What’s the story?
On Monday Night Raw, a fatal-5-way was announced for 205 Live Tuesday night. Tony Nese, the Brian Kendrick, TJ Perkins, Akira Tozawa and Austin Aries will fight for the no. 1 contender’s spot in the Cruiserweight division.
In case you didn’t know...
The winner of that match will face Neville at WrestleMania 33. Up until the March 7th edition of WWE Raw, the Cruiserweight division was lacking something big that made casual WWE fans tune in every week. When Aries interviewed a heel Neville in the ring after his match against Rich Swann, there was intrigue.
Aries will presumably win that fatal-5-way match and become the no. 1 contender.
According to an earlier report by Sportskeeda, Cruiserweight standout Cedric Alexander is rumoured to miss at least three months due to an injury. Swann isn’t even in the no. 1 contender match. There’s clearly a new direction from Vince McMahon that he wants to see the division go in.
The heart of the matter
As it was mentioned earlier, the Cruiserweight Division was a few months away from being completely irrelevant and becoming the new “bathroom break match,” as WWE fans proclaim. Their athleticism is unmatched and often, the matches each week were good. However, that isn’t good enough for the main audience.
They need storylines and good promos. That’s why it began to fizzle out in World Championship Wrestling after becoming popular. Charismatic Superstars carried the division and gave it relevance.
Having the two best Cruiserweights, Neville and Aries, face each other will only enhance the brand McMahon wanted it to be when he rejuvenated it.
Author’s take
This is an excellent move by the WWE. Fans of SmackDown Live that will attend the show in Pittsburgh on March 14 will have a reason to stay after and watch the show. It’s also the first time WWE officials are putting in two men that have natural charisma and skill in a Cruiserweight championship storyline.
Following the Aries and Neville match, they need to add at least one more good rivalry to help keep pace with the rest of the show. When that finally happens, the Cruiserweight Division will finally be where it is meant to.
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