Nakamura because his body language tells a whole story in an interview. Nakamura does have amzing in-ring ability and is only out shined by his rival Hiroshi Tanahashi."

[9.0] "Einer der unterhaltsamsten Wrestler weltweit. Hervorragendes Entertainment, kann aber auch im Ring komplett überzeugen. Ist quasi das Komplettpaket, leider steht mir nur die Sprachbarriere im Weg."

[10.0] "In my opinion THE GREATEST and most entertaining wrestler in the world today! Other than the lame fake MMA matches he's having to do lately with the Gracies; every match this man is in is astounding! Never fails to get the crowd hyped and ALWAYS delivers!"

[10.0] "One of the greatest wrestlers in the world. it is a pity that he has not been able to make big matches in the early years because of the MMA explosion in japan."

[10.0] "Swagsuke~ Je mehr ich von Nakamura sehe, desto mehr gefällt mir sein Stil, sein Entrancetheme, sein Gimmick einfach alles. Da ich Puroresu erst seit knapp einem halben Jahr wieder verfolge und als ich damals aufgehört hatte nicht viel von ihm gesehen hatte kann ich sagen, dass er sich spätestens mit WK8 die volle Punktzahl verdient hat. YEAOH"

[10.0] "Shinsuke is a wonderful puro performer. He has tons of charisma, is superbly athletic, possibly more flexible than RVD, and knows how to put on a match. He's definitely one of the top three performers in NJPW right now, with Tanahashi and Okada."

[10.0] "In 20 years we'll look back and realise how absolutely insanely lucky we were to see such a worker with the combination of legit credentials, organic charisma, style and aesthetic personality and in-ring ability competing at his prime. Sometimes I jump on youtube just to watch his entrance at WrestleKingdom 8: it sums the man up - idiosyncratic, brilliant and unmissable. His ability to work with different styles is remarkable; sure he's had legendary encounters with Tanahashi, a fellow all-rounder, but he's had stellar encounters with Ibushi (high flyer), Sakuraba (shooter), Smith Jr (powerhouse) and Tenzan (brawler). If you could bottle what this man has then wrestlers would kill each other to get a sniff."

[10.0] "AN amazing character that translates perfectly in any language. Just amazing, every time."

[6.0] "Ist inzwischen ein grundsolider Wrestler, dessen Erfolg bei NJPW ich zwar nicht nachvollziehen, aber zumindest anerkennen kann. Als IC oder Tag Team-Champion prinzipiell machbar, darüber wird die Luft dann dünn."

[10.0] "I am very empressed with Shinsuke everytime I see him wrestle. Excellent wrestling and a great showman on top of it. Very entertaining at all times."

[10.0] "Easily my favourite Japanese wrestler of all time. In-ring, he is perfect, if you ever see a botch from Nakamura, he will immediately save the spot (watch any match with La Sombra). He has an incredible draw and following, somewhat of a cult-like figure for wrestling fans. Without a doubt, the best mic worker in the history of puro, and his dark, flamboyant character is insanely well delivered. Nakamura also sells better than most, and his hard-hitting style looks more legit than any wrestler I've ever seen. Not to mention, he gave incredible value to the IWGP Intercontinental Championship, and created CHAOS. This guy has all the potential to be the next Misawa or Kobashi, and I say that wholeheartedly."

[10.0] "Als reiner Wrestler war Shinsuke für mich schon die Nummer 1, als ich ihn 2008 zum ersten Mal sah. Seit dem Gimmick Wechsel blüht der einst doch recht fade Mann, nun schon seit Jahren ungemein auf! Shinsuke kann, wenn er will, jeden zu einem guten Match ziehen. Er tut dies zwar nicht immer und manchmal hat auch er mittelmässige Tage, doch für mich wird er immer der Hauptgrund bleiben, wieso ich mit dem Puroresu angefangen habe. Daher 10 hochverdiente Punkte für ihn!"

[10.0] "Nakamura ist neben Suzuki und Shibata einer der Haptgründe warum ich mir NewJapan ansehe. Ich finde dieses Gimmick einfach großartig. Dazu ist er eine Bombe im Ring und weiß wie man ein Match zu Worken hat. Sein Nakamura-Sleaze-Strongstyle ist einfach herrlich anzusehen. 10 Punkte "YAOOO ! ""

[10.0] "One of the best in the world right now, such great technique and wrestling skills. YEAOH!"

[7.0] "He was shoved down everyone's throats for a long while, but has recently embraced his inherent sleaziness and definitely upped his game. Always been good in the ring, and still appears to be improving."

[10.0] "Einer der besten Pro Wrestler die es derzeit auf diesem Planeten gibt und dank seiner gekonnten Mischung aus Nakamura-Sleaze und Topwrestlingkönnen auch ein Komplettpaket aus Charisma und In-Ring-Können. Einer der ganz großen Wrestler, die das New Japan-Produkt derzeit zum heißesten der Wrestlingwelt machen."

