One of the key components to WCW’s success was the Cruiserweight division. Sure, many fans watched pro-wrestling for the comedic spots, the big brutes and the hokey storylines, but there are some of us who genuinely enjoy quality, technical wrestling. That's where the men of the Cruiserweight division come in.
For a long time, the Cruiserweights were overlooked due to the popularity of some of the more outlandish or larger than life characters. In fact, today’s revamped Cruiserweight Division is going through a similar situation.
While the WWE should be commended to bring back such an exciting division, the purple crew is not getting near the attention, nor the fanfare they certainly deserve.
With so many great athletes within the 205 division, you would assume the company would be doing everything possible to make things better and to draw more attention to the Cruiserweight division. One of the most common ideas being tossed around at the water cooler is maybe they should just go back to the basics.
Simply put, maybe it's time to take down the purple ropes and remove the division between the cruiserweights and the rest of the main roster. In the past, these guys were at their best when there was no such divide.
In this article, we will take a look at some of the true greats of the Cruiserweight ranks. With that said, here's a look at the top 10 Cruiserweights of all-time.
#10 Brian Pillman
Some of today's fans may not know too much about Brian Pillman and those who do know a little about him may only remember him as “The loose cannon.” While he lived a hard life, there was a time when he was not a feared, unpredictable lunatic. In fact, Pillman was once a huge fan favourite known then as “Flyin’ Brian Pillman.”
Pillman was one of the true greats who defined what a good Cruiserweight was. During his career, Pillman accumulated a number of titles, including the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship, which he would win twice. In 1991, Brian won the WCW Light Heavyweight Tournament.
It was the Light Heavyweight Division that would eventually become the Cruiserweight Division.
In October of 1997, Pillman was set to face Dude Love at the WWF In Your House: Badd Blood pay-per-view event. Brian never showed up for that event. Later on that evening, Jim Cornette contacted the hotel where Brian had stayed the previous night.
Upon speaking with the manager of the hotel, Cornette learned that Pillman had been found dead in his room. The cause of death was later determined to be a heart attack. Brian Pillman was only 35 old at the time.
#9 Tajiri
For over two decades now, The Japanese Buzzsaw has been giving fans true spectacle of in-ring technical wizardry. Tajiri could very well be the one with the most miles, out of everyone on this list.
From the time he began his career in 1994, Tajiri would travel any and everywhere the competition called. From Japan to WWE and everywhere in between, Tajiri is certainly known around the globe.
Most fans probably remember Tajiri best for his time with ECW. It was in 1998 when Tajiri was working in Mexico that Paul Heyman spotted him and immediately offered him a spot on the ECW roster.
Later on that same year, Tajiri made his debut and was welcomed by a standing ovation from the ECW faithful in Philly. That moment was sort of a catalyst for what would turn into a legendary career.
#8 Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger
At 52 years young, Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger is still competing just as strong as ever. For over 30 years now, Liger has been captivating fans worldwide with his flawless showmanship and unparallel in-ring ability.
With roughly 30 championships to his credit, Jushin Liger is best recognised for winning the prestigious IWGP Light Heavyweight Championship an astounding 11 times. Jushin holds the record for the number of times he has won that title, as well as the number of days he has carried it as well, which is a mind-boggling 2,245 total days.
#7 Hayabusa
The wrestler who lands at number 7 on this list is someone who was tragically taken too soon. Hayabusa was trained by a legendary team of who's who when it comes to professional wrestling trainers, Ultimo Dragon and Rey Mysterio Sr. being two of them.
In 1987, Hayabusa made his debut with a very small Japanese independent promotion. For the first few years of his career, he would struggle through the smaller independent ranks before finally being noticed by Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, which is where things really took off for Hayabusa.
Throughout his career, Hayabusa would stack up a mountain of championships with FMW, but in 2001, everything came to an abrupt halt. During a match against Mammoth Sasaki, Hayabusa went for a springboard moonsault off the middle rope. Unfortunately, he lost his footing, which resulted in him landing on his head.
Due to the manner in which he landed, Hayabusa tragically cracked two of his vertebrae, which subsequently left him paralysed.
Immediately following his injury, Hayabusa would constantly suffer harsh side effects from the injury, one being bleeding of the brain. On March 3, 2016, Hayabusa passed away unexpectedly after suffering a severe brain haemorrhage. He was only 47 at the time of his death.
#6 Ultimo Dragon
Coming in at number 6 is probably the most decorated of all Cruiserweights. Ultimo is another very well-travelled star who has entertained fans all over the world for over 30 years and at 50 years young, Ultimo is still entertaining fans all over Asia as he continues to travel the wrestling scene there.
