Jim Ross Says He Told Triple H To Target This Japanese Talent And Future WWE Star

As the former Head of Talent Relations for WWE, Jim Ross has a keen eye for talent and can be credited for bringing performers into the company who have since gone on to become household names. So much so that even when he wasn't working for WWE, he still called Triple H to tell him about someone he thought would be a good fit for the promotion. During a conversation on his "Grilling JR" podcast, Ross recalled doing some commentary work for New Japan Pro Wrestling, where he believed that Kazuchika Okada and Shinsuke Nakamura were the two best wrestlers on the show. While Okada was being groomed to be NJPW's next top star at the time, Ross knew that Nakamura had something special. 

"I remember talking to Triple H and said, 'Man you need to get all over this Nakamura dude,'" Ross said. "I said, 'He's got a little Freddie Mercury in him. He's got a killer wrestler in him. He's got great facials. He's in great shape. He's not too old.' So eventually, down the road, we see that Shinsuke is a member of the team and does a hell of a job."

Nakamura eventually joined WWE in 2016 as part of the "NXT" brand, which Triple H was booking at the time. He won the "NXT" Championship twice in his first year with the company before moving to the main roster in 2017, where he has since won both the WWE Intercontinental Championship and United States Championship twice, as well as the 2018 Royal Rumble.

Please credit "Grilling JR" when using quotes from this article, and give a H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.