While AEW’s Kazuchika Okada has officially been confirmed as Hiroshi Tanahashi’s final opponent, a surprising name from WWE reportedly wanted that honor — Shinsuke Nakamura.
According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, the former WWE Intercontinental Champion was interested in facing Tanahashi in the NJPW legend’s retirement match.
“Nakamura was interested in doing it,” Meltzer said. “I don’t know what happened. There’s a lot of stories going around. The only thing I know is that he obviously was interested because he did that thing a couple of weeks (at WWE’s Tokyo live event).”
Meltzer’s comment refers to a moment from WWE’s Tokyo Super Show in October 2025, where Nakamura addressed fans after his match and closed with Tanahashi’s iconic “Aishitemasu!” (“I love you”) catchphrase — a tribute that immediately sparked speculation among fans and wrestling media.
Meltzer added that Nakamura’s WWE deal contains a clause allowing him to wrestle outside the company under certain conditions — though WWE would still need to approve any appearance.
“I remember asking about it at the time from WWE and they just said that there’s no deal,” Meltzer noted. “But he does have something in his contract that he can do stuff, but they still have to approve it. So I don’t know where that stood or how it fell apart.”
Nakamura has been allowed to compete outside of WWE twice before, both times for Pro Wrestling NOAH — against The Great Muta in January 2023 and Ulka Sasaki in January 2025.
While NJPW reportedly discussed Nakamura as a “pipe dream” choice, the speculation officially ended on November 8, 2025, when AEW Unified Champion Kazuchika Okada made a surprise appearance at NJPW’s Road to Anjo event to challenge Tanahashi. The “Ace” accepted, confirming his retirement match for Wrestle Kingdom 20 on January 4, 2026.
