WWE: Wrestling fans of color are ready to get behind Apollo Crews as a champion

As the new WWE United States Champion, there is no doubt that Apollo Crews is ready for the spotlight. 

Being a champion is an important accolade in professional wrestling. While this is a scripted form of entertainment, having a title reign at the highest levels is a testament to an individual’s career and contributions. After six years with the WWE, Apollo Crews obtained his first title with the promotion as he won the United States title on Monday Night Raw.

Looking back across the near 11 years he has been in wrestling, not only is this a testament to Crews’s talent, but a signal of what is to come.

Wrestling during the time of a global pandemic is a challenge for everyone involved. WWE has been forced to use a microcosm of its entire roster as many individuals have not appeared on television for an extended period.

However, there are some that have still be leveraged on TV and used this time to let the world know that they are hidden gems on the roster. Crews is such an individual and this title win points to that fact. The US title has been used to elevate others in the past and the same should happen now.

Going through Crews’ career, it was clear that he had the makings to be a special talent in professional wrestling. Now only does he have the “look,” but his athletic abilities translate to nearly any style needed in the ring.

If believability is an important piece to what makes wrestling interesting for you, Crews has all of that. Dragon Gate USA picked him up right out of the gate. Dragon Gate USA, along with its parent company Dragon Gate, have been home to some of the biggest and best performers in current wrestling. Jon Moxley, Shingo, and Pac are just some of the names that have entered through the proverbial gates. Crews is also on that list.

Crews’s career has taken him through other important organizations such as Evolve and PCW. He has been a champion in many of those places. Therefore, when he was added to the WWE in 2014, there was excitement for what was to come. That excitement took six years as Crews was shuffled throughout the WWE roster.

For many, it seemed like Crews was heading toward a career of obscurity where he would not be leveraged in any other way outside of being fodder for the next name that WWE wanted to get behind. The fans familiar with Crews wanted more, but as with many people on the WWE roster – especially those of color – it did not seem like the “more” was to come.

Apollo Crews can draw in wrestling fans of color

Looking at match data, both the WWE and AEW were featuring a lot more people of color on television than usual during the global pandemic caused by COVID-19. Crews was one of those individuals. From January to March, Crews had only won a single match and had zero wins on live television.

Then the pandemic hit, and the WWE was forced to use a small portion of its roster to still be able to create content for fans facing lockdowns across the country. For Crews, that WWE breakout moment came on Apr. 6 where he and Aleister Black had a 27-minute match.

A match that is one of the best Raw matches in recent memory. Even though Black took the victory, it was clear that Crews could deliver much more than WWE was providing him.

Since that night, he is only “loss” one match and that’s the referee’s stoppage against Andrade that forced him out of the Money in the Bank ladder match.

Fans were quick to question why this decision was made, but cooler heads thought that the WWE were making the move to take the US title off Andrade and place it on the rising Crews. That is exactly what happened. Now, we are in the position to enjoy an important ride with the performer.

Crews can be special for the WWE. He has all the tools needed to be in consideration of becoming the first African American man to hold the main WWE title. While some may want to ignore it, there are pecking orders when it comes to the WWE titles and the Raw title has always been front and center.

Crews should be thought of as someone that can deliver the type of performances needed to hold that title. As with any other wrestler, the question is around the booking and if WWE could build it. But we know Crews can hold up his end of the bargain.

Apollo Crews started his first WWE title reign on Monday. Wrestling fans of color are ready to get behind someone that looks like them as a major champion. WWE has taken a step-in building Crews up as that individual. Here is to hoping they continue to build to more as he is more than ready to run with the ball.