Who are these people? Shinsuke Nakamura is one of NJPW's top stars, right up there with Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada. The latter 3 consists of the new leader (after Balor left) and founding members of Bullet Club, a major and popular heel faction in NJPW. So why is it big news? WWE spent top money to acquire all 4 talents right after a major PPV that was seen internationally. And unlike Finn Balor and Samoa Joe, Nakamura and Styles are reportedly skipping NXT and going straight to the main roster. Gallows and Anderson will most likely go to NXT to be a part of Balor Club.
It is a big shakeup in wrestling news. While fans get frustrated with WWE's product from time to time, such as not fully utilizing their most diverse and stacked roster as of late and booking their superstars poorly, they are making major progress behind the scenes that is going to really pay off in the next few years.
- They are signing on more notable indie wrestlers to their brand. Look at a small portion of their current roster; Jon Moxley, Tyler Black, Kevin Steen, El Generico, Claudio Castagnoli, Uhaa Nation, etc. They are now under the WWE brand. That's not including the indie wrestlers that have yet to make their NXT TV debut.
- They are signing on more international talents to help appeal to a broader audience outside of the US. Fergal Devitt, KENTA, Kana, and now Nakamura are covering the Japan market. They also have India and German talents at the Performance Center.
- They have a working relationship with other smaller wrestling promotions to help develop potential talent that will go up to NXT or the main roster. WWE is working exclusively with EVOLVE and there have been WWE scouts present at PWG shows looking for new talent.
NJPW might have lost their 2 of their top stars for now but they'll be fine. Bullet Club had a major development following Wrestle Kingdom 10. Now it all depends on how WWE will pull this off. There's also a slew of injured talent that will be making their return this year, such as Rollins, Cesaro, Zayn, and Itami. WWE is going to have seriously consider a brand split with their roster.
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Last night's RAW was enjoyable. While there was a small development in the feuds with Ambrose vs Owens (who was amazing at commentary), Becky vs Charlotte (who officially turned heel), and a returning Chris Jericho, the most development happened with Reigns. Firstly, Reigns was put into another title match against Sheamus with Vince McMahon as the ref, where it goes exactly as one would expect. Reigns retains and humiliates Stephanie and Vince again, who then declares that for Reigns' punishment, he'll have to defend his title again at the Royal Rumble... in the Royal Rumble.
If Reigns retains, that means he wins the Royal Rumble again, and there's no way that he'll get booed at his home state of Florida. If Reigns loses, that person becomes the new champ AND headlines Wrestlemania, which is great news, except for the fact that Reigns is going to use his rematch clause to get his title back either before or during Wrestlemania. Regardless of what happens after Royal Rumble, Reigns is continously going to be booked being screwed over from the Authority while simultaneously remaining WWE's top tier wrestler (even more than Cena and Lesnar).
Reigns is over, there's no doubt about that. The problem is that Reigns is the only one getting this push.
Reigns is over, there's no doubt about that. The problem is that Reigns is the only one getting this push.
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