Since his debut on WWE Smackdown Live following WrestleMania 33, Shinsuke Nakamura has been competing in dark matches against Dolph Ziggler. For the past three weeks, Nakamura vs Dolph Ziggler has been the dark match main event following WWE Smackdown Live, and Nakamura has picked up the pin fall victory each time via the Kinshasa.
According to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE believes Nakamura is a strong enough draw that he will keep the crowd from leaving the arena following Smackdown and before 205 Live. The dark match main event role was previously played by John Cena, to keep the crowd around for 205 Live, and that role is now being filled by Nakamura.
Additionally, WWE currently views Nakamura as one of Smackdown Live’s key babyfaces, and he is expected to remain in that position moving forward.
