The WCW Cruiserweight division was one of the highlights of the company. In WWE, or rather while it was known as WWWF under the. In the 90s, smaller wrestlers who relied on high flying moves were considered lower level talent, so when WCW created their Cruiserweight Division it was considered ground-breaking. This was result of a 3 Way Match, also including Disco Inferno and took place on a episode of WCW Thunder. A World Heavyweight Champion and a main event star with the WWE, he can trace his success back to his early days in the WCW Cruiserweight Division. Through a working agreement with Michinoku Pro, Taka and a few. WCW did not necessarily brew this division themselves. 1 Brian Pillman vs. Jushin Thunder Liger (September 4th, 1995) The best match of the first ten WCW Monday Nitro's came as the first match on the first show. Once Vince Russo left WCW's creative process in November 2001, there was an immediate re-dedication to what made WCW stand out in the Monday Night Wars. The WCW Cruiserweight Championship was an exception to this, as it was renamed the WWE Cruiserweight Championship replaced WWE's own Light Heavyweight Championship. we can't wait to see you on site for tonights big match. The two had a fantastic, fast-paced match. One of the key components to WCW's success was the Cruiserweight division. Eric Bischoff has explained the reasons behind creating WCW's Cruiserweight division that set the wrestling world alight in the mid-nineties. The WCW World Cruiserweight Championship and the matches contested for that title had always been a unique feature on WCW programming. The Cruiserweight Division is highly underrated & it could be so much more For the most part people saw the cruiserweight division as a demotion, but there is lowkey potential in elevating the Cruiserweight Championship. Aside from the unique, protruding horns on his mask, Psicosis' ring attire often changed color schemes, making him stand-out during his matches. In conclusion, WCW has the best Cruiserweight/Lightweight Division of the two. The Cruiserweight division in WCW shined a spotlight on future main event talents in the industry such as Chris Jericho, Eddie Guerrero, and Rey Mysterio. Little did they know, as they were. On August 26, 1996, Juventud Guerrera officially debuted on WCW Nitro, besting future Raven's Flock member Billy Kidman.From there, Guerrera became a prominent competitor in the company's cruiserweight division, which featured wrestlers up to 220 lbs. Juventud Guerrera's Leap to WCW. The Cruiserweight division would have been the forefront to the style TNA would use with the X-Division and ROH would implore from its talent a year later in 2002. However, back in those days, they were not utilized as Main Event players rather, they were seen as strong opening acts or middle of the acts. Kidman added to Rey's statement by specifying how the cruiserweight division was hitting its peak just before WCW closed its doors permanently. Shinjiro is still continuing to wrestle occasionaly, with his last match taking place in 2021. 11 of 16. After the Cruiserweight division gained popularity on Nitro in WCW, the WWF's answer was a light heavyweight tournament in 1997. 2. The first champion was crowned in a four-woman tournament that . As this title was defended in WCW it ultimately fell on some tough times, but still was the center piece to some of my favorite feuds growing up. Two cruiserweights who formed a friendship and would go on to be pillars of the division, they meshed well stylistically and became a decorated tandem, capturing WCW tag team gold in March 1999. Peter Alan Gruner Jr. [citation needed] (born May 11, 1974) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Billy Kidman.He is currently employed by the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as a producer.. As a wrestler, Kidman is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment (WWF/E) throughout the late . During the infamous "Monday Night War" of the 1990s, WCW needed a way to stand out as a different form of wrestling entertainment than its monstrous predecessor, the World Wrestling Federation. Either lure away some WCW Cruiserweights. The WWF needs to do one of 3 things: 1. After the Cruiserweight division gained popularity on Nitro in WCW, the WWF's answer was a light heavyweight tournament in 1997. The WCW Cruiserweight Division would often kick off the show during Nitro's best era. Bischoff explained the cruiserweights were critical to the success of Nitro in the ratings war against Raw as WCW won the ratings battle for 84 straight weeks over WWE. During the latest episode of the 83 Weeks Podcast, Eric Bischoff talked about the WCW Cruiserweight division and how important it was to WCW Monday Nitro's success. Chavo Guerrero won the Cruiserweight . Juventud Guerrera V. Blitzkrieg. During the WWE brand extension, it was the only title to be exclusive to the SmackDown! Side note: WCW really struck gold with their Cruiserweight division when it was at its peak. Brian Damage The recent addition of the Cruiserweight division to the WWE has resurrected the company's interest in light heavyweight superstars. What made WCW's