The WWE Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship originally used in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and later, World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWF/WWE). It was contested by wrestlers 220 lbs and under, billed as cruiserweights. Following the acquisition of WCW by the then-WWF in 2001, it became a WWF (and later, WWE) championship and replaced the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship. During the first WWE brand extension, it was the only title to be exclusive to the SmackDown! brand during its entire tenure. The championship was created in WCW in 1996, with Shinjiro Otani as the inaugural champion. However, following WCW's purchase, the WWF/E considered the title to be a continuation of the earlier WCW Light Heavyweight Championship, which had been created in 1991 with Brian Pillman as the inaugural champion. The Cruiserweight Championship was retired in 2007 with Hornswoggle as its final holder. Another WWE Cruiserweight Championship was created in 2016, and although both championships had shared the same name (before the newer title was renamed to NXT Cruiserweight Championship in 2019), the newer championship did not carry the lineage of the original. The newer title also had a different weight limit of 205 lbs (93 kg) before the championship was retired in 2022. History The championship was originally created as the WCW Cruiserweight Championship on March 20, 1996. However, after the acquisition of World Championship Wrestling's (WCW) assets by rival company World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE), both lineages of the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship and the WCW Cruiserweight Championship were considered to be one and the same, with WWE referring to the holders of the Light Heavyweight Championship as former Cruiserweight Champions. During the existence of WCW, the two titles were considered distinct and did not share a common lineage. Following the introduction of the Light Heavyweight Championship in 1991 (which WCW had considered to be a separate title), a tournament was held to determine the inaugural champion. On October 27, Brian Pillman defeated Richard Morton in the tournament final to win the title. However, when Brad Armstrong was forced to relinquish the title due to injury on September 2, 1992, it became inactive. Then, on March 20, 1996, Shinjiro Otani defeated Wild Pegasus (Chris Benoit) in a decision match to win what then became known as the WCW Cruiserweight Championship. In March 2001, the WWF purchased WCW. Soon after, "The Invasion" took place, in which The Alliance was