Quarter-Final Bracket Revealed For WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament
Eight 205 Live Superstars are set for the next stage of the competition.
The quarter-final bracket for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship tournament has been revealed, after the last two matches of the opening round took place on last night's 205 Live.
Mustafa Ali and Buddy Murphy have joined the rest of the quarter-finalists after defeating Jack Gallagher and Ariya Daivari respectively.
The full quarter-final bracket features the following matches:
Cedric Alexander vs. TJP
Roderick Strong vs. Kalisto
Mustafa Ali vs. Buddy Murphy
Drew Gulak vs. Mark Andrews
The final will take place at WrestleMania 34, on April 8th in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The early frontrunner appears to be Drew Gulak, who unleashed a new, more vicious style in the closing stages of his first round match with frequent ally Tony Nese. Although displaying momentary regret at so aggressively beating his friend, Gulak quickly shook it off and grabbed the vacant Cruiserweight Championship from ringside to celebrate.
Roderick Strong also impressed a lot in the opening round, beating fellow former NXT standout (and highly-respected Japanese star) Hideo Itami in arguably the best match of the tournament so far.
In terms of the other matches that have already taken place, Cedric Alexander defeated Gran Metalik to progress, and TJP beat former WWE United Kingdom Champion Tyler Bate. Kalisto saw off Lince Dorado in a surprisingly full-throttle lucha-style match, while popular UK star Mark Andrews advanced over Akira Tozawa.
Much has been made over the improved quality of 205 Live since the tournament started, this uptrend coinciding with the news that Triple H has reportedly taken control of the show. It is unclear how directly his involvement has benefitted the product, but given the consistent critical acclaim showered upon NXT, it certainly wouldn't be a surprise to discover that his influence has been a major factor.
The final match of the Mixed Match Challenge opening round also took place last night, with SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte and United States Champion Bobby Roode defeating the team of Apollo Crews and Nia Jax.
Mustafa Ali and Buddy Murphy have joined the rest of the quarter-finalists after defeating Jack Gallagher and Ariya Daivari respectively.
The full quarter-final bracket features the following matches:
Cedric Alexander vs. TJP
Roderick Strong vs. Kalisto
Mustafa Ali vs. Buddy Murphy
Drew Gulak vs. Mark Andrews
The final will take place at WrestleMania 34, on April 8th in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The early frontrunner appears to be Drew Gulak, who unleashed a new, more vicious style in the closing stages of his first round match with frequent ally Tony Nese. Although displaying momentary regret at so aggressively beating his friend, Gulak quickly shook it off and grabbed the vacant Cruiserweight Championship from ringside to celebrate.
Roderick Strong also impressed a lot in the opening round, beating fellow former NXT standout (and highly-respected Japanese star) Hideo Itami in arguably the best match of the tournament so far.
In terms of the other matches that have already taken place, Cedric Alexander defeated Gran Metalik to progress, and TJP beat former WWE United Kingdom Champion Tyler Bate. Kalisto saw off Lince Dorado in a surprisingly full-throttle lucha-style match, while popular UK star Mark Andrews advanced over Akira Tozawa.
Much has been made over the improved quality of 205 Live since the tournament started, this uptrend coinciding with the news that Triple H has reportedly taken control of the show. It is unclear how directly his involvement has benefitted the product, but given the consistent critical acclaim showered upon NXT, it certainly wouldn't be a surprise to discover that his influence has been a major factor.
The final match of the Mixed Match Challenge opening round also took place last night, with SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte and United States Champion Bobby Roode defeating the team of Apollo Crews and Nia Jax.
Written by Jack King
jack.king@cultaholic.com Twitter: @JackTheJobber
