5 Biggest Talking Points From WWE’s UK Championship Tournament

There was a lot of chatter going in to the WWE’s UK Championship Tournament. Was it a cynical attempt to cut the legs from under new British rivals? Did WWE want to make the UK a testing ground for global expansion? Would WWE’s production team and the British talent they selected mesh into an exciting product?

WWE’s long term plan is still a mystery, but their UK Championship Tournament delivered a nice addition to the British wrestling scene. Newcomers to British wrestling could find an ideal introduction here, with commentators Michael Cole and Nigel McGuinness doing a good job of letting you know why you should care about each competitor.

But what can we take away from this tournament?

 

1. The Final Four can carry a TV