Shinsuke Nakamura sends message ahead of clash with 34-year-old superstar on WWE RAW
Shinsuke Nakamura has delivered an interesting message ahead of tonight's episode of WWE RAW in Utah.
The King of Strong Style has been involved in a rivalry with Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship in recent weeks on the red brand. Rollins defeated Nakamura at WWE Payback to retain the title, but the challenger unleashed an attack on the champion after the match to extend their rivalry.
Last week on RAW, Nakamura attacked former Intercontinental Champion Ricochet backstage as a way to get inside Rollins' head. Nakamura has made the World Heavyweight Champion's back injury public knowledge in recent weeks and has successfully been playing mind games with The Visionary as of late.
Ahead of tonight's show, WWE's official Instagram account uploaded a video of Nakamura arriving at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City. The veteran appeared to be in a jovial mood for tonight's RAW and mentioned Ricochet during his comments before the show. The two stars are scheduled to battle each other in a singles match tonight on the red brand.
WWE legend claims Shinsuke Nakamura is not "championship material"
Hall of Famer Teddy Long does not believe Shinsuke Nakamura has what it takes to be the World Heavyweight Champion.
Nakamura won the Royal Rumble match in 2018 and battled AJ Styles for the WWE Championship. Styles picked up the victory, and Nakamura turned heel after the match. The veteran is a great in-ring talent but has not become a main eventer on the main roster.
Speaking on Sportskeeda's The Wrestling Time Machine, Teddy Long praised Shinsuke Nakamura as a wrestler but doesn't think the 43-year-old possesses the star power to be a major champion in the company.
"Don't get me wrong. Shinsuke is a great wrestler. But I just don't see him being championship material. Maybe this is just my feeling about it. When you put a title on somebody, there has to be a lot of charisma; there needs to be a lot of excitement. And he has some of that. But like I said, I could be wrong, but I don't see them putting the title on him," said Teddy Long. [7:32 - 7:57]
You can check out the full video below:
Shinsuke Nakamura joined WWE in 2016 and has had an impressive career with the company so far. It will be interesting to see if he gets another shot at Seth Rollins' World Heavyweight Championship in the weeks ahead.
Would you like to see a rematch between Seth Rollins and Shinsuke Nakamura? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.