From the Podium XII: The Legacy of Championships (The Cruiser Edition)

[Leonard]

That’s a joke…get it? Heh. Anyhow, this week we take a look at a championship that helped define World Championship Wrestling, and later became something for lighter mid-to-low-carders to chase after in the McMahon promotions. While the Triple H’s and John Cena’s of the wrestling world were fighting over the heavyweight championships, the Cruiserweight division provided both high-flying, hard hitting action, mixed with the technicality that so many of us “quasi-traditionalists” love. This was, perhaps, the most underrated professional wrestling division ever, which featured many underrated wrestlers. Not to say that it didn’t have more than its fair share of duds.

Here we go…

The noticeable beat of a conductor’s pattern.


WWE Cruiserweight Championship

First Champion: Brian Pillman (defeated Richard Norton)

Last Champion: Hornswoggle (defeated Chavo Guerrero)

At the turn of the decade, the WCW was under the ownership of Ted Turner, and the promotion wasn’t exactly the hottest thing on the planet. They had made the attempt to compete with the WWF’s high budget productions, and it really wasn’t working out for them the way they had hoped. At the time, WCW had many lighter athletes that were trying to make a name for themselves in the world of “big men.” The year 1991 saw the inception of the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship, and at Halloween Havoc Brian Pillman defeated Richard Morton (or “Ricky” of Rock ‘n’ Roll Express fame) to become the inaugural champion.

The WCW Light Heavyweight Championship only saw four unique champions, before it was retired in September of 1992. For the purposes of lineage, this year is what will be considered. Brian Pillman had some battles with Jushin Liger (a phenomenal athlete in his own right), and Scotty Flamingo (Raven, for you guys who haven’t read Cult Icon’s column on the man) over the title. Brad Armstrong (brother of “Road Dogg” and referee Scott) rounds out this mini-title history, as he sustained an injury in September and vacated the title. While the WCW “powers that be” planned on a tournament to crown a new champion, other priorities prevailed, and the title was abandoned. The lineage here leaves much to be desired, although Pillman and Liger put on at least one good match. Lineage=4/10

Looking at the list of champions since the inception of the World Championship Wrestling Light Heavyweight Championship in 1991, to the retirement of the World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship in 2007, here are the facts:

-40—Unique Champions
-79—Championship Reigns
-50.63—Percentage of First-Time Champions
-56.43—Average Title Reign (in days)
-8—Most Reigns (Rey Mysterio)
-385—Longest Reign (in days) (Gregory Helms)
-<1—Shortest Reign (in days) (Psycosis)

Cutting right to the chase here, there are two statistics that heavily impact the rating in this category. Fifty percent of first-time champions falls on the lower part of the spectrum as pertains to the previous titles analyzed thus far. It’s not really terrible, and it does say something about the reliability of those good Cruisers, such as Mysterio, Malenko, and the Guerreros, among others. Additionally, the average length is the lowest thus far, if you don’t count the WWE Hardcore Championship. My belief is that this has a lot to do with the late booking strategies of the WCW creative team.

Rey Mysterio is a Cruiserweight institution, and is the prime example (along with Chris Jericho and Eddie Guerrero) of an established Cruiser becoming a main event player. So, then it is no surprise that Rey has the record for most Cruiserweight Championship reigns, at eight times. To go with some more recent history, Gregory “Hurricane” Helms had the longest reign (and the longest championship reign in the existence of the brand extension, on the SmackDown! side of things). I will speak more on Helms later, but it does say quite a bit about an athlete for a promotion to trust a title (even if that title was largely forgotten during its WWE run) with the same guy for an extended period, especially for more than a year.

While the statistical facts don’t look that bad on paper, they are less-than-stellar compared to the other calculations made thus far. The longest reign, while impressive in its own right, is longer only than the World Heavyweight and Hardcore Championships. As mentioned earlier, the average reign is the second lowest, only higher than the Hardcore title. While the percentage of first time reigns is about half, the number is still lower than average. Again, it says something about the champions’ reliability, but also that, for a title that was supposed to push new and exciting Cruisers, they didn’t always have fresh faces in the title scene. Statistics=6/10

