WWE Cruiserweight Classic 2016: 8 Best Moments

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6. Gargano’s Gone

Johnny Gargano became a “WWE guy” over the past year, being placed in a tag team with Tommaso Ciampa and getting plenty of opportunities on NXT. This made him an early favorite to win the Cruiserweight Classic.

However, in Round 2, eventual CWC winner TJ Perkins pulled off the upset, working on the injured leg of Gargano’s. He hurt this in the NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II match against The Revival.

Gargano arguably became the first potential favorite to go home. His status within WWE made it seem like he had a shot at winning it all, but a second round appearance ended his dream. Brackets were destroyed, too.

5. Those Two Top Guys Not Going to Raw

When the WWE Raw cruiserweight division got announced, two obvious omissions were Kota Ibushi and Zack Sabre Jr. They were arguably the highest profile names of the Cruiserweight Classic. Both have wide-ranging popularity around the world, and are invested in other promotions. Sabre is most notably the PWG Champion.

Due to this, these two not making the finals may not be considered a huge surprise. However, they still made it to the live special and delivered phenomenal bouts.

Go further back and look at what Sabre and Ibushi did throughout the tournament. Every match of theirs became must-watch and were thrilling encounters. The Golden Star and Technical Wizard shined in their own ways, and won’t be forgotten. Maybe they’ll return for 2017, if WWE does another tournament.

Next: No. 3 and 4