cruiserweight division so great is exactly what made New Japan Pro Wrestling's early 90s Junior Heavyweight scene and WWE's current Cruiserweight Classic series great, too. The Cruiserweight division started in 1996 offered something different on Nitro and was one of the reasons, along with the nWo, that WCW would stay on top of the Monday Night War for the early days of the Monday Night Wars. The WCW World Cruiserweight Championship began as the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) 1991. He saw that it kept my attention, kept me behaved, and wrestling tapes and PPVs were an awesome award for chores, good behavior, and in general, just being a reasonable and . The WCW cruiserweight division is mostly remembered for its influx of lucha libre and Japanese wrestlers into North America. David Robinson September 13, 1998 It lasted from 1996 until 1997, when it was abandoned. The title remained in limbo until early 1996 as in March of 96 WCW decided to rename and re-establish the title as a Cruiserweight . The weight limit for the women's cruiserweight division was 130 lb (as announced on WCW television). The term was popularized in World Championship Wrestling, when WCW President Eric Bischoff in 1997 re-established the light-heavyweight division as the cruiserweight division and reactivated the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship as the WCW Cruiserweight Championship. WWE, until the belt's disseverment from NXT/WWE, or folding, if you will, had a 205-pound weight limit. In 2001, when WWE purchased WCW, the Cruiserweight division obviously came right along with that purchase and WWE tried desperately to capitalize on the attention the wrestlers in that division got. Kidman comes out first followed by the maskless Rey Mysterio. This match saw two very underrated Cruiserweights from WCW show the world that they were a force to be reckoned with. But Alex Wright was an exception. Ultimo Dragon: I consider Dragon to be the best in ring worker in the division, he worked well with everyone from the high flying Rey Mysterio to the more technical . Bischoff mentioned that it. The WCW Cruiserweight division changed the way American wrestling audience saw the light heavyweight action. It is the father of cruiserweight wrestling as we know it and holds up well against its more popular peers from later years. 10. During the heat of the Monday Night Wars in the 90s, WCW was known for having the NWO, former WWE stars like Roddy Piper and The Ultimate Warrior as well as the dominant Bill Goldberg, but they. In 1996, WCW brought back this division, but instead with the Cruiserweight Championship - a title only exclusive to wrestlers under a particular weight limit, allowing a prize for those who may not be seen as realistic challengers to the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. The WCW cruiserweight division changed wrestling with in-ring work that was far ahead of their time. 11 of 16. The influx of young high flying talent in today's wrestling world can be contributed by the influence of the WCW's Cruiserweight Division. The recent addition of the Cruiserweight division to the WWE has resurrected the company's interest in light heavyweight superstars. The "cruiserweight" name, which . Malenko and Guerrero would arrive together as members of The Radicalz in 2000. Sign some Japanese Lightweights. #7 - Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero at No Way Out '04. The "cruiserweight" name, which WCW. WWF - The WWF is a very different story. Wrestling out of Germany, Alex became known for dancing before his matches and his comedic antics but is also remembered as being one of the most fluid wrestlers in WCW. wwe has not inspired much in the way of trust when it comes to its historical handling of the division, but there have been some really strong, simple feuds and some outstanding matches from wwe's cruiserweight division since it was brought back through the cruiserweight classic in 2016, many which blow out of the water the majority of the work … Namely,. The NXT Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship that was created and promoted by the American promotion WWE.Before its retirement, it was defended across the NXT, NXT UK, and 205 Live brand divisions, which were developmental brands for WWE. The World Championship Wrestling (WCW) Women's Heavyweight Championship (referred to mostly as the WCW Women's Championship) was a title for the women's professional wrestling division in World Championship Wrestling. Combined with the layering of depth and talent the Fusient side was starting to implement, WCW would have given the WWF a run for their money. This match, to me, was everything we could ever wanted from an Ultimo vs. Mysterio match. King, whose real name is César Cuauhtémoc González Barrón, wowed fans in Mexico for years but it is from his time as a member of WCW's amazing cruiserweight division in the 90s . It would take the departures of Jericho, Malenko, Guerrero and Mysterio for this to become apparent. It was created as a joint venture between WCW and GAEA Japan. Bischoff said, 'what I want is three months of a cruiserweight plan to