We don’t often think of the Cruiserweight Championship (regardless of the company involved) as a title used to elevate an athlete to the “next level,” whether it be to the “second tier” or the heavyweight championship. Thirteen of the forty individuals that held this title went on to win a higher tiered title in that promotion (WCW or WWE). While that may not look like a very good track record, it does show that smaller wrestlers do have the ability to be successful, and are sometimes more marketable than their heavyweight counterparts. I would argue, for example, that Chris Jericho, a former WCW Cruiserweight Champion, is one of the biggest superstars in WWE today. He has been successful outside of the division since winning that title way back in 1997-98. He and Dean Malenko put on a fantastic series of matches. In addition to the matches, who can forget the “Man of 1,004 Holds?” As much as I rip Santino, I do like comedic moments…when the wrestling is also good! Sorry, Santino does not do this well. Granted, if he didn’t depend so much on his comedic draw and put a little more focus on his in-ring work, he might actually be a semi-impressive wrestler. [let the Leonard-bashing begin]

That’s okay, because I like different opinions. Anyhow, I’m off my soapbox now. The Cruiserweight division, I don’t think, was initially supposed to be about high-flying and quick action. In my opinion, I believe it was about displaying the younger and lighter athletes who were either too inexperienced or too mismatched with the top guys. The Cruiserweight title gave these guys something tangible to chase after that’s not Layla (sorry Jamie Noble). While I’m not a huge fan of the “spot monkey” type wrestling, I believe it does serve its purpose in the business, and, when given enough time and interspersed with other styles, can provide an athletic and entertaining match. It is unfortunate, then, to notice that many Cruisers that held the title were indeed “spot monkeys,” and didn’t have a lick of technical prowess. What is good, however, is the presence of several wrestlers who were both technically gifted and possessive of a quick pace in the ring (such as Helms, Noble, Tajiri, and even Chavo Guerrero, among others).

One more piece of information I have regarding this matter is the lackluster individuals who made a mockery of the Cruiserweight Championship and division in general. Names like Lenny Lane, Daffney & Crowbar, Evan Karagias, Madusa, and Ed Ferrara (or “Oklahoma”) are the thorns in the proverbial rose that was the Cruiserweight division. If anything killed the WCW version of the division, it was probably these horrid reigns, many of which run consecutively. We’ll talk about of couple of these people later.

Another problem with the list of Cruiserweight champions is the few duds on the WWE side of things. Don’t get me wrong, I like Jacqueline a lot. I think she was, at one point, one of the best that female wrestling had to offer. Also, she is still one of the toughest female athletes in professional wrestling. It could be argued that her WWE career was in its twilight in 2004, and this Cruiserweight Championship reign did nothing for either her or the title. I still wish that she would have gotten a more definitive run with the Women’s Championship, but we’ll talk about that more in the future. Another blemish in the WWE’s part of the title history is the short reign of Chavo Guerrero, Sr., better known by WWE-ers as “Chavo Classic.” When I think of young athletes who needed the legitimacy of a championship, I did not think of Chavo Sr. He was the oldest Cruiserweight Champion by miles. Honestly, he really shouldn’t have had this reign. Funaki is on the fence for me, but his reign was a nice “thank you” for his years of dedicated service, which is cool. I don’t really have to say anything about Hornswoggle. Honestly, the technicians, not the spot monkeys, bump the rating up a bit. History of Champions=7/10

There’s not much I have to say regarding this matter. The vacancies aren’t too terrible, except that four of the six occurred within a three year period. Lenny Lane, who played a homosexual character, was stripped of the title and (the character) was never seen on television again (due to the Turner brass not caring for it too much). The vacancy that really pissed me off was the stripping of the title from Oklahoma. Besides the fact that he was terrible anyways, I’ll talk about that more in detail in a few moments. The last vacancy was the nail in the coffin for the Cruiserweight division, but it’s not as if a lot was being done with it. As a novelty, Hornswoggle won the championship, and then barely defended it before being stripped of the title because of his small stature and his relationship with the McMahons. As I said before, I’d like to see this title make a comeback on the ECW brand, and have Evan Bourne and Tyson Kidd fight over it.

