Wrestle-1 Cruiser Division Championship

The Wrestle-1 Cruiser Division Championship (WRESTLE-1クルーザーディビジョンチャンピオンシップ, Wrestle-1 Kurūzā Dibijon Chanpionshippu) is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Wrestle-1 (W-1) promotion. The title is meant for cruiserweight wrestlers and holds a weight limit of 200 lb (91 kg).

Wrestle-1 Cruiser Division Championship
The Wrestle-1 Cruiser Division Championship belt
(March 2015 — Present)
Details
PromotionWrestle-1
Date establishedFebruary 25, 2015[1]
Other name(s)
Wrestle-1 Cruiserweight Championship[2]

Like most professional wrestling championships, the title is won as a result of a scripted match. There have been fifteen reigns shared among eight wrestlers.

History

When Wrestle-1 was founded in 2013, one of its main focuses was to build an openweight division, where its wrestlers would not be typecast as heavyweights or junior heavyweights, like in most Japanese promotions, but would be able to interact with each other across weight limits.[8][9] However, on February 13, 2015, after Kaz Hayashi and Shuji Kondo had successfully defended the Wrestle-1 Tag Team Championship against Minoru Tanaka and Seiki Yoshioka, Hayashi announced he was interested in building a division for Wrestle-1's lighter wrestlers,[10][11][12] electing to call the proposed division a "cruiserweight" division instead of the "junior heavyweight" division, which is more common in Japanese puroresu, and reminiscing of Mutoh and Hayashi's stints in WCW in the 1990s.[13] This led to a match on February 22, billed as an "assessment match" to a possible cruiserweight division,[14] where Tanaka defeated Hayashi.[15] Following the match, Tanaka, Andy Wu, El Hijo del Pantera, Hiroshi Yamato, Rionne Fujiwara, Seiki Yoshioka and Yusuke Kodama voiced their support for a cruiserweight division in Wrestle-1.[16][17] On February 25, Wrestle-1 officially announced the creation of a cruiserweight division and the promotion's third title, a cruiserweight championship.[1][18][19]

In May 2016, Kotaro Suzuki made the title's first international defenses by defeating Mark Haskins and Ultimo Tiger in England at events held by 4 Front Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Pride.[20]

Championship tournament

On March 9, 2015, Wrestle-1 officially presented the new title, naming it the "Wrestle-1 Cruiser Division Championship". It was announced that the title holds a weight limit of 200 lb (91 kg) that wrestlers need to make the day before a title match. Also announced was an eight-man single-elimination tournament that would culminate on May 5 with the crowning of the first champion.[21][22][23] The championship belt was officially unveiled on March 31 at a press conference, where all participants in the tournament underwent and passed a weigh-in.[24][25] On May 5, Minoru Tanaka defeated Kaz Hayashi in the finals of the tournament to become the inaugural Wrestle-1 Cruiser Division Champion.[26][27]

First round
(April 1, 19) 		Semifinals
(May 5) 		Finals
(May 5)
         
Minoru Tanaka Pin
Seiki Yoshioka 17:26[28]
Minoru Tanaka Sub
El Hijo del Pantera 07:43[26]
Andy Wu Pin
El Hijo del Pantera 08:08[28]
Minoru Tanaka Pin
Kaz Hayashi 23:53[26]
Kaz Hayashi Pin
Yusuke Kodama 17:52[29]
Kaz Hayashi Pin
Hiroshi Yamato 14:38[26]
Hiroshi Yamato Pin
Rionne Fujiwara 09:31[29]

