Heading into Survivor Series, one of the final matches added to the card was Shinsuke Nakamura versus LA Knight for the United States Championship.

On paper, this felt like a very meh match simply added to pad out a card without the WWE Champion, Cody Rhodes, defending his strap; after spending months away, Nakamura returned to WWE with a new look and a disappointingly altered theme song. He turned his attention to Knight, hit him with the mist for good measure on the go-home edition of SmackDown, and got a title match as he often does, serving his role as a mid-reign mid-boss due to his pedigree in New Japan, in NXT, and on the main roster.

And yet, as the match went on and entered into its final frame, something curious happened that few fans expected: Nakamura secured the win.

That's right, in an outcome that few saw coming, Nakamura nailed Knight with a Kinshasa from behind and pinned the “Megastar” for the 1-2-3, being announced as the new United States Champion as the crowd went notably silent, clearly stunned by the match's outcome.

Did Paul “Triple H” Levesque make the right call giving the strap to the “King of Strong Style?” Well, while it's hard to say what “The Game” has planned for his new champion, it's hard to see this as being a positive development for the Blue Brand, especially since fans have already been voicing their displeasure with the outcome of the match on social media.

WWE fans are mixed on Shinsuke Nakamura beating LA Knight

When the news officially became official on social media, with WWE and its affiliates sharing the news, some, like James Garrett, took to the WresteTalk post to air their displeasure with the announcement, as he believes the build was too short to justify a title change.

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“They gave Shinsuke Nakamura the United States Title after a 3-week thrown together feud with LA Knight,” Garrett wrote. “Lame.”

Others, like Pro Wrestling Finesse, noted that while they are fine with the outcome of the match, they didn't like who defeated him, noting that it would have been nice to see either Andrade or Carmelo Hayes pull out the win.

“I'm happy for Shinsuke but disappointed for Carmelo Hayes & Andrade,” Pro Wrestling Finesse wrote. “It should've been one of them to dethrone LA Knight for the work they were putting in.”

Should WWE have pulled the trigger on a “young” star like Andrade or Hayes, who are earlier in their runs than the returning Nakamura? Maybe so, but others believe the move is actually designed to help out Knight, not end his push for Nakamura. Why? Because now he can take a shot at the main event scene.

“Absolutely the right call,” Gorilla Position noted. “A vital win for Shinsuke, his first PLE victory in YEARS, and a decision that sets LA Knight free to tear it up in the main event, exactly where he belongs!!”

Is Gorilla Position on the money? Will LA Knight now get to take a shot at Cody Rhodes or Gunther on RAW? Maybe yes, maybe no – neither of those matches makes much sense, to be honest – but either way, the outcome of this contest certainly got fans talking, which might have been the intention of Triple H and company all along.