Especially during the WWE days, there were a lot of “Cruiserweight Opens.” While we lampoon TNA Wrestling for putting on multi-man crazy stipulation matches, at least they change it up. Just about every time the Cruiserweight Championship was featured on a Pay-Per-View, it was one of these “Cruiserweight Opens,” featuring any number of athletes who were eligible for the Cruiserweight Championship. At least TNA Wrestling changes up the stipulation periodically (yes, folks…I’m defending TNA, believe it or not). There were really no defining feuds while the title was in the WWE, so that detracts from the prestige also, in my opinion. Prestige=5/10

While the Cruiserweight Championship had its fair share of good matches and great champions, many of the terrible booking decisions do have an effect on this title. Is the time right for a new title on ECW? I don’t know, but if it is, this is probably the title that should do it. After averaging my ratings:

LEGACY OF THE WWE CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP=5.5/10

“LEGACY” RANKINGS:

FIRST TIER:
1. WWE Championship=8.75/10
2. World Heavyweight Championship=8/10
3. AWA World Championship=7.56/10
4. WCW World Championship=5/10
5. ECW Championship=4.75/10

SECOND TIER:
1. Intercontinental Championship=7.37/10
1. United States Championship=7.37/10
3. ECW Television Championship=6.12/10

OTHER (TEAM, GENDER, WEIGHT, GIMMICK):
1. World Tag Team Championship=6.62/10
2. WWE Cruiserweight Championship=5.5/10
3. Hardcore Championship=5.12/10


TOP THREE:
3. Gregory Helms (3 reigns, combined 532 days)
I never felt like “The Hurricane” really became a true wrestling competitor until he dropped the superhero gimmick and became brash, cocky, and arrogant Gregory Helms. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed his work in WCW, but I think he got a true chance to shine by becoming the longest reigning Cruiserweight Champion ever. Even if a title gets lost in the shuffle, I think it says a lot about one’s work ethic, and faith from those in control, when an athlete is allowed to have a reign that lasted as long as Greg’s reign. Also, he was one of the more technically advanced wrestlers of the bunch, as he did less high flying than many of the other title holders (not to say that he didn’t do a little bit, himself).

2. Dean Malenko (4 reigns, combined 188 days)
If Gregory Helms was one of the most technically advanced wrestlers of the title holders, than Dean Malenko was, well, the “dean” of technical Cruiserweights. Deans four reigns didn’t last nearly as long as most, but he had some very memorable battles involving the Cruiserweight Championship, particularly with Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho (the “Man of 1,004 Holds”) and Sean “Syxx” Waltman (anybody that can make Waltman look good is OK in my book). Dean wasn’t the most successful outside of Cruiserweight action, but he did become a United States and Tag Team Champion as well. He also captured WWF Light Heavyweight gold on two occasions after his WCW tenure. He now passes his wrestling knowledge onto others as an ECW road agent.

1. Rey Mysterio (8 reigns, combined 483 days)

It could be argued that Rey Mysterio was not the most successful Cruiserweight to step out of his weight class (that honor, I believe, could go to Chris Jericho or Eddie Guerrero), but what he did in the Cruiserweight division, he did extraordinarily well. Rey Mysterio’s battles with Malenko, Guerrero, and Psycosis helped define the Cruiserweight division, and helped set WCW apart from their competition (of course, the New World Order angle helped with that, too). Mysterio’s eight reigns are nothing to overlook, as he was one of the frontrunners of the Cruiserweight division in both the WCW and the WWE. Yeah, not all of his moments are something to be proud of (such as “No Limit Soldiers” and “Filthy Animals”), but Mysterio is the definition of the feel-good story that we (or at least “I”) always like to see in professional wrestling.

HONORABLE MENTION: BRIAN PILLMAN, CHRIS JERICHO, MATT HARDY


BOTTOM TWO:
2. Madusa (1 reign, 28 days)
Having grown up in the 1990’s era WWF, I really thought Alundra Blayze was cool. She was a three-time WWF Women’s Champion (yes, Mr. Boomerang, we’ll get there), and could put on a decent female wrestling match. I felt like she may have burned the bridge to a possible future with the WWF when she trashed the championship on a 1995 edition of Monday Nitro. That’s when I stopped watching Madusa on a regular basis (by that time in my life, I had chosen WWF, believe it or not). After becoming a wrestling enthusiast, rather than a WWF fan, I caught up with the Cruiserweight nonsense in which she took part. I was never impressed with her intergendered wrestling matches, and I feel that the WCW only did this to capitalize on the “female empowerment” phase that was going on in wrestling at the time(with Chyna winning the Intercontinental Championship in October of that year…roughly two months before Madusa won her title).

