Was Shinsuke Nakamura's Win over John Cena Soiled by a Dangerous Suplex?

In a matter of seconds, Shinsuke Nakamura had both the best and worst moments of his WWE career.

Nakamura defeated John Cena Tuesday night on SmackDown Live, but not before dumping WWE's (and soon to be Hollywood's) franchise on the back of his head using a belly-to-back suplex. It was similar to the one that resulted in the death of Japanese wrestling legend Mitsuharu Misawa in 2009 when he was competing in a tag match Akitoshi Saito and Bison Smith.

This isn't the first time Nakamura has been a culprit in a wrestler-safety issue, as his stiff strike to Austin Aries at a live event in 2016 sidelined the former cruiserweight for several months. Aries drew attention to the unfortunate accident via Twitter in light of Cena's injury scare (h/t Wrestling Inc).

"

I feel ya @JohnCena. On the bright side, at least @ShinsukeN didn't break your eyehole too. #Respect #SmackDownLIVE pic.twitter.com/DSROzqqc02

— Austin Healy Aries (@AustinAries) August 2, 2017"

And as Nakamura prepares to battle Jinder Mahal for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam, Mahal, a world title and SummerSlam are the furthest things from the minds of wrestling fans as images of Cena landing on his surgically repaired neck remain vivid.

Nakamura's stiff suplex raised an issue that has bubbled underneath the surface of pro wrestling for quite some time. He comes from a world, in New Japan Pro Wrestling, where stiff strikes, holds and throws are lauded by hardcore wrestling fans—who represent most of the subscribers to WWE Network, which showed concerning signs of diminishing returns during the 2Q 2017 earnings report. 

Just days ago, at New Japan's G1 Climax, internet wrestling MVP Kenny Omega legitimately knocked out opponent EVIL, per Bryan Rose of F4WOnline, with a stiff knee called the V-Trigger.

Earlier this year, this same promotion saw an apparent career-ending headbutt from rising star Katsuyori Shibata, which was covered by Ian Williams of Vice, in a match against IWGP heavyweight champion Kazuchika Okada.

New Japan's strong, physical style has earned it endless praise among a niche fanbase as some of the best wrestling in the world. Meltzer, via YouTube, dubbed this year's G1 the best collection of matches in the storied history of the tournament while also expressing serious concern of the wear and tear among NJPW's athletes in a grueling gauntlet.

As the King of Strong Style, Nakamura might be defending his crown in all the wrong ways. Strong style can be as captivating and entertaining as it gets, but its influence on the independent and international scene comes with significant risk.

Former ROH champion Seth Rollins has come under fire in recent years, most notably via a series of scathing comments from wrestling legend Bret Hart (h/t William Windsor of Wrestling Inc), after having a hand in brutal injuries to Cena, Sting and Finn Balor. Sting was forced to retire after taking an awkward Buckle Bomb from Rollins, while Balor missed six months with a shoulder injury from the same move into a barricade.

Rollins himself was in danger of missing WrestleMania for the second successive year, per Meltzer on F4WOnline, after suffering a torn MCL during an attack conducted by fellow independent wrestling standout Samoa Joe.

It can be argued that, strictly from an in-ring standpoint, WWE has never had a more eclectic, talented roster. But when introducing strong style to a promotion that books more live events than any other, safety has to come first. 

Alfred Konuwa is a Featured Columnist and on-air host for Bleacher Report and Forbes. Like him on Facebook.