Rei Tsuruya breaks silence following major Shinsuke Nakamura appearance outside WWE
UFC flyweight prospect Rei Tsuruya broke his silence following Shinsuke Nakamura's appearance outside WWE. Nakamura was one of Tsuruya's cornermen for his fight at UFC 303 against Carlos Hernandez.
The 22-year-old MMA fighter came out to Nakamura's iconic theme music and even did his pose after beating Hernandez via unanimous decision. Tsuruya improved to 11-0 as a professional and continues building up his resume and rankings.
In his post-fight press conference, Tsuruya was asked about the influence of the WWE Superstar in his career. Nakamura is good friends with the young star's father and had a 3-1 record as an MMA fighter before becoming a full-time professional wrestler. Rei was filled with gratitude for the wrestling veteran's support and was in awe of him.
"He definitely supported me a lot the last couple of days. He's been very, very supportive. He's such a superstar, but here for me, I'm just so honored and so thankful," Tsuruya said. [H/T: Cageside Press]
WWE Superstar Shinsuke Nakamura making an appearance in the UFC as a cornerman is no longer a surprise considering both entities are under the same parent company – TKO Group Holdings, Inc. The wrestling promotion was bought by Endeavor last year and merged with Ultimate Fighting Championship to form one conglomerate.
Shinsuke Nakamura wants to stay with WWE
Despite what fans perceive as bad booking of Shinsuke Nakamura over the years, The King of Strong Style loves his job with WWE. Nakamura told Aaron Bronsteter of TSN after UFC 303 that he's happy with the company and wants to continue wrestling for the promotion.
"Oh, yeah. So I've been wrestling over eight years right now. So I want to keep wrestling in WWE. Also, I give the fans more like a dream. So that's what I want to do. So I want to show my passion. So also I brought the Japanese style to WWE, but still I think I've not accomplished. So still I'm challenging, keep challenging," Nakamura said.
Shinsuke Nakamura has not wrestled on WWE television since losing to Sheamus on the April 22 edition of RAW. Nakamura remains active and has been exclusively wrestling on live events and dark matches for the last two months. He has wrestled stars such as Cody Rhodes, Braun Strowman, and LA Knight.