get over Chavo Guerrero and eventually elevate him into the heavyweight division," Muse recalls. Obviously, you recognize Noble, who had a respectable run in the WWE cruiserweight division with a lot of rock solid matches; Yang, as in Jimmy Wang (Akio), was a decent utility player for WWE in the mid-2000s as well. In professional wrestling, a cruiserweight is a wrestler who competes in a Cruiserweight division. Arn Anderson David Gibb considers Arn Anderson to be the MVP of WCW. The second-generation grappler is also responsible for one of the loudest pops in wrestling history. During its short tenure, it was the promotion's only championship with a weight limit, wherein only wrestlers 205 lb (93 kg . The term was first coined in United States in 1996 by World Championship Wrestling. Rey Mysterio: Basically the heart and soul of the division Chris Jericho: He and Eddie proved that cruiserweights can be charismatic and do storylines though Jericho did it better. Prior to this, the terms "Light Heavyweight" and "Junior Heavyweight" were more commonly in use. And he also held the Cruiserweight Tag Team Titles with Billy Kidman. From 1996 to 2000, Psicosis was a mainstay of WCW's Cruiserweight Division. During the mid 1990s, the Cruiserweight division afforded us the opportunity to see a unique type of in-ring action that many in America hadn't seen before. Send the WWF Lightweight Belt back to Japan and reform the J-Crown. we saw the migration of the Lucha-Libre style to the mainstream. June 6, 2000. Rey Mysterio - contract expired in November/December - debuted a year later, the face of WCW Cruiserweight division Psichosis/Juventud Guerrera - were both released by WCW in 2000, still both were good workers and familiar names for Cruiserweight division VIP AUDIO 2/23 - Interview Thursday Livecast with Disco Inferno (AD-FREE) - Roddy Piper-Nitro story, assessing TNA's future & Jeff Jarrett as leader, WCW locker room room, WWE's Cruiserweight Division problems, Breezango, Aron Rex (73 min) But this is certainly not the first time Vince McMahon's company has attempted to focus on this type of action. With the WCW Cruiserweight Title, it was less obvious. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 225 lbs. Dynamite Kid. In 1997, when WWE introduced its own light-heavyweight division as a counterpart to the WCW cruiserweight division, the mistakes were numerous from the outset. Either way, back then or in hindsight, these two facing each other was a dream scenario; in WCW's cruiserweight division Top 5 ranking profile from the '90s, Mysterio was #1 and Ultimo might have been #3 and undoubtedly was in the Top 5. Through a working agreement with Michinoku Pro, Taka and a few. 9 Cruiserweight Division. That exception was the WCW Cruiserweight Division. I am of the opinion that, of all the non-CWC action in WWE cruiserweight division history, the best matches have come from the combination of Mysterio vs. Chavo . Robert DeFelice Nov 2, 2021 2:30PM Sonny Onoo reflects on how WCW utilized its cruiserweights. 19. The agile competitor was easily identifiable by his unique ring attire, truly highlighting the rich traditions of lucha libre. The main guys in the division were Dean Malenko, Rey Mysterio, Psychosis, Eddie Guerrero, Chavo . 3. The Cruiserweight Division The Cruiserweight division came along at the perfect time in 1996: WCW had recently acquired several new wrestlers who were of a smaller stature and, with the mix of technical and high-flying styles, would clash stylistically with the main event guys, but could have fabulous matches when left to their own devices. Juventud - who had already been a . Lieutenant Loco ( Chavo Guerrero Jr. ) Daffney. Of course the difference in style between the old school main-eventers and the high-flying cruiserweights contributed to the division's popularity. From 1996-1998, the best match of the night might have come on first. Today we had back to the previous attempts to build a light heavyweight division. In 1996, WCW kicked off a cruiserweight division to add more action to its new Monday Nitro broadcast. The Cruiserweight division as we know it has its roots in World Championship Wrestling. Highlighting such wrestlers as Rey Mysterio, Eddie Guerrero, and Chris Jericho before they became household names. A four-time Cruiserweight Champion, Dean Malenko, along with Rey Mysterio and Ultimo Dragon, built the foundation for the exciting division. In professional wrestling, a cruiserweight is a wrestler weighing below 220 lb (100 kg), with no lower weight limit.The older term junior heavyweight, which was used to describe the division, is more favored in Japan, where many titles for lighter-weight competitors are called junior heavyweight titles. Lucha libre star Silver King wowed fans across the world with his talent but sadly passed away at the age of 51 at after collapsing in the ring of a London venue. This is a match between the current WCW Tag Team Champions and members of the Filthy Animals. During its existence as the Light Heavyweight Championship it was vacated by Brad Armstrong in September 1992 due to injury. 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