10 Ideas That WWE Stole From Other Companies

5. The Light Heavyweight Division

NWo DX
WWE.com

Another WWE reaction to a WCW innovation, the Light Heavyweight Division was McMahon’s response to the growing popularity of the WCW Cruiserweight Division.

The likes of Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, and Chris Jericho became must-see attractions, and their division produced some of the most exciting, fast-paced wrestling on television.

As with every other proven WCW success story, Vince couldn’t help himself. WWE tried to get their Light Heavyweight Division off the ground on several occasions, but it reeked of imitation, and became a joke when Gillberg (the company’s resident Goldberg parody) became its longest-reigning champion.

The Light Heavyweight belt originated in New Japan Pro Wrestling and found itself around the waist of Jushin Thunder Liger, Chris "Pegasus Kid" Benoit, and The Great Sasuke between 1981 and 1997. It's value started evaporating as soon as McMahon got his clutches on it, however.

Often relegated to Sunday Night Heat, wrestlers like Essa Rios and the aforementioned Gillberg could never stand-up to their WCW counterparts, and the division was scrapped halfway through the Invasion angle in 2001 when it was, somewhat ironically, unified with the WCW Cruiserweight strap.

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Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.