Jack-Hammer
YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!!!!
Over the years, there've been numerous threads talking about how WWE should bring back the Cruiserweight Division filled with debates as to why they should or shouldn't. This isn't a thread about the Cruiserweight Division, exactly, but, rather, a discussion on whether the use of multiple weight divisions could be at all viable in WWE.
Last week, it was announced that a 32 man tournament will be featured on the WWE Network this summer called the Global Cruiserweight Series. This tournament SEEMS like the brainchild of Triple H and, if so, then he and the rest of the NXT creative team will likely be the ones behind exactly what goes down in the tournament. The plan is to gather some top Cruiserweights from around the world, including some signed to WWE developmental deals, and the wrestlers must all weigh 205 lbs. or less. Now IF this is received well by fans and generates a lot of positive interest, it has some fans wondering if it could lead to a Cruiserweight Division revival on the main roster.
The idea I had involved WWE adopting a number of different weight divisions yet doing much like what takes place in a lot of to p Japanese & Mexican promotions in that the non-heavyweight titles are treated with as much prestige as the heavyweight titles, sometimes much more so. This in and of itself leads to one of the bigger problems with the whole concept in that Vince is more interested in presenting wrestling as entertainment rather than a sport; we all know it's not a legit sport but, at the same time, it'd be interesting to see how well it'd be received if it was treated more like a sport similar to what we see in NXT. In combat sports like MMA and boxing, weight divisions are standard operating procedure and the titles aren't necessarily viewed in the sense of "well heavyweights are better than light heavyweights because...."
Another potential problem, and probably the single biggest problem, is namely Vince McMahon himself. At times, Vince's creative decisions can be described, at best, as chaotic; there are times in which Vince seems to change his mind on a push, angle, wrestler or what have you right in the middle of things and has drastic changes made to it without any real concern of logical continuity. The Light Heavyweight & Cruiserweight Divisions of the Attitude Era and afterward weren't warmly welcomed by Vince and were treated as primarily filler. Back in the late 90s during an internet chat, Vince was asked upon how he'd improve the Cruiserweight Division and he sarcastically, and insultingly, responded "Perhaps an influx of Ethiopian talent would be appropriate." The "Ethiopian" thing was due to the the problems famine and hunger had brought about to the country for quite a long time. At the same time, however, it is something of a different day and we've seen a significant number of wrestlers 225 lbs. or less achieve great success in WWE and Vince does seem to be more open to the notion of how useful smaller wrestlers can be.
The thought I had would be that IF WWE ever did go in such a direction, they could somewhat copy the use of weight divisions as used by the UFC, only not with so many of them. The Heavyweight Division would be for 206 lbs. & up, the Cruiserweight Division between 186 to 205 lbs. and a Middleweight Division for 170 to 185 lbs.
I'm not suggesting WWE adopt weight divisions or that they even should. It was just something I was wondering if fans could get behind if WWE genuinely put effort into it. Personally, I have little faith in WWE being able to pull something like this off at this time because Vince McMahon just doesn't strike me as stable enough. He'd have to be willing to devote time and prestige to all the various championships; MAYBE when/if Triple H is the one running the show, it's something that might have a chance of succeeding.
Last week, it was announced that a 32 man tournament will be featured on the WWE Network this summer called the Global Cruiserweight Series. This tournament SEEMS like the brainchild of Triple H and, if so, then he and the rest of the NXT creative team will likely be the ones behind exactly what goes down in the tournament. The plan is to gather some top Cruiserweights from around the world, including some signed to WWE developmental deals, and the wrestlers must all weigh 205 lbs. or less. Now IF this is received well by fans and generates a lot of positive interest, it has some fans wondering if it could lead to a Cruiserweight Division revival on the main roster.
The idea I had involved WWE adopting a number of different weight divisions yet doing much like what takes place in a lot of to p Japanese & Mexican promotions in that the non-heavyweight titles are treated with as much prestige as the heavyweight titles, sometimes much more so. This in and of itself leads to one of the bigger problems with the whole concept in that Vince is more interested in presenting wrestling as entertainment rather than a sport; we all know it's not a legit sport but, at the same time, it'd be interesting to see how well it'd be received if it was treated more like a sport similar to what we see in NXT. In combat sports like MMA and boxing, weight divisions are standard operating procedure and the titles aren't necessarily viewed in the sense of "well heavyweights are better than light heavyweights because...."
Another potential problem, and probably the single biggest problem, is namely Vince McMahon himself. At times, Vince's creative decisions can be described, at best, as chaotic; there are times in which Vince seems to change his mind on a push, angle, wrestler or what have you right in the middle of things and has drastic changes made to it without any real concern of logical continuity. The Light Heavyweight & Cruiserweight Divisions of the Attitude Era and afterward weren't warmly welcomed by Vince and were treated as primarily filler. Back in the late 90s during an internet chat, Vince was asked upon how he'd improve the Cruiserweight Division and he sarcastically, and insultingly, responded "Perhaps an influx of Ethiopian talent would be appropriate." The "Ethiopian" thing was due to the the problems famine and hunger had brought about to the country for quite a long time. At the same time, however, it is something of a different day and we've seen a significant number of wrestlers 225 lbs. or less achieve great success in WWE and Vince does seem to be more open to the notion of how useful smaller wrestlers can be.
The thought I had would be that IF WWE ever did go in such a direction, they could somewhat copy the use of weight divisions as used by the UFC, only not with so many of them. The Heavyweight Division would be for 206 lbs. & up, the Cruiserweight Division between 186 to 205 lbs. and a Middleweight Division for 170 to 185 lbs.
I'm not suggesting WWE adopt weight divisions or that they even should. It was just something I was wondering if fans could get behind if WWE genuinely put effort into it. Personally, I have little faith in WWE being able to pull something like this off at this time because Vince McMahon just doesn't strike me as stable enough. He'd have to be willing to devote time and prestige to all the various championships; MAYBE when/if Triple H is the one running the show, it's something that might have a chance of succeeding.
