With WWE NXT now featuring a slew of young, hungry grapplers with a history of either wrestling in, or being influenced by pro wrestling styles inspired by Japan or Mexico, it may be time to consider the harbinger of this second generation of hybrid-styled athletes - that of course being the legacy of WCW's Cruiserweight Division. Originally started as a way to differentiate product branding between World Championship Wrestling and the now World Wrestling Entertainment, the fast-paced and high-flying cruiserweights introduced a number of maneuvers and wrestling styles that are actually now pre-dominant in WWE's heavyweight ranks. Of course there were too many cruiserweights in WCW's history to name all of them, thus this list picks the ten who likely entertained the most. From tremendous in-ring technicians to great gimmick workers (and those who did both equally as well) and the wrestlers who flew the highest (and in the most awe-inspiring of manners), there's a group of wrestlers on this list who were all very much intrinsic components in what current pro wrestling has become. In taking a look at this list, it will certainly spark nostalgic memories as well as portend to what we're watching on television seven nights a week.
Besides having been an independent professional wrestling manager for a decade, Marcus Dowling is a Washington, DC-based writer who has contributed to a plethora of online and print magazines and newspapers writing about music and popular culture over the past 15 years.
