Sami Zayn will be in the biggest match of his life Sunday night, when he faces Intercontinental champion Kevin Owens, Dolph Ziggler, Zack Ryder, Sin Cara, Stardust and the Miz in a seven-man ladder match with the title on the line before a possible 100,000-plus fans at WrestleMania 32.
As if seeing if he could ward off the competition to snag rival Owen's strap wasn't enough pressure, Zayn is also pulling double duty this weekend. As already announced by William Regal, Zayn will be competing at the NXT TakeOver Dallas event Friday night against a WWE-debuting international superstar — Japanese sensation Shinsuke Nakamura.
Although Nakamura signed with NXT in late February, WWE has kept its latest signee under wraps, waiting for the right moment to break him loose in front of the masses. What better platform to do just that than the weekend of the "Grandest Stage of Them All" and against a WrestleMania 32 competitor in Zayn?
From the following footage, which WWE uploaded to its YouTube account Friday, we get a glimpse of Nakamura's dynamic ring style, watching him deliver everything from a dropkick to a leaping knee drop and spinning kick with slick agility and plenty of swagger. From these highlights alone, you can see that the "King of Strong Style" has plenty of charisma, which should be on full display Friday night against Zayn.
For what it's worth, Sami is more than impressed.
"Nakamura — I know exactly how gifted he is, I know how great he is, but you only get one chance at a first impression in Dallas," Zayn says in the clip. "Let's see if he's got what it takes to step up to the plate when the pressure's on."
Upon announcing Nakamura's signing with WWE, Triple H sounded as if landing the international sensation was a coup for the company.
"Talent is the lifeblood of our company, and the signing of Shinsuke Nakamura further demonstrates NXT's commitment to bringing in the best talent from all over the world," Triple H said in February. "His explosive style will make an immediate impact to an already dynamic NXT men's division."
That would especially be the case if he can get a win over Zayn.
It would be interesting to see if any of Zayn's competitors in the ladder match help Nakamura get that first victory at Sami's expense.
