5 Ups And 2 Downs From WWE Cruiserweight Classic (July 27)

2. Brian Kendrick: Wily Veteran

brian kendrick
WWE.com

The video package the preceded (The) Brian Kendrick’s match against Raul Mendoza set the stage for a redemption story. Kendrick’s quote, “I had the whole world in the palm of my hand, and I let it slip through my fingers because I was busy patting myself on the back,” was easily one of the most poignant moments of the Cruiserweight Classic Bracketology show three weeks ago.

But as much as this tournament appeared to be a redemption for Kendrick, it very quickly became something else. When it became clear that Mendoza was faster and explosive, Kendrick resorted to some heelish tricks, kicking the ropes into Raul’s open mouth, causing him to bleed throughout the match. And after being decimated by a coast-to-coast dropkick, Kendrick played a little possum (channeling trainer Shawn Michaels, as the announcers noted) and suckered Mendoza into a Bully Choke for the win.

It was obvious that this is a different Brian Kendrick than the one we saw in WWE during the 2000s. He’s older, a step slower, and maybe a little more resigned to doing what he needs to do to win. Whether that will shine through in future rounds will be reveled in the weeks ahead, but it was a pretty nice twist to see Kendrick play the wily, older veteran well.

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Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.