10 Reasons Why WWE Fans Should Be Watching New Japan Pro Wrestling

5. The Junior Heavyweights

A common complaint amongst WWE's critics is that the company has never put enough focus on a Cruiserweight division. Granted, in recent years WWE has given main event pushes to talent who might have once been pigeonholed in such a division (such as Daniel Bryan and Seth Rollins), but there's no doubt that talented players such as Tyson Kidd, Justin Gabriel, JTG, and Evan Bourne could have benefited from the presence of a division geared toward their weight class. In New Japan, the Cruiserweights (or Juniors) have long been given their due. The IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title is arguably the most prestigious in the history of the sport, and is complemented nicely by the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles. Each year, the Best of the Super Juniors and Super Junior Tag Tournaments also spotlight the best of the best €“ in fact, U.S.-based stars who have won Junior honors in New Japan include Owen Hart, Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, and Daniel Bryan, to name a few. Additionally, the weight classes have become more blurred in recent years, with Juniors such as Ibushi and Devitt competing with heavyweights. Still not convinced? Watch Ibushi's title match against Ricochet from this June's Dominion event. Do it. I'll wait. That was something, right?