Title history
Key
No. Overall reign number
Reign Reign number for the specific champion
Days Number of days held
Defenses Number of successful defenses
+ Current reign is changing daily
No. Champion Championship change Reign statistics Notes Ref.
Date Event Location Reign DaysDefenses
1 Minoru Tanaka May 5, 2015 Triumph Tokyo 1 1415[30] Tanaka defeated Kaz Hayashi in the finals of an eight-man tournament to become the inaugural champion. [26][27]
2 Andy Wu September 23, 2015 2nd Anniversary Osaka 1 1093[31] [30]
3 Hiroshi Yamato January 10, 2016 Sunrise Tokyo 1 581[32] [31][33]
— Vacated March 8, 2016 — — — —— Yamato was stripped of the title after suffering a neck injury. [34]
4 Kotaro Suzuki March 13, 2016 Trans Magic Tokyo 1 1515[35] Suzuki defeated Minoru Tanaka in the finals of a four-man tournament to win the vacant title. [36][37]
5 Yusuke Kodama August 11, 2016 Puroresu Love in Yokohama Yokohama 1 1203[38] [35]
6 Mazada December 9, 2016 Shining Winter Tokyo 1 1011[39] [38]
7 Seiki Yoshioka March 20, 2017 Trans Magic Tokyo 1 300[40] [39]
8 Andy Wu April 19, 2017 Cherry Blossom Tokyo 2 150[41] [40][42]
9 Mazada May 4, 2017 Triumph Tokyo 2 731[43] [41][44]
10 Andy Wu July 16, 2017 Symbol Osaka 3 480[45] [43]
11 Seiki Yoshioka September 2, 2017 2017 Puroresu Love in Yokohama Yokohama 2 2843[46] [45]
12 Yusuke Kodama June 13, 2018 2018 Outbreak Tokyo 2 3114 [47]
13 Andy Wu April 20, 2019 Tour 2019 Cherry Blossom Aga 4 1341 [48]
14 El Hijo del Pantera September 1, 2019 Puroresu Love in Yokohama 2019 Yokohama 1 1162 [49]
15 Seiki Yoshioka December 26, 2019 W-1 WRESTLE-1 Tour 2019 Shining Winter Tokyo 3 971 [50]
Title Retired April 1, 2020 - - -- Title retired when Wrestle-1 closed

Combined reigns
Rank Wrestler No. of
reigns		 Combined
defenses		 Combined
days
1 Yusuke Kodama 2 7 431
2 Seiki Yoshioka 3 4 426
3 Andy Wu 4 4 307
4 Mazada 2 2 174
5 Kotaro Suzuki 1 5 151
6 Minoru Tanaka 1 5 141
7 El Hijo del Pantera 1 2 116
8 Hiroshi Yamato 1 1 58

See also

References

General:
  • "Wrestle-1 Cruiser Division Championship history". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). w-1.co.jp. Retrieved January 28, 2021.

