Shinsuke Nakamura On His Match With Great Muta in Pro Wrestling NOAH, Being Surprised By It

Shinsuke Nakamura will travel to Pro Wrestling NOAH this weekend to face The Great Muta, and the WWE star recently discussed the match. The two will face off at NOAH’s The New Year 2023 show, and Nakamura spoke with NOAH’s YouTube channel for a new interview. You can check out the video (transcript by NOAH) below:

On his reaction to getting the match: “It was a surprise to me. Unbelievable, was my honest reaction that it actually came to real[ity]. I’ve been watching him since before I became a wrestler. He was an idol to me, first but as I became a wrestler, I no [longer] like that. Different from Keiji Muto, another personality of him. He has his own world and rhythm.”

On his match with Muta: “The fact that the name of Muta will never appear [in] the ring again [shows the] changing flow of time. The words…I don’t know how to express this in Japanese – neither in English, though. It is a major change.”

On working the match for NOAH as a WWE star: “It’s really an impossible situation to occur. Everything is special [about the match]. You know, this year, many people had passed away, or retired. In the midst of changing times this match miraculously took place. [Facing] Great Muta is surely a special match in every way. Of course I take it special, and it’s the Great Muta that I’m having [a] match with.

“It may not be the last match of his career, but it’s [a] great pleasure that he chose me as one of his last opponents. ‘Special’ is not enough for this match, but it is a miracle in the [diversity] of the generation.”