1. Oklahoma (1 reign, 2 days)

Let’s forget the fact that Ed Ferrara just had some bad blood that he wanted to get out on television. Forget the fact that he made fun of a man who is an institution in the world of professional wrestling announcing, and a WWE Hall of Famer. Also forget that a man’s personal disability was poked fun at on a national scale. There are still two very big problems with the title reign of Oklahoma. First off, for a guy that used to be a professional wrestler, he was pretty damned lousy. He had no business in the ring with Madusa (and that’s saying a lot). The second problem has to do with the supposedly imposed weight limit of the Cruiserweight class. For a man to contend for a title, and win it, when he was never even close to meeting the required weight limit of the class is just reprehensible. What’s even more bothersome, however, is the fact that those in charge at the time stripped him of the title two days later, because, get this…he didn’t meet the weight limit requirement. Oh, late WCW, how I do not miss thee.

UN-HONORABLE MENTION: CROWBAR/DAFFNEY, JACQUELINE, CHAVO CLASSIC, HORNSWOGGLE


My Favorite WWE Cruiserweight Championship Matches:

Spike Dudley (c) v. Billy Kidman v. Chavo Guerrero v. Rey Mysterio, Survivor Series 2004, November 14, 2004
This is really one of my favorite Cruiserweight Championship matches, and I can’t exactly explain why. The best reason I can come up with is because it displayed four guys, who at the time were in need of both a title chase and some prominent in-ring action to prove their worth to the company. I think Spike’s Cruiser run was the best time in his career, as he proved he was more than a one-trick pony. While I don’t like Billy Kidman, I believe he, as well as Chavo and Rey, both had good showings here.

Eddie Guerrero (c) v. Rey Mysterio, Title v. Mask Match, Halloween Havoc 1997, October 26, 1997

To me, Halloween Havoc was the most hokey and stupid Pay-Per-View in professional wrestling history (Hog Wild takes a close second). The event did have its share of memorable wrestling moments over the years, including this hard hitting match between Eddie and Rey. This was Cruiserweight action before the title got whored out for “entertainment” purposes. The added mask stipulation also added to the match. As far as talking about both of the matches listed, I can’t say too much. The matches speak for themselves, so go watch.

Secondary gestures to signal certain moments or instruments in a piece of music.

Allow me to set up a scenario for you. I’ve stepped up to the podium in front of a forty piece wind ensemble. I raise my baton, and prepare the group to begin Vincent Persichetti’s Symphony for Band. Things go well for the first three movements, and we prepare for the last movement. I start the movement, and things are going great, when my baton flies out of my hand. I keep conducting with my hand. While we stumble for a minute to regain our footing, we get back on track. Even though the potential train wreck didn’t materialize, I hear from the audience:

“YOU FUCKED UP! YOU FUCKED UP! YOU FUCKED UP!”

How do you think this makes me feel as a performer? Even though I made simple mistake, recovered and kept going, the audience doesn’t let up for about seven seconds or so. Even though the scenario I laid out is about as far removed from wrestling as possible, I think the similarity is present.

I hate this chant in wrestling with an undying passion that perhaps could only be matched by my anger of Mike Adamle being hung out to dry. This chant started during the days of the original ECW, when rabid fans thought it would be cool to ridicule athletes and entertainers when they did something wrong. To me, this is the most obnoxious thing a person can do, whether it’s at a baseball game, professional wrestling event, or any other crowd spectacle. Imagine if, when Kenny Rogers misses the last note on “The Gambler,” the formerly-peaceful crowd of baby-boomers is now shouting “YOU FUCKED UP!” In terms of wrestling (which is why we’re here, I suppose), I don’t see the point in shouting this terrible and degrading phrase at the men (and women) who are working very hard to entertain us. I never thought of it before though, until Shelton Benjamin missed the sunset flip/power bomb combination on MVP. I was more concerned for the athletes’ well-beings, but the audience immediately started up the chant. What if one or both of these men had been hurt? The crowd would have looked like a bunch of dickheads (while we’re in the gutter in terms of language, I’ll go for it).

At any rate, I’m all for freedom of speech, but MVP and Benjamin don’t come to you after a bad day on the job and shout degrading remarks at you. If the stupid chant can’t be stopped, I propose that we at least change it. Here are some suggestions:

“TRY IT AGAIN!”
“MAYBE NEXT TIME! [CLAP CLAP CLAP-CLAP-CLAP]”
“YOU CAN’T WIN ‘EM ALL!”
“WE STILL LIKE YOU! [CLAP CLAP CLAP-CLAP-CLAP]”
“WE APPRECIATE THAT YOU PUT YOUR BODY ON THE LINE FOR OUR ENTERTAINMENT! (doesn’t have a rhythm, but whatever]”

The last additional note (mostly in marches) that signals the end of a piece.

