The first episode of the WWE Cruiserweight Classic aired this Wednesday and it lived up to all the hype, featuring 4 exciting and fast paced matches extolling a variety of wrestling styles. The main event of the episode featured a scintillating bout between Sean Maluta and the much hyped Kota Ibushi.
The matches were generally unpredictable and featured some fantastic wrestling and all in all was a very good hour of ‘sports entertainment’.
The Cruiserweight Classic shows what the WWE can achieve if they broaden their horizons a little bit, and WWE’s future looks safe in the hands of Triple H. Here are our observations from the first episode of the CWC.
#7 The difference in presentation
The first thing we noticed about the Cruiserweight Classic was the difference in the set. Instead of ramp and a titantron, the wrestlers came out of a walkway more akin to the indies and New Japan and it definitely gave the CWC set a different look, differentiating itself immiediately from the main roster and even from NXT.
All the wrestlers received pre-match vignettes to give the audience at home and the live crowd an idea of who they were and their motivations. It showed how effective good vignettes are and hopefully Vince was watching.
The mat on the ring also had the CWC logo and the tapout logo. Ring mats in WWE are almost always blank. The graphics in the show were also top notch.
The presentation of the CWC gives it a vastly different look from the rest of WWE programming, and the indie feel is sure to please the hardcore fans. The Cruiserweight Classic is also presented like an actual sporting event would be presented, and it was a refreshing change.
#6 Gran Metalik impressed against Alejandro Saez
I’ll confess this, I’d never heard of Gran Metalik before the participants of the Cruiserweight Classic were announced. His match at the Cruiserweight Classic was the first time I saw him in action and the luchador made an immediate impact, pulling off some stunning and innovative moves including a spectacular modified dive to the outside.
Gran Metalik’s match with Chilean national Alejanadro Saez was a great way to start off the CWC and both wrestlers looked really good.
Metalik currently wrestles for CMLL in his native Mexico but if WWE decides to go after him in the future, the Mexican luchador will be a good addition to the roster, especially with the upcoming brand split.
#5 Ariya Daviari can really go in the ring
Ariya Daivari, brother of former WWE wrestler and manager Shawn Daivari, took on Hong Kong native HoHo Lun in another first round match.
Even though Daivari lost the match in the end, he was arguably the more impressive of the two wrestlers dominating most of the match. Inspired by Mitsuharo Misawa, Ariya Daivari showed a diverse and hard-hitting move set ranging from a variety of suplexes, a top notch enzugiri and excellent heel instincts.
Daivari showed a lot of potential and with him currently wrestling in the indies, WWE could really sign him for their NXT roster. With some polishing, he looks like he could be a top heel in the future.
#4 Kota Ibushi is a star
The ‘Goldenstar’ Kota Ibushi was the pre-tournament favourite to win and impressed in his debut against Sean Maluta. Maluta fought hard but in the end he was no match for the ‘Goldenstar’ who is one of the best wrestlers in the world today.
Ibushi showed off his offensive range from hard-hitting strikes and kicks to his trademark moonsaults and a devastating pelle kick. The powerbomb he finished Maluta off with was especially devastating.
Ibushi was a crowd favourite at Full Sail and looked like a star from the moment he stepped out. With Ibushi out of contract right now, WWE has to pull out all the stops to sign him. He has the ability to be a main eventer in the post-brand split era.
#3 International Flavour
The first episode of the Cruiserweight Classic featured four matches, with eight wrestlers from eight different nationalities. WWE have had a history of stereotyping foreign wrestlers but none of that was on show tonight and every wrestler represented their country with pride.
The CWC is the closest thing wrestling has had to an international cup in a long time.
#2 Excellent commentary
I don’t know about you, but I’m sick and tired of the commentary on Raw. Michael Cole, JBL and Byron Saxton rarely call moves or sound excited and they spew wrestling clichés constantly.
SmackDown and NXT have much better commentary teams.
The commentary at the Cruiserweight Classic was provided by Mauro Ranallo, who has done excellent work in SmackDown since joining earlier this year and WWE legend Daniel Bryan. Ranallo and Bryan did an excellent job in commentary and their love for pro wrestling was clear to everyone who was listening.
Ranallo gave us an in-depth look at the wrestlers and called every move while Bryan gave us a look at the matches from the competitors point of view and also had the experience of facing quite a few of the CWC participants in the indies.
I especially loved the part when Bryan compared Kota Ibushi’s dropkick to current the IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada’s signature dropkick. A current NJPW wrestler being namedropped on WWE programming is new.
Their commentary was a shining light in what was an excellent first episode of the CWC, and here’s to hoping that Bryan and Ranallo are a future main roster commentary pairing.
#1 Is the Cruiserwright Classic a cornerstone for WWE?
Who would have thought that WWE would have a tournament full of international independent wrestlers in 2016?
Even though WWE has come a long way in recent years in the way they treat the independent circuit, no one saw this coming. International wrestlers now know that they have a path to making it to the WWE, no matter which part of the world they’re from.
WWE has also long been known as the land of the giants, but that is no longer as true as it used to be 15 years ago. Wrestlers like Jericho, Benoit and recently CM Punk and Daniel Bryan changed all that and now it looks like WWE will move further away from that in the future.
Triple H mentioned this in the intro video package mentioning that size will no longer determine a wrestlers’ ability. Although this won’t change overnight, it will happen slowly but surely.
Has the WWE reached a cornerstone with the Cruiserweight Classic?
Will we see similar tournaments and programming on the network in the future? Is this a final sign that WWE has accepted that the independent scene is a hotbed of talent that they can sign and harness?
The final question is, how many of these wrestlers will impress enough to get full-time contracts? With the brand split coming, WWE could use some new and talented faces to bolster NXT after the eventual call-ups during the WWE Draft.