While in WCW, Ultimo Dragon managed to capture the WCW Cruiserweight title two times. While that may not seem like an impressive statistic, it is important to keep in mind that this was at a time when the Cruiserweight Division in WCW was at its peak and the competition was brutal.
Eddie Guerrero, Chris Jericho and Juventud Guerrera were just a few of WCW’s top-tier Cruiserweights competing for division supremacy at the time.
#5 Dean Malenko
Dean Malenko remains one of the best all around in-ring technicians that wrestling fans will ever know. Malenko wasn't about the high-risk spots or the theatrics that often times accompanies top performers. Instead, he focused on making sure he controlled the tempo of the bout and executed his manoeuvres flawlessly.
In 1997, Pro Wrestling Illustrated named Dean Malenko the number 1 in the annual PWI 500. To add to his credentials, Dean has also won the WCW Cruiserweight Championship a total of four times.
Today, Dean Malenko continues to serve the professional wrestling industry by sharing his wealth of knowledge with the current WWE Superstars, as Malenko works for the WWE as a producer, as well as a backstage agent.
#4 Chris Jericho
Long before Raw was ever Jericho and way before he thought he could one day be the ayatollah of rock-and-rolla, Chris Jericho was at the forefront of building a legendary Cruiserweight division for all fans to enjoy.
Chris Jericho got his start in the wrestling business at only 19 years of age. From the beginning, his charisma alone was enough to let everyone know he was something special. In the mid-1990’s, Chris found his way onto the infamous ECW roster, which is truly where things started to change.
Unfortunately for Paul Heyman and crew, WCW took quick notice of the young Jericho and quickly made him an offer he was not able to refuse.
Jericho was a part of the huge Cruiserweight push in WCW and from there, we all know how the rest of his legendary career would play out. Chris is now 46 years old, with a laundry list of accolades to his credit.
Even in the later years of his storied career, Chris is still good for a quick comeback and maybe even a title win. That is, of course, if he’s not too busy being a rock star.
#3 AJ Styles
To be honest, there's not going to be a lot of fans who understand why AJ Styles is listed as one of the best all-time CRUISERWEIGHTS and I completely understand that. But, when you think back to AJ’s contribution to the TNA X-Division and how he remains one of the best that division has ever seen, it makes perfect sense to not only include Styles on the list but to actually rank him fairly high on it.
TNA introduced the X-Division in June of 2002, during one of their weekly pay-per-view shows. While there are multiple theories behind why the company started the division, Many fans see it as an alternative to WWE’s Cruiserweight Division.
After all, the talent within this division is made up of guys who are very similar in stature to what you would see in the WWE Cruiserweight Division. With that said, AJ Styles would win the fatal-four-way elimination match, which crowned him as the first ever TNA X-Division Champion.
Since AJ’s reign as the inaugural X-Division Champion, his career would then absolutely explode. Styles would go on to capture the X-Division title an impressive six times in total, making him one of the best of that division’s history.
As we now know, AJ would then move on to even greater heights and eventually become not only one of the best among the cruiserweight ranks, but actually one of the overall best in the world today.
#2 Eddie Guerrero
There will never be words adequate enough to pay proper respect to Eddie Guerrero. Eddie was one of the true icons of professional wrestling and his contributions will be felt for generations to come.
In a career that spanned nearly 20 years before his untimely death, Eddie was successful with every journey he took throughout the wrestling business, including the Cruiserweight division. Over the course of his professional career, Eddie managed to stack up dozens of championship victories, including the WCW Cruiserweight Championship, which he won two times.
On a cold November day in 2005, the wrestling world was shocked and deeply saddened at the news that Eddie Guerrero had been found in his hotel room by his nephew, Chavo Guerrero Jr. Eddie was unconscious at the time and once the paramedics arrived, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
#1 Rey Mysterio
He is one of the hardest working, most underrated and underappreciated wrestlers of all-time. Rey Mysterio has stood toe-to-toe with some of the industries giants and for the most part, he has always come out o top.
Rey has been a trailblazing trendsetter who has paved the way for so many young stars that have idolised him whether it be because of his size or his heart and how well he adapts to any situation he's faced with.
With so many years behind him, one can only wonder how much more does Rey Mysterio have left?
Unfortunately for his naysayers, Rey has mentioned on several occasions that he has plenty of fuel left in his tank. Rey was very instrumental in the overall success of the WCW Cruiserweight movement. He also brought a lot of much-deserved attention to the Cruiserweight title as well.
After 13 years with WWE, Rey left the company in early 2015. Since his departure, Rey has tested the waters in multiple promotions, including Lucha Underground and AAA. While Rey appears to be enjoying the current pace of his career, fans can only hope he one day returns to the WWE and ends his career the only way that truly makes sense, in front of the WWE Universe.
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