In my quest for knowledge, I learned a lot about the Cruiserweight division, and solidified some of my own thoughts. I hope you enjoyed this latest outing. Additionally, I hope you share your thoughts on the Cruiserweight Championship. I liked that so many different opinions were taken into account with the last column, and I’d like that to continue. As I said in my latest feedback, I have my order of events generally laid out, but if you’d like to see a title hyperanalyzed sooner than later, let me know.

Until the next downbeat…

[cicero]

I've always felt the 'you fucked up' chant was done more out of sarcastic revelry as opposed to genuine spite.

bunch of dickheads

It felt odd to hear you write so crassly.

[Kano]

Well done Friend. This was nice and easy to read and I agree with your assesment of the championship.

The Rey/Eddie match will go down as one of the best ever for that championship.

Jericho and Eddie are by far the two biggest names to ever have held that belt.

Well done mate, can't wait to read your next one

[Cult Icon]

awesome column dude, i definitely learned alot more about the cruiserweight division. my only complaint of it is once again not of the column quality but of lumping poor crowbar in w my girl daffney. crowbar was, imo, a very talented and entertaining wrestler who was only a co-champion for a week. even though i love daffney, id say most of the heat should go on her than crowbar for that.

other than that small gripe, a very good column once again. read you soon

[Hustle]

Originally Posted by Kano

The Rey/Eddie match will go down as one of the best ever

Fixed your post.

Another fine piece of work here, this time involving a belt that a large percentage of readers didn't get to see, especially in its "Golden Era". Watching Nitro every week for their multiple cruiserweight matches was fun. Mysterio, Guerrero, Malenko, Jericho, Juventud, Psicosis, Blitzkrieg, Kidman.. ahh, memories.

Good call in giving props to Helms' work. He's been seriously underrated for years now. I probably would've went with Malenko at #1, but there's really no going wrong with Mysterio, or some of the other names mentioned.

Mighty fine, sir. Mighty fine.

The column, that is. Don't want you to get the wrong idea about me.

[Stinger]

Great stuff here Leo. I use to love the Cruiserweight division back in WCW. Never really cared for it in WWE though. Oklahoma and Hornswoggle, what a joke though. Oklahoma was the worse thing WCW ever did, and that's covering a lot of ground.

Oh, and that Eddie/Mysterio match from Halloween Havoc was the shit. Easily one of the best matches in the late-90's from WCW. Should be required viewing for everyone wanting to wrestle, hell for all fans as well for that matter.

Also don't care for the "You Fucked Up" chant, although it can sometimes be humorous when used in a difference context. Take the night after WrestleMania 21 for example; Simon Dean spilled his protein shake on Steve Austin, so everyone knew what was coming. It was a like a collective "oh shit" then everyone started chanting "you fucked up, you fucked up". Of course Austin stunned him. When used in situations like that, as opposed to the wrestlers slipping up or not hitting something properly, it can be hilarious to hear.

Great read man.

[Sean_Taylor]

This was awesome [clap clap clap-clap-clap]
this was awesome [clap clap clap-clap-clap]
this was awesome [clap clap clap-clap-clap]
this was awesome [clap clap clap-clap-clap]

[NightofDay]

Excellent column as per usual Leonard. I'm surprised you didn't put Hornswoggle in your worst champion bit. The shame of that little runt being champion would make Dean Malenko, Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero roll in their graves. And two thirds of them aren't even dead yet not to mention I like Hornswoggle. Thankfully I never watched WCW, mainly because I came into wrestling in the dying months of the Monday Night Wars.

Great as usual Leonard.

[L-Man]

Dude this was great, excellent as usuall funny I seem to have a thing for lists and statistics

[Jason Boy]

Hey men, after reading all of your columns since your debut, I can say that you are getting better with each column. I kind of disagree with how you did the wwe version and the wcw version together, which lowered the rating, i Have to say this column is a strong candidate for the cotm, can't wait for your next one

[Martin Riggs]

I hate to be cliche and join in with the crowd... but this was a very good, very thorough column that deserves all the praise it's receiving. Nothing more i need to say really, you know you've done well...

[James_A]

Maybe next time! (clap clap clap clap-clap)

Just kidding, this was another great showing dude. You're consistent, ever-improving, and while I thought that the Cruiser championship should've been rated a bit higher (though its later years in the WWE definitely brought the overall championship down a bit) you did a tremendous job with the content itself.

Great job, friend.