[10.0] "THE MAN! Es gibt einfach nichts, was an Strong Style Ou Nakamura Shinsuke rankommt. Egal gegen wen, diese Matches sind einfach PURE Unterhaltung. Es gibt nichts, was ich bei ihm beängeln kann. Bitte gib mir noch 8 Jahre, ich gucke zu!"

[9.0] "Steht nun mit Tanahashi in allen Bereichen auf einer Stufe! Diese Mischung aus Cooler Selbstsicherheit und ~Drunken Master~ ist wahrlich einmalig. Wrestlerisch gab es ja nie etwas zum meckern, wenn man richtig überlegt so hat Nakamura sein Wrestlingstil und sein Movearsenal immer seinem Gimicks und persönlichen Entwicklungen angepasst. Und in Kobination mit Vize Chaos Chef Yano gerade zu göttlich! Sein ganze Aussehen und Ausstrahlung schreit hier geradezu Anfüherer, Killer und Antiheld. Und ein sei von mir an dieser Stelle gesagt, wenn ein bestimmter "User" hier ihn als häßlichen Vogel bezeichnet, der soll bitte in den Spiegel gucken! Wenn Nakamura hässlich ist dann weiß ich nicht was der Herr Obermaker ist."

[8.0] "Sehr fähiger Kämpfer mit einzigartiger Ausstrahlung. Hat außerdem die coolste Einlaufmusik im gesamten Wrestlingbusiness."

[10.0] "Er liefert am Band Super Matches, mit allen seinen Match Gegnern und unterhält auf eine ganz andere art, als die meisten Japaner, außerdem hat er einen der Sickesten Finisher zurzeit im Buisness."

[10.0] "Um es direkt auf den Punkt zu bringen: Aktuell der beste Wrestler Japans! Die Art und Weise wie an Matches herangeht ist klasse. Gebt Nakamura 12 Minuten und er zeigt den Showstealer, gebt ihm 20+ Minuten und er zeigt das beste Match der Show, möglicherweise sogar einen MOTYC. Ein Wrestler, der mich noch nie gelangweilt hat, der mir noch nie ein schwaches Match präsentiert hat und ein Auftreten hat, das perfekt zu ihm passt. Es wirkt oft so, als würde er seinen Gegner nicht ernst nehmen und sich unterschwellig über ihn lustig machen, wenn es ihm dann zu viel wird gibt es ein dickes Knee oder einen harten Kick und es ist Ruhe. Shinsuke Nakamura ist einfach großartig und sollte wenn es nach mir geht, noch etwas weiter oben in der Hierachie stehen."

[10.0] "Nakamura ist, zusammen mit Tanahasi, einfach das Beste was NJPW zu bieten hat. Im Ring ist er sogar noch einen Tick besser als das Aushängeschild von New Japan und seine Art ist einfach unübertroffen cool. Einer der besten Wrestler der Welt."

[10.0] "Hat sich zu einem meiner Favoriten entwickelt! Absolut glaubwürdiger und begabter Fighter! Dazu ein Top Heel! Zu recht mit Titeln und Erfolgen belohnt!"

[10.0] "BOMA YE~ Seit seinem Wandel vom farblosen Face zu einem absolut eiskalten, emotionslosen Killer geht einfach kein Weg mehr an Nakamura vorbei. Brillanter Techniker der einfach gegen jeden ein tolles Match hinbekommt. Inzwischen absolut gleichauf mit Tanahashi wenn es um den Titel "Ace von New Japan" geht. UPDATE: Ist inzwischen dank seiner einzigartigen Sleaze(~) Aura zu einer absoluten Charisma EXPLOSION geworden. Sehe momentan kaum jemanden lieber im Ring."

[10.0] "Real Strong Style~! Shinsuke ist zu einem fantastischen Wrestler geworden. Er vereint Elemente des ursprünglichen Strong Style und des aktuellen japanischen Heavyweight Wrestling auf eine Art, wie es nicht möglich schien. Dazu kommt seine unnachahmliche Art, sich im Ring zu bewegen. Nakamuras Bewegungen wirken oft so, als nähme er seinen Gegner nicht ernst und mache sich ständig über sie lustig, doch dann schlägt er eiskalt zu. Japans bester Heavyweight neben Hiroshi Tanahashi."

