Early Wrestling Career
Shinsuke Nakamura was born in Kyoto, Japan, on February 24, 1980. He has been a wrestling fan his entire life and cites Jushin Liger as his favorite wrestler growing up. He is also an avid fan of surfing, and practices Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Shito-ryu karate.
In March 2002, Nakamura joined New Japan Pro Wrestling. He immediately impressed fans and higher-ups alike through his athleticism, technical skill, and charisma. On December 9, 2003, Nakamura defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and became the youngest wrestler in history to hold the title at just 23 years old.
In 2009, Nakamura turned heel and formed his own stable, Chaos. Some of NJPW’s biggest stars would soon join the faction as well, including Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, and Kazuchika Okada. The faction would become immensely popular despite their heelish nature.
IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Nakamura’s popularity continued to skyrocket and reached its peak during his reigns as IWGP Intercontinental Champion. He won the title for the first time on July 22, 2012, in a match against Hirooki Goto.
Nakamura would go on to hold the championship a total of five times and elevated its prestige to rival that of the Heavyweight Championship. At Wrestle Kingdom 8, the match between Nakamura and Hiroshi Tanahashi was chosen to main event over the IWGP Heavyweight Championship match between Kazuchika Okada and Tetsuya Naito.
NXT Debut
On April 1, 2016, Shinsuke made his eagerly-awaited NXT debut in a critically acclaimed match against Sami Zayn. Shinsuke was immediately treated with the glamor of a top star and his magnetism made him an instant fan favorite.
On August 20, 2016, Shinsuke defeated Samoa Joe at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II to become NXT Champion. However, Shinsuke wouldn’t be staying in NXT for very long; just about a year after his debut on the developmental brand, Shinsuke said farewell to the NXT faithful on April 12, 2017.
The King Of Strong Style
Shinsuke made his WWE main roster debut on the April 4, 2017 episode of Smackdown Live. He quickly rose to the top of the mountain in WWE thanks to his enigmatic charisma and his iconic theme song. Shinsuke won the 2018 Royal Rumble less than a year after his main roster debut. He immediately called his shot for AJ Styles’ WWE Championship, but unfortunately came up short at WrestleMania 34.
Though Nakamura has yet to become a world champion in WWE, he has collected an impressive amount of accolades over the course of his career; he is a two-time United States Champion, a two-time Intercontinental Champion, and a former Smackdown Tag Team Champion. His iconic WWE theme song was also sampled on Lil Uzi Vert’s 2023 song, “Nakamura.”
On August 4, 2023, Shinsuke shocked the WWE universe by turning heel and attacking the World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins. This brought out a vicious, sadistic side to the King of Strong Style that fans just can’t turn away from.