[DA I VAN]

Good column very informative. I never knew that Helms had the title the longest i remember him having the belt for a long time no idea it was a record. I guess that's why it doesn't exist anymore.

[Haven]

Great. I was thinking Oklahoma to myself & was glad you remembered to dub him as the worst ever. Given Hornswoggle was a joke, atleast he is a funny joke, Oklahoma was just obnoxious.

[Mike]

Its been covered by the people above me, but this was a very enjoyable column. I enjoyed the cruiserweight division a lot (expect when there were some ridiculous champions).

Well thought out and very enjoyable, keep it up!

[Leonard]

[taps baton on stand]...Okay children, time for rehearsal...

cicero: I see your point, but I've never seen it that way. It just seems so disrespectful to yell such a powerful swear word towards the performers that are trying to give you (not you personally, but a collective "you") some "bang for your buck." The crass nature of LHC was just going along with the chant.

Kano: Thank you for your kind words. Eddie/Rey was a wrestling classic. You are right about Jericho and Eddie, but I would be inclined to lump Mysterio in that group, as well.

Mr. Icon: I never cared for Crowbar, but that's just me. This was less of a critique of their abilities and more of the fact that I don't like joint title reigns for singles championships. Thanks for reading.

Hustle: Thanks for your kind words. The best part about the old WCW was the Cruiser division, if you ask me. Helms is indeed often overlooked, and I hope he has a bright future on ECW.

Stinger: Oklahoma was terrible. It still kind of makes me mad thinking about it today. Yeah, I see where a well-placed chant such as that could be humorous. I just don't like the crass nature of the chant in general, I guess.

THANKS MR. TAYLOR [CLAP CLAP CLAP-CLAP-CLAP]

Mr. Day: Hornswoggle was very close, but Madusa and Oklahoma irked me more. It could be argued that putting the strap on Hornswoggle was the beginning of the end of the division. I'm very worried that the same thing will happen with the Divas division and Santino Marella. Let's hope not. Thanks for reading.

LMAN: I have a thing for lists and statistics too, so we have something in common. Thanks for reading.

Jason: Thanks for the kind words. I lumped the WCW and WWE versions together because they are the same title. In 2001, X-Pac unified both the WWF Lightheavyweight and WCW Cruiserweight Championships. Shortly thereafter, Billy Kidman and (later) Tajiri won both titles. After the Invasion storyline ended, the two were official rechristened as the WWE Cruiserweight Championship. I can see your argument maybe, but as far as I see it, they are the same title for the purposes of this column.

Mr. Boomerang: I permit you to be cliche...this time.

Jimmy: Thanks for the kind words, and disagreeing. I felt that the late-WCW and WWE booking decisions (for the most part) really brought this title down. That is how I justify the low rating it recieved.

LOST: Thanks for reading. Yep, Helms had the longest reign, and was pretty decent with the championship during that run (I thought).

Haven: Ehh, I don't find Hornswoggle funny at all, especially in his new role on RAW so far. At least previously he was paired with the very credible Dave Finlay. Anyhow, thanks for reading.

Mike: Thanks for the kind words, sir. The Cruiserweight division, I think, will always be remembered for helping set WCW apart from the competition at the time, and later becoming a fodder for Ed Ferrara's personal vendetta. Thanks again.

Phew...good rehearsal, folks. Now go home and practice!

--Leonard

[The Maz]

Leonard - I really do not know what to tell you anymore with feedback. You own this series and the only things left to critique are your choices but the is the IWC so hey. Great job once again.

[Leonard]

I imagine all of the usual suspects have said their peace, so here's the last bit of feedbacking.

Mazza: Thanks for reading, friend. I invite you to critique my choices any time in future columns. The whole reason I started writing these columns was to spark discussion about the best and worst champions, as well as good and bad matches/moments. At any rate, thanks for the kind words.

--Leonard

[Blackwell]

Good column. My question is, since you mentioned the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship, did you also factor in the holders of the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship?

[Leonard]

Hi Blackwell, good question. The WWE considers the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship as part of the title history of the WCW/WWE Cruiserweight Championship, so I included those reigns from 1991-92 in the history. For all intents and purposes, it was a precursor to the Cruiser title. The WWF Light Heavyweight Championship, which was introduced in 1997, was a seperate title altogether. When the titles were unified, they became one title (the Cruiserweight Championship).

I guess the short answer is no, I did not. I hope I adequately answered your question. A column on the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship may be around in the coming months. At any rate, thanks for reading.

--Leonard