Brian Kendrick vs. Kalisto: Winner and Reaction for WWE Survivor Series 2016

Brian Kendrick defeated Kalisto on Sunday night at Survivor Series via disqualification to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Championship and ensure that the cruiserweight division will remain on Raw.

The match ended in a DQ after Baron Corbin emerged and attacked Kalisto with the End of Days.

WWE Universe shared an image of Kendrick with his belt:

Raw general manager Mick Foley thanked Corbin for getting involved in the match:

On the other side, SmackDown GM Daniel Bryan was not happy with Corbin after the match, per WWE Universe:

Scott Fishman of the Miami Herald summed up his thoughts on the decision to have Corbin get involved:

Despite the finish, ESPN's Brian Campbell thought it was an entertaining match: 

As part of Survivor Series' fantasy warfare tagline, nearly the entire card featured matches pitting Raw Superstars against SmackDown Superstars.

That stretched to the cruiserweight division when SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon and Bryan announced Foley agreed to put the entire cruiserweight roster on the line.

Following the success of the Cruiserweight Classic on WWE Network, Raw launched its own cruiserweight division, spearheaded by titleholder TJ Perkins.

TJP and Kendrick engaged in a feud shortly thereafter, and although Perkins' first title defense was successful, Kendrick used his veteran savvy and mind games to take the belt from The Fil-Am Flash at Hell in a Cell on Oct. 30.

While a rematch with Perkins or a bout with the up-and-coming Rich Swann seemed like a possibility, Kendrick was instead thrust into a high-stakes situation at Survivor Series.

As WWE's official Twitter account shared, the 37-year-old expressed confidence in his ability to defeat Kalisto despite the pressure on his shoulders:

At the time of the brand split, there was a great deal of confusion regarding why Kalisto went to SmackDown rather than Raw.

The former Lucha Dragons member is one of the most exciting high-flyers in wrestling, and he seemed like a natural fit for WWE's reincarnated cruiserweight division.

He instead went to the blue brand, where he floundered before missing time because of an injury. Kalisto returned with vengeance by taking out Corbin, though, and entered Survivor Series with a ton of momentum on his side.

Kalisto was presented with the perfect opportunity to both put himself in the best position for success and add a unique and entertaining dimension to SmackDown.

It was fair to assume that Kalisto was the favorite to win ahead of the Nov. 29 debut of 205 Live, a cruiserweight-only show on WWE Network.

Since 205 Live matches will take place after SmackDown on Tuesdays, it seemed logical that the cruiserweights would move to SmackDown and travel with the blue brand.

Despite that, the crafty Kendrick found a way to come out on top and keep the cruiserweights on Raw for the foreseeable future.

Although cruiserweights would have been intriguing on SmackDown because of the presence of CWC announcers Bryan and Mauro Ranallo, Kendrick has been a great champion, and the additional hour of Raw should continue to give cruiserweight Superstars a chance to shine.

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