Sunday, January 29, 2017

Forgotten No More: A Preview of Neville vs. Rich Swann for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship

Since 1988 The Royal Rumble has provided innumerable memories  and lasting impressions on every single fan who has ever bared witness to one.



Amazing title defenses, shocking turns to good and evil,  and everything in between.


And that's not bringing the Royal Rumble match itself into account.


30 (and 40 in 2011) men enter the squared circle at intervals spanning between 90 seconds and two minutes relying on strength, conditioning, and the luck of the draw to propel them to not only a massive victory in the record books but a spot at the top of the card at Wrestlemania.


 Shocking returns, cameos, eliminations, and outcomes of all varieties have thrilled audiences for nearly 30 years. 


Tomorrow night's event with a loaded field of participants and several championship matches should prove to be a worthy addition to the best this PPV has always had to offer.


 A Kickoff show will begin at 5 P.M. with a panel featuring Charly Caruso, Jerry Lawler, Shawn Michaels and others breaking down all the action and offering their predictions.


There are eight matches scheduled for the show.


Two will take place on the Kickoff Show and five will be contested for championships representing both Monday Night Raw and Smackdown Live.


With the Kickoff Show already previewed,   I will now examine the Cruiserweight Championship Match!

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                                                  Cruiserweight Championship Match

                                                  Rich Swann (c) vs. Neville








When Rich Swann captured the Cruiserweight Championship on the debut episode of 205  Live in late November,  the last thing he likely ever imagined having to do was go to war against a former close friend and mentor.

 Yet headed into tonight's show, that is exactly what he must do to hold onto the title he fought so hard for.

It all seemed innocent enough when Neville, who has been absent for some time, suddenly returned at Roadblock: End of The Line following Swann's victory over Kendrick and TJ Perkins.

Swann looked downright thrilled to see his close friend coming down the ramp. But things quickly took a deadly turn.  For the Neville who was about to strike wasn't the man Swann had known for so long.



Neville unleashed months of anger and rage on everyone in his sights.

 In the subsequent weeks The Man Gravity Forgot ripped into Swann, the Cruiserweight Division, and WWE for forgetting him as well.

Citing that he should have been included in the Cruiserweight Classic, Neville declared he would set out on his own personal mission to be crowned the King of Cruiserweights.

With Swann holding onto the title that would cement that self-proclaimed moniker,  Neville continued the brutal assaults on the Outlandish one.

On December 19, Swann confronted Neville about his new change in attitude and informed him that without the title, he was just a pretender.







It proved to be an unwise move in provocation, especially when Kendrick inserted himself into the conversation.

A two on one beat down ensued though Swann stood his ground.  Perkins attempted to make a save but was swiftly kicked in the head by Neville.

Neville and Kendrick stood tall but the worst was yet to come for Swann.





On the subsequent edition of 205 Live, Kendrick and Neville defeated Swann and Perkins in an intense grudge tag team encounter.

But what Neville really wanted was Swann all to himself and issued the challenge on the next edition of Raw.  Swann, eager for retribution  accepted on the spot.

On the December 27 edition of 205 Live, Neville and Swann engaged in heated battle. It was a non-title bout but no less important to either.











Neville continued to employ his new technique of hard striking mixed with the occasional high risk maneuver.

Swann rallied and nearly knocked off his dangerous challenger but it was a Superplex that secured Neville a victory and a step closer to accomplishing his long-term goal.

However he wasn't satisfied with a mere three count. He continued attacking Swann until a group of officials were finally able to pry him away.







Swann would miss a week of action as a result of the beating.  When he resurfaced, it became apparent Neville had unlocked the serious side dwelling within him; Neville would soon discover he didn't particularly like it either.

On the January 9 edition of Raw, Neville defeated Lince Dorado and delighted in further punishing his fallen opponent.










 That's when Swann ran down and took the fight to Neville, driving him from the ring. 

The look on both man's faces told the story.  There was pure hatred at play and nothing was fully settled on that night.







The next night on 205 Live, Swann was back in action and picked up a win over Tony Nese.

He then called out Neville but the angry Brit wouldn't set foot in the same ring as him again until the Cruiserweight Championship was on the line. 

Swann accepted and the match was made for the Royal Rumble.

With the opportunity secure, Neville continued carrying out his game plan and attacking Swann every chance he got.

As Swann danced  his way into a return match with Nese on the January 16 Raw, Neville ran through the crowd and blindsided him.  Another layer of aggression was revealed as officials once again had to pull Neville away.







This time though Swann was able to recover long enough to mount a comeback, something Neville wasn't used to.  It took the intervention of Nese to put an end to it.







Unlike the previous partnership with Kendrick, Neville didn't wish for a companion and removed Nese from the scene. That didn't stop him from taking advantage of the situation and delivering a final blow to Swann though.







On the January 23 edition of Raw, Swann picked up a key victory over Noam Dar.





Afterward he called out Neville to get a piece of him when they were eye to eye,  not a sneak attack from a cowardly man.

 Surprisingly Neville came out from the back and seemed ready to oblige. At the last minute though he retreated to the floor much to Swann's anger.

Taking matters into his own hands, Swann took to the air to wipe out Neville and send a direct message in the process; he wasn't going to lay down and simply hand Neville his "crown".  Their title match would be a dog fight.




The next night on 205 Live, Neville defeated Cedric Alexander with an assist from Noam Dar.

As had become customary, Neville sought to inflict more punishment; when Dar tried to further assist he was sent to the floor just as Nese was previously.  Undaunted, Dar still got in his shots until Swann made the save.

A wild brawl ensued as the show concluded.

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Projection:

If the interactions have been any indication,  this match will be an explosive ball of dynamite with potential to be one of the more memorable encounters  of the night.

 Both athletes likely take pride in the fact this will be the first Cruiserweight Championship mach held at a Royal Rumble since 2006 where Gregory Helms began his record setting title reign.

 With that in mind, they will go to any lengths to be the man who emerges victorious at the Alamo Dome.

Neville will need to make Swann wrestle his match and keep him on the defense.  He has the advantage in height and  overall striking ability. If he mixes in the latter with a select few aerial moves, he stands a very good chance of capturing his first singles title since his NXT Championship run.

Swann will have to ramp up his speed and kicks   to keep Neville at bay. He can not afford to allow the match to be taken to the ground or the corner where Neville does his best damage lately.

Swann will also need to keep his emotions in check. When on the offense he has to keep victory at the forefront of his mind rather than dole out a beating.

In the end, Neville has laser focus on sitting atop the Cruiserweight Division and while it will be a nip and tuck battle, I see him coming out on top.

If he does, who will truly be able to overthrow the King?




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