clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

WrestleMania program lists Shinsuke Nakamura as 'Nakamura'

The international superstar will be keeping at least part of his name when he makes his WWE debut this weekend.

Every year at WrestleMania and AXXESS, the official WWE program for the event is one of the top sellers of the weekend. It features the complete, current roster, with big photos of each WWE and NXT Superstar and is a ubiquitous item for people to get autographs on at AXXESS.

Since Shinsuke Nakamura is making his debut at NXT TakeOver: Dallas on Friday night and has already been announced as an AXXESS guest, it makes sense that he might pop up in this year's program. The AXXESS store in Dallas opened up on Thursday morning and sure enough, Nakamura is in there, listed under what would appear to be his official WWE name:

It's a move that makes sense for WWE, as it provides and easily-trademarked name while allowing them to keep Shinsuke's entire gimmick intact. It makes sense for Nakamura as well, since he would be free to move back to being "Shinsuke Nakamura" should his time in WWE ever come to an end.

The other notable thing about the program is that it lists Nakamura alongside other NXT talent. Since he's making his debut at an NXT event and not at WrestleMania, that's a bit of a no-brainer. I'm sure no one will read any more into that than is necessary. Nope. No sir.

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for the Cageside Seats Daily Roundup newsletter!

A daily roundup of all your pro wrestling news from Cageside Seats