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WWE: AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura Must Wait for WrestleMania 34

By Rob Wolkenbrod

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WWE reportedly may not wait to do AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura, but it’s better saved for the Grandest Stage of Them All.

WWE looked like it would save Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship, for the WrestleMania 34 main event. However, with Reigns announcing his spot as the No. 1 contender to the title for SummerSlam, along with the Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s report of this match getting moved up to the August show, that no longer seems to be the case.

This may not be the only WrestleMania 34 match moved up, though, as a recent edition of Wrestling Observer Live reported AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for SummerSlam. It’s a second marquee bout for the show, which could easily be a co-main event for the Show of Shows.

If true, WWE is going all in on SummerSlam. Reigns vs. Lesnar is a strong main event that can carry the card, due to the marketability both these names have. WWE can always adjust the main event of WrestleMania 34, too, while still working Reigns and Lesnar into it.

However, there’s a difference with Styles vs. Nakamura. While it would easily fill in as the second-most hyped match on the SummerSlam card, WWE is better off saving it for April 2018.

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Styles vs. Nakamura was seen at New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Wrestle Kingdom 10 in 2016, which was a first-time-ever encounter. It produced a top-flight match, with these two battling in one of the most anticipated contests of the year. This felt special and a must-watch, having an appropriate amount of buildup.

In the WWE, the time and place for the biggest fights of the year is WrestleMania. While this strategy has somewhat been avoided (see John Cena’s WrestleMania 33), it’s been done for decades, including the Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock matches at WrestleMania 15 and 17. The crowd was behind these matches and stuck around for the lengthy build to Austin and Rock’s first bout at the Grandest Stage of Them All. Given the popularity around Nakamura and Styles, fans may stick around for nine months to drool over the idea of these two wrestling.

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Is this too much, too soon for the King of Strong Style, too? His main roster stint only started in April, with him having just one singles bout at a pay-per-view. He also worked just one feud, so would jumping into a Styles program just four months in be worth it?

WWE would also sacrifice depth for WrestleManai 34, at least with one of its big-name matches. It can be replaced, but will it be difficult for WWE to replace the crowd reaction Styles and Nakamura received at Money in the Bank, for something else that the fans may not be as interested in? Something storyline-based, much like the WrestleMania 33 card was full of, rather than a mix of “dream” matches and stories, would potentially fill the void.

Styles vs. Nakamura sounds like a desperate attempt at a ratings boost, too. TV ratings were bad for most of 2017. SmackDown Live struggled to stay above two million views after the Superstar Shakeup, losing one million viewers from April 11 to June 13. They had 2.6 million for the June 27 show, but that’s still not a consistent number for the WWE.

By installing big-name feuds, the company could hope that the viewership total rises. It may just be a quick fix, though, with the “money” plans being used to salvage today to sit on tomorrow. That has the chance of leaving the same issue for WWE in the spring of 2018, unless there’s a backup plan.

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WWE should leave Styles vs. Nakamura alone for WrestleMania 34. If Reigns vs. Lesnar isn’t being saved, though, then this match likely won’t, either.