Ulka Sasaki Recounts Conversation With Shinsuke Nakamura That Led To Him Pursuing Pro Wrestling Career
The quick chat with Nakamura encouraged Sasaki to pursue a wrestling career.
In January 2023, WWE’s Shinsuke Nakamura ventured over to Pro Wrestling NOAH to face Keiji Muto (The Great Muta) during Muto’s retirement tour. Their match took place at the yearly NOAH The New Year event, and Nakamura came out on top.
One of the people in attendance at the show was former UFC fighter and current NOAH wrestler Ulka Sasaki. At the time, Sasaki had not made his pro wrestling in-ring debut, and it was at that NOAH show where he spoke to Nakamura, which led him to pursue a career in wrestling. Sasaki told Rolling Stone Japan the following:
“Up until then, I’d been fighting in RIZIN, so I was wondering, ‘Who’s my next opponent?’ But then I saw the match between Shinsuke Nakamura and Muta and I was like, ‘Wow! They can make matches like that!’ I wanted to go backstage, but I couldn’t. I was wondering what to do when I ran into an old acquaintance I hadn’t seen in ages. They asked, ‘Wanna come backstage?’ I was like, ‘Huh? Seriously?’ So I went backstage, and Shinsuke Nakamura was there too. I shook his hand and said, ‘Shinsuke, that was incredible!’ He replied, ‘So, when are you gonna do it?’ That’s when I thought, ‘Ah, I guess I’m going to do pro wrestling.’”
Sasaki said it was that same year when he got in contact with an old elementary school classmate, and they went to retrieve time capsules that they buried when they were children. Sasaki’s note had to do with him becoming a pro wrestler.
“Fate really does come down to us, and that fall, I contacted a classmate and we went to open a time capsule I’d buried in elementary school. When I opened it, it said, ‘Did you become a pro wrestler?’ I was a huge fan of Keiji Muto, and Muto retired in the year written on the time capsule (2023). I was like, ‘Holy crap! What is this!?'”
Sasaki went one-on-one with Nakamura at NOAH The New Year 2025. In early January 2026, Sasaki announced that he’ll be going on excurison in the USA.
