WWE: 3 IC Title opponents for Shinsuke Nakamura after Extreme Rules win

Ali

It makes more sense for Ali to bring his story full circle with Kofi Kingston by feuding with the WWE Champion at SummerSlam, but an Intercontinental Championship feud with Shinsuke Nakamura could be just as captivating in terms of in-ring quality.

Nakamura and Ali have completely different styles. Ali is a high-flier who starred on 205 Live, while Nakamura has earned the moniker “The King of Strong Styles” for a reason. That said, both men share a key similarity, in that they are masters of in-ring psychology, and heel Nakamura vs. babyface Ali could be one of the best Intercontinental Championship rivalries in a long time.

The IC Title is in need of a feud between two of the very best wrestlers in the business, much like 2018’s back-and-forth matches on Raw between Seth Rollins and Finn Balor. But unlike that “rivalry”, an Ali vs. Nakamura program would have richer story-telling with the actual matches coming more sparingly but perhaps more purposefully.

Ali can have a great match with anyone on the roster, but an Intercontinental Title match at, say, SummerSlam could be just as good as any of his matches on 205 with the likes of Cedric Alexander, Buddy Murphy, and Hideo Itami.