When news came out that Shinsuke Nakamura would wrestle The Great Muta at Pro Wrestling NOAH’s The New Year 2023 event on January 1 at Budokan Hall, it came as quite a shock to fans. The WWE superstar himself was pretty chuffed to get the green light for this bout, considering the company’s stance on partnering with perceived rivals.
Speaking to Yahoo Sports recently, Nakamura talked about the upcoming ‘dream match,’ opining that Vince McMahon had actually rejected his plea to face Muta. However, everything changed when the long-time Chairman and CEO of WWE had to resign due to the massive scandal.
The former NXT champion said:
“I was like, ‘No way.’ I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t think it would happen. It was something that would never have happened under the previous structure of the WWE. Noah came to me with the idea, and we discussed it, but my answer was no. Vince stepped down in the summer, and I was advised by people within the company that it might be possible now. I still thought it would be difficult, but I even talked directly to Triple H (WWE’s vice president). When the decision was actually made, I was shaken. There was a big change in the WWE between when Mutoh announced his retirement and when the match was decided. Vince, who was the symbol of everything, was retiring, and that was something that no one could believe. Everything changes in America when the top changes. At that time, there was a feeling that many things would change in the future. One of the changes that occurred to me was this. The fact that ‘no’ became ‘yes’ gave me a boost.”
