5 Independent Wrestlers Who Should Stay Away from WWE

1. Kazuchika Okada | PWI Rank: 1 | Age: 29

At 29 years old Okada is the best wrestler in the world according to Pro Wrestling Illustrated.

Okada started in New Japan in 2007 and stayed with the company until 2010 when he left to come stateside and wrestle for Total Nonstop Action for a year, before returning to Japan where he’s been ever since. Since his return, Okada has become a three-time IWGP Champion and two-time G1 Climax winner. Not to mention being one-half of one of the greatest wrestling trilogy’s ever, Omega vs. Okada.

Okada is the current IWGP Champion and is on top the world in New Japan. Okada is the main attraction for NJPW and is the company’s top babyface.

While he’s a great in-ring worker, sometimes the Japanese style and pace don’t translate well to WWE. Another thing that could potentially hold Okada up is his inability to speak English well. He does an okay job, but he’s nowhere near ready to cut 10-15 minute promos. The same problem Shinsuke Nakamura has and Yoshi Tatsu had.

Now in-ring talent, Tatsu, and Okada are nowhere near the same. Okada is the superior wrestler, but Tatsu suffered from the same problem Okada might, only being able to speak broken English.

It’s not a huge problem, in fact, it’s a rather easy hurdle to jump, pair him up with a manager. It doesn’t have to be Paul Heyman, in fact, it shouldn’t be, but should Okada make the move to WWE, they should invest enough in him to give him a good mouthpiece.

However, Okada has everything he needs in Japan. His style, mostly because that’s the only style he knows, works there. He is already incredibly over with the fans there, and everyone comes to see him. One of the biggest problems WWE has right now is too many big names vying for the top spot. Too many big stars, and not enough time to get them all on TV. So some guys get pushed down the card even though the WWE Universe love them, e.g. Sami Zayn.

In Japan, Okada only has a few names to contend with, Omega being the biggest one.