WWE: Celebrating 20 Years of Cruiserweight Championships

Twenty years ago today, on October 27, 1991, the late Brian Pillman won a tournament to become the first-ever WCW Cruiserweight Champion. It is that belt that was adopted a decade later by WWE following their purchase of their competition. The belt was combined with WWE's Light Heavyweight Championship to create one definitive title for the small superstars that entertain us all.

The Cruiserweight division has been a crucial part of pro wrestling in the two decades since this day. It was the Cruiserweights that helped give WCW an edge over WWE in the Monday Night Wars. Following the Invasion storyline and combining into WWE's record books, it became a staple of Smackdown episodes every week.

In the end, it's hard to see how far down the Cruiserweights have slipped in importance. I think it is safe to say that we all took advantage of how great the division was.

We also cannot stress how well the title was booked in its existence. Sure, it is remembered as being held by Hornswoggle last, but that is a rare exception to the stellar history of the title. From 1991 until 2008, when the title was retired, only 40 different superstars held the honor in 79 official reigns. Among those 40 are unusual champions like Hornswoggle, as well as three women. Madusa and Daffney both won the title in WCW, while Jacqueline was champion in WWE.

Among the other 36 champions were some names that are very well-known to wrestling fans across the world. Great superstars like Pillman, X-Pac, Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho, Dean Malenko and Eddie Guerrero all held the championship at one point. There are even some that have become defined by the division, such as Chavo Guerrero, Billy Kidman and Gregory Helms.

The title was defended at multiple big venues in both WCW and WWE, including WrestleMania XIX and WrestleMania XX. The title had changed hands on episodes of RAW and Smackdown, even being won on little-watched shows like Velocity. The final title change under WCW came at the Greed pay-per-view, while the final title change in the history of the title at all occurred at The Great American Bash, a pay-per-view name made famous in WCW.

In the time without the championship, fans have expressed interest in bringing the championship back to try and reignite the success experienced by WCW in the 1990s.

Among defunct championships, few are discussed by fans for being reinstated more than the Cruiserweight Championship. It is also believed to be the inspiration for the current X Division in TNA, which is the one of the big highlights in the promotion.

Current WWE fans look at members of the roster like Tyson Kidd, Sin Cara, John Morrison, Evan Bourne and many others. With this group of youngsters, the division of cruiserweights seems like it could work while not taking time away from many others. In fact, it helps to give many under-utilized stars a chance to earn their paychecks and fully develop their purpose. Some of these guys can end up becoming the next Eddie Guerrero or Chris Jericho by rising out of the division and into main events.