WCW took their cruiserweight obsession a step further in 1997. While the company showcased countless male cruiserweights, it was decided to feature the talents of some smaller female competitors as well. As such, the WCW Womens Cruiserweight Championship was created. On the March 31st broadcast of Nitro, a tournament began to crown the first-ever champ. The finals of the tournament were held on April 7th, but were only broadcast on WCWs Sunday night show, Main Event -- equivalent to WWFs Heat program. The title was never mentioned on WCW television again. The championship was created because of a partnership with the joshi wrestling GAEA Japan. Its believed that the title was created with the intention of using it exclusively in GAEA, and only showcased on WCW television as a favor to the all-female promotion. The title was initially won by Toshie Uematsu, but would only changed hands on two more occasions. The last title switch happened on September 20th of 97 when Sugar Saito beat Yoshiko Tamura. Shortly after that, the title was returned to WCW as their relationship with GAEA came to an end. WCW quietly retired the title as they had no interest in using it themselves.
Douglas Scarpa is a freelance writer, independent filmmaker, art school graduate, and pro wrestling aficionado -- all of which mean he is in financial ruin. He has no backup plan to speak of, yet maintains his abnormally high spirits. If he had only listened to the scorn of his childhood teachers, he wouldn't be in this situation.
