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This past week we saw the unfortunate gutting of WWE's 205 Live brand. Superstars like Ariya Daivari, Tony Nese, Curt Stallion, The Singh Brothers, and August Grey were subject to the latest line of releases, the third batch in 2021.
As unfortunate as it is to see wrestlers lose their job, the wrestling world is in the middle of another golden age. Even after a global pandemic, the indies are opening back up and promotions like AEW and IMPACT have become great places to revitalize careers.
We know that everyone released by WWE recently will be fine wherever they go, and we know that because we've seen other 205 Live stars find major success elsewhere.
Today we'll be taking a look at five former 205 Live stars who continued to elevate themselves after leaving WWE.
#5 Former 205 Live star Lio Rush
Lio Rush was a vital part of 205 Live for a few years, and even captured the Cruiserweight Championship. The Man of the Hour defeated Drew Gulak in a stellar match-up on an episode of NXT back in 2019 to claim his only piece of gold in WWE.
Even before that, he'd put on spectacular matches against the likes of Cedric Alexander, Akira Tozawa, Tony Nese and more. A human highlight reel, Rush was considered by many to be the top star of 205 Live and NXT. In 2020, though, Rush was released on what fans would call "Black Wednesday" along with many more as part of the Covid-19 budget cuts.
Rush continued to prove himself afterwards. He signed with MLW in November of last year and won the World Middleweight Championship, while also capturing the AAA World Cruiserweight Championship from Laredo Kid. Rush also worked the New Japan Pro Wrestling Super J-Cup.
We saw Rush show up at AEW Double or Nothing, appearing as the "Joker" in the Casino Battle Royal. Around this time we'd learned that he'd signed with NJPW and was even offered a deal with AEW. Unfortunately, an injury led to him announcing his retirement from professional wrestling. He'll finish his obligations with NJPW when he's healed before hanging the boots up for good.
Outside of wrestling, Rush is also a rapper and has released two studio albums titled Ever After and The Final Match. If he really is done with professional wrestling, Rush will undoubtedly find success elsewhere.
#4 Former 205 Live star Kenta
Kenta worked for WWE's 205 Live and NXT brands as Hideo Itami and was considered a major signing for the company in 2014. WWE made the official announcement, showing Kenta with Hulk Hogan and Jimmy Hart.
Though injuries plagued his early run with the company, Kenta, as Itami, moved to the 205 Live brand. There, he challenged for the Cruiserweight Championship on a few occasions. While there, he found himself in some great feuds with Cedric Alexander, Akira Tozawa, and Mustafa Ali in what was considered the golden age of 205 Live.
After requesting, and being granted his release in 2019, he joined NJPW, quickly allying himself with Bullet Club. So far in his run with the company he's won the NEVER Openweight Championship and earned a shot at the US Title after winning the 2020 New Japan Cup USA. Kenta faced fellow WWE alumni Jon Moxley for the IWGP US Title in a stellar match in February.
#3 Former 205 Live star TJP
TJ Perkins was handpicked by WWE to be the face of 205 Live. After winning the Cruiserweight Classic in 2016, he was crowned the new Cruiserweight Champion and would lead the brand as it's top dog. His reign was shortlived, however, as he lost the title to The Brian Kendrick in just over forty days.
Though Perkins was a mainstay and had some great matches with the likes of Rich Swann, Neville, and Akira Tozawa, WWE never really seemed to understand what they had with him. In early 2019, TJP was released.
Since then, he's been on the run of his career. He returned to IMPACT Wrestling that same year, and captured the X-Division Championship in 2020. He's been a major player in that division since his return. He and Josh Alexander just had what's considered by many to be the company's best match of the year so far in an Ironman match for the title.
He's also appeared for NJPW and MLW since leaving WWE.
#2 Former 205 Live star Pac
It was a surprise when Pac, known then as Neville, didn't really work out on 205 Live. After a great run as NXT Champion, he was taken to the main roster where he had some great performances against Seth Rollins, Chris Jericho, and Cody Rhodes.
He was soon moved to 205 Live and was pushed as the face of the cruiserweight division. He knocked off Rich Swann to capture the Cruiserweight Championship and would hold it on two separate occasions until losing the belt to Enzo Amore in the fall of 2017. Not counting Santos Escobar and Jordan Devlin, who both had some strange reigns as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, Neville's run on 205 Live was the longest consecutive run a champion had on the brand at 197 days.
After losing to Amore, Neville walked away and quit 205 Live and WWE altogether. After having his contract frozen for some time, he was let go by WWE in 2018. And right there, on August 24th, Pac was reborn.
Pac had a stellar run in Dragon Gate, holding the Open the Dream Gate Championship for 229 days from December 4th to July 21st, 2019. He'd then sign with All Elite Wrestling, and while he hasn't won any gold in the promotion yet, it's only a matter of time.
"The Bastard" has been a major player since his debut and has had some stellar feuds with Kenny Omega and Orange Cassidy. He even competed in an AEW World Championship match against the two at AEW Double or Nothing.
#1 Former 205 Live star Rich Swann
You don't get a much better success story than that of Rich Swann. Though he managed to capture the Cruiserweight Championship while on 205 Live, he had a rather short stint with the company. His first reign didn't last too long, and when he was on his way to a possible second, he was released.
Shortly after, though, he signed with IMPACT Wrestling and in no time was a major player in their X-Division. At the beginning of 2019, Swann defeated Trey Miguel, Ethan Page, and Jake Crist in an Ultimate X Match to crown himself X-Division Champion.
After returning from a gruesome knee injury in 2020, Swann defeated Eric Young for the IMPACT Wrestling World Championship. Swann went on to have classic matches against Sami Callihan, Chris Bey, Moose and more before losing his championship to Kenny Omega.
Right now, Swann looks to be moving into the tag division with partner Willie Mack. Soon enough, Swann will have captured every single championship the company has to offer.
There was a lot of great talent to be released from 205 Live this year. Who's to say that batch isn't holding a few future world champions? Tony Nese has already been publicly offered a spot in IMPACT Wrestling's X-Division by Tommy Dreamer. If this list has told you anything, it's that you should be expecting those released recently to thrive in the coming years.
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