WWE WrestleMania 34: Reliving AJ Styles Versus Shinsuke Nakamura I

With their epic second encounter all but set, let’s take a look at the previous battle between Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles.

On Sunday night, Shinsuke Nakamura, although considered somewhat of a favorite, still somewhat shocked the world when he outlasted 29 other superstars and punched his ticket to WrestleMania as he captured the 2018 Royal Rumble match.

Entering at number 14, “The King of Strong Style” survived nearly 45 minutes, eliminated three men including John Cena and Roman Reigns, and took home by far his biggest accomplishment as a member of the main roster. And after it’s conclusion, Nakamura delighted the fans even further when he made his intentions clear that he’d be opting to challenge AJ Styles for the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania 34.

The reason for the extra excitement for a potential Styles/Nakamura showdown is not just because of what a match between the two would produce between the ropes, but the history involved with the pairing. It’s been pretty evident for awhile that the WWE fans have wanted to see Styles and Nakamura rekindle their rivalry and if their encounter at last years Money in the Bank didn’t prove that, then nothing will. Check it out:

So why all the excitement? Well it was just two years ago that Styles and Nakamrua took part in their only ever one on one match with each other. Battling it out at Wrestle Kingdom 10 under the New Japan Pro Wrestling banner, the two legends put on a stunning display of pro wrestling.

And the match was played up perfectly. Styles, who’d been in NJPW at that point in time for about two years after being one of TNA’s greatest superstars of all-time, had done more in that short time frame that most do in a life time in that company. He was already a two-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion and had defeated the likes of Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi, Tetsuya Naito, and Minoru Suzuki. Essentially the Murderer’s Row of of the NJPW roster.

The one person he’d never faced was Nakamura. “The Rockstar”, a three time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, five-time Intercontinental Champion, and the winner of the 2011 G1 Climax, was really the only hurdle that Styles hadn’t jumped. The match was billed how it should have been, a battle of two outright legends and were booked as the pre-main event to the Heayweight title match that night.

Photo by WWE’s Twitter

Nakamura’s track record at that time for producing amazing matches was about as strong as there was. His wars with Tanahashi, Okada, Ibushi, and Tomohiro Ishii over the course of his near 15 years with the company are about as impressive as anyone in NJPW history. And Styles was in the same boat but just in a much shorter amount of time. So there was absolutely no doubt that what would take place in Tokyo on that evening was going to be special.

But what took this match to another level was the ramifications of the aftermath. Styles had given his notice to the company the morning of Wrestle Kingdom that he had signed with the WWE and the following day would be his final bout. And after the event was over it was then reported that Nakamura too was headed to the WWE and he wrestled his last match about three weeks later. The fact that they both knew that this would be their last big bout for NJPW seemed to spark the duo another level and the result was just magical.

Simply put, Styles and Nakamura are custom made for each other in the ring. They both employ a stiff striking game with an array of power and athleticism that is rare in any wrestler, let alone two that are battling each other. And over the course of 24 hard hitting minutes, they managed to put on a near masterpiece battling over Nakamara’s Intercontinental belt.

With an array of clever sequences and smart psychology, the pairing had the 25,000 in attendance on the edge of their seats. And the finish was just perfect as Styles tried to use a cheap, heel tactic that worked on the baby face Nakamura earlier in the match, but wouldn’t the second time around as the champ put away Styles with his patented Kinshasa knee strike.

And in the ultimate show of respect, AJ and Shinsuke sat in the center of the ring for minutes after the match before finally sharing a fist bump as respect for such an important match.

Next: The Best Of The Men's Royal Rumble

So in the the two years since this match, most fans believed that a rematch could one day be a reality. And it appears that the reality will be played out on April 8th in New Orleans. Unfortunately we’re still ten weeks away from the biggest show of the WWE year, so there’s always the chance that things could go south due to injury or useless booking but if this match goes down as planned, expect more of the same from these two warriors and expect the clear cut match of the night at Wrestlemania 34.