[10.0] "Nakamura ist einer meiner japanischen Lieblingswrestler der Gegenwart. Er hat im Ring unglaubliche Qualitäten und ist ein verdammt realistischer Worker - selbst nach den in dieser Hinsicht hohen japanischen Maßstäben. Und anders als der von mir geschätzte Obermacker, sehe ich das nicht als Nachteil, sondern als eine von Nakamuras zwei herausragendsten Qualitäten. Realismus rult einfach! Die andere bemerkenswerte Eigenschaft von Nakamura ist jene, dass er der vermutlich beste Seller Japans ist. Sowohl was Körpersprache als auch die schmerzverzerrte Miene angeht, schafft Nakamura es, jede gegnerische Aktion super zu verkaufen, was wiederum auch die Manöver seiner Gegner realistischer wirken lässt. Mit seinem Gesamtsieg des diesjährigen G1 ist Nakamura nun einen wichtigen Schritt weitergegangen, sich als ernstzunehmende Größe im main event dauerhaft zu etablieren. Für mich ist Nakamura genau so, wie ein Wrestler sein sollte (unabhängig vom Stil): Er erzählt großartige Geschichten im Ring und schafft es, sich, seinen Gegner und das Match over zu bringen. Und das immer wieder und wieder. Für mich einer der Weltbesten!"

[9.0] "Nakamura ist nach Tanahashi die unangefochtene Nummer zwei im NJPW Roster. Er ist talentiert und zeigt haufenweise gute Matches."

[6.0] "Hab mir jetzt ein paar Matches von ihm reingezogen und abgesehen davon, dass er ein häßlicher Vogel ist, liegt mir sein No. nonsense-Stil überhaupt nicht. War sicherlich ein guter Amateur, aber seine Kniestöße als Trademarks sind sowas von unspektakulär, daß ich lieber anderen Japanern zusehe."

[10.0] "Excellent wrestler. He can put anybody over, excellent worker. Besides, he has a special attitude, charisma, something which makes him very class. One of my favourites."

[10.0] "Nakamura ist wahrhaftig ein Ausnahme Wrestler. Sehr gut im Ring und seit er der Leader von CHAOS ist, stimmt es auf einmal auch mit der Mimik und der Gestik."

[10.0] "Durch und durch einfach ein klasse Worker. Im Gesamtpaket vielleicht sogar meine Nummer 1 in Japan."

[7.0] "Finde ihn manchmal etwas lahm und auch etwas zu sehr beschränkt was seine Moves angeht."

[7.0] "Er ist ein toller Worker aber irgentwas stört mich an seiner Ausstrahlung. Das böse Gen. Hitler hatte es, Walt Disney hatte es und Bart Simpson und Shinsuke Nakamura haben es auch... ;)"

[8.0] "Guter und interressanter Wrestler. Der Finisher ist auch mal was anderes."

[9.0] "So wenig ich von den Main Stream Ligen in Japan gesehen habe, Shinsuke ist geil. Für mich ist er absolut klasse und seine Matches gegen Tanahashi oder auch Muto sind geil. Für die 10 Punkte muss ich aber noch mehr sehen."

[8.0] "Wrestling-Skills sehr gut, aber sein Gimmick geht nicht an mich. Sein "böser Blick" wirkt auf mich eher, als würde er gleich einpennen. Aber sei's drum: ein würdiger IGWP-Champion."

[10.0] "Freu mich sehr das er wieder IWGP Champion geworden ist. Nach seiner unglaublichen leistung im G1 Climax hat es es einfach verdient Champion zu werden."

[8.0] "Nach einem schwächeren Jahr 2008 wieder groß im Kommen. Hat in den letzten Monaten an Intensität zugelegt und teil mittlerweile gerade mit seinen (Knee) Kicks ganz amtlich aus. Wenn er so weitermacht, wird er Tanahashi auch wieder einholen."

[8.0] "2008 war sein Jahr und ich hoffe, dass ich dieser super Techniker sich 09 weiter weitentwickelt um seinen Main-Event Status endgültig zu festigen!"

[9.0] "Dank an Rancor und STRIGGA, könnte das gleiche nochmal schreiben, brauch ich jetzt aber nicht. THE NEW CHAMP of NJPW und sein Kampf gegen Angle könnte groß werden. ~Shinsuke~"

[10.0] "Steht zu Recht im Main Event und dürfte die kommenden Jahre in Japan zu großen Teilen mitbestimmen! Sein Erfolg als jüngster International World Grand Prix Champion aller Zeiten sagt eigentlich fast schon alles über ihn und wird ihm so schnell keiner streitig machen!"

[10.0] "Unglaublicher Wrestler. Für mich eines der Zukünftigen Aushängeschilder New Japans. Mag auf den ersten eindruck vielleicht nicht umbedingt stark wirken, überzeugt aber im Ring deutlich. In ein paar Jahren ist er mit sicherheit das Markenzeichen New Japans, solange er so weitermacht."

[8.0] "Also ich find ihn echt gut im Ring und bei seinem Cross Armbreaker marke ich jedesmal aus!"