WWE Extreme Rules 2018: 3 reasons why Shinsuke Nakamura should win

1. Nakamura needs this

I must admit, I was worried about Nakamura after Money in the Bank. He was coming off of yet another main roster championship defeat and I was concerned that he was going to enter Dolph Ziggler/Bray Wyatt territory. By that, I mean that I thought that Nakamura would receive the unfortunate “choker label”. His interview with Renee Young the following Tuesday on SmackDown Live temporarily assuaged my anxieties.

(By the way, I can’t heap enough praise on Young as a backstage interviewer. She has helped enhance Nakamura’s character with her reactions and facial expressions to his answers. She understands that the little things can mean so much. Unlike the other main roster interviewers, aside from Charly Caruso, she comes across like an actual person. She’s great.)

Nakamura has recovered well from his losses to Styles thanks to his strong character work. However, if he fails to capture the U.S. Title on Sunday, it won’t matter how entertaining he is.

WWE created this problem when tey brought Nakamura up to SmackDown last year. They put him in unspectacular feuds with Ziggler and Baron Corbin before attempting to use his cache to get Mahal over as a main eventer (spoiler: it didn’t work). After watering him down for months, the heel turn finally got Nakamura on track. If he loses to Hardy, all that momentum goes away and fas will view him as a flake that can’t win when it counts (like Ziggler and Wyatt).

Next: 3 Biggest Storylines For Extreme Rules

Simply put, Hardy can survive a loss. Nakamura can’t. He needs this title to remain viable on SmackDown.