Specific:
  1. クルーザー級王座新設決定のお知らせ. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). February 25, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  2. "Results". Pro Wrestling Pride. Archived from the original on May 10, 2016. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  3. 田中 稔. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 5, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  4. 水木千尋さん「酔拳」披露しただ１人合格. Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). January 24, 2011. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  5. "Mazada". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 9, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  6. アンディ・ウー. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
  7. 児玉 裕輔. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 11, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  8. 10/6（日）初の後楽園に向け、カズ選手、近藤選手、田中選手がコメントを発表. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). October 4, 2013. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  9. Ｗ－１初後楽園でジュニア戦士決起. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). October 5, 2013. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  10. "タッグV5カズがクルーザー級創設を提言 田中を撃破したKaiが武藤に挑戦表明". Sports Navi (in Japanese). Yahoo!. February 13, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  11. "クルーザー級創設への序章！？カズ・ハヤシvs田中稔、大阪で一騎打ち決定！". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). February 14, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  12. Ｗ―１タッグ王座 カズ＆近藤がＶ５. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). February 14, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  13. "2月22日（日）大阪大会に向けて。カズ・ハヤシ選手が提唱する"クルーザーの世界"に対して。6選手がコメント。～2月20日（金）愛知・名古屋国際会議場大会 試合後コメント～vol.2". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). February 20, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  14. Ｗ－１タッグ王者 近藤＆カズそれぞれの野望. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). February 17, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  15. "Wrestle-1 Tour 2015 West Side Story". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). February 22, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  16. カズに血判状届く！動き出す“クルーザーの世界”！～カズ・ハヤシ選手、会見. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). February 24, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  17. カズ「血判状」公開 Ｗ－１クルーザー級王座新設主張. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). February 25, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  18. "W-1がクルーザー級王座を新設することを正式に決定！3.8後楽園でW-1王座戦を行う武藤とKaiが心境を語る". Battle News (in Japanese). February 25, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  19. Ｗ－１クルーザー級王座新設決定. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). February 26, 2015. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  20. "Matches By Year « Wrestle-1 Cruiserweight Championship". Cagematch. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
  21. 「Wrestle-1クルーザーディビジョン初代王者決定トーナメント」開催決定のお知らせ. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). March 9, 2015. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  22. W-1クルーザーディビジョン初代王者決定トーナメントの開催＆4.1後楽園でKaivs.鈴木秀樹のW-1王座戦などが決定. Battle News (in Japanese). March 9, 2015. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  23. クルーザー級出場者＆１回戦組み合わせ発表　Ｗ－１. Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). March 9, 2015. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  24. Wrestle-1クルーザーディビジョンベルト公開会見&公開計量. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). March 31, 2015. Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  25. 新設のＷ―１クルーザーディビジョン王座へカズ・ハヤシＶ宣言. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  26. "Wrestle-1 Tour 2015 Triumph". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). May 5, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  27. W-1 5.5後楽園大会　鈴木秀樹vs.浜のW-1チャンピオンシップ、クルーザーディビジョン初代王者決定トーナメント準決勝〜決勝. Battle News (in Japanese). May 5, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  28. "Wrestle-1 Tour 2015 Cherry blossom". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  29. "Wrestle-1 Tour 2015 Cherry blossom". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). April 19, 2015. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  30. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2015 2nd Anniversary」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). September 23, 2015. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
  31. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2016 Sunrise」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). January 10, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  32. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2016 W-Impact」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). February 10, 2016. Retrieved February 10, 2016.
  33. 鼓太郎　Ｗ―１参戦を表明「時を動かしにきた」. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). January 11, 2016. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
  34. 大和ヒロシ選手のクルーザー王座返上及び第4代王者決定トーナメント開催のお知らせ. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). March 8, 2016. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  35. 「プロレスLove in Yokohama」. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). August 11, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  36. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2016 Trans Magic」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). March 13, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
  37. 【Ｗ‐１】鈴木鼓太郎がクルーザー級新王者に. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). March 13, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
  38. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2016 Shining Winter」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). December 9, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  39. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2017 Trans Magic」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). March 20, 2017. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
  40. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2017 Cherry Blossom」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). April 19, 2017. Retrieved April 19, 2017.
  41. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2017 Triumph」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). May 4, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  42. 【試合結果】4･19　Wrestle-1後楽園ホール大会　【W-1王座】芦野祥太郎vs近藤修司　【W-1タッグ王座】土肥孝司＆熊ゴローvs稲葉大樹＆児玉裕輔　【クルーザーディビジョン】吉岡世起vsアンディ・ウー. Battle News (in Japanese). April 20, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  43. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2017 Symbol」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). July 16, 2017. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
  44. 【試合結果】5･4　Wrestle-1後楽園ホール大会　【W-1王座】芦野祥太郎vs征矢学　【W-1タッグ王座】土肥孝司＆熊ゴロ―vs河野真幸＆伊藤貴則　【クルーザー王座】アンディ・ウーvsMazada. Battle News (in Japanese). May 4, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  45. 「2017 プロレスLove in Yokohama」9.2神奈川・横浜文化体育館大会. Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). September 2, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  46. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2017 Shining Winter」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). December 10, 2017. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  47. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2018 Outbreak」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). 2018-06-13. Retrieved 2018-06-13.
  48. "「Wrestle-1 Tour 2019 Cherry Blossom」". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). 2019-04-22. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  49. "「2019 プロレスLOVE in YOKOHAMA」9.1神奈川・横浜文化体育館大会". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  50. "「WRESTLE-1 TOUR 2019 SHINING WINTER」12.26東京・後楽園ホール大会". Wrestle-1 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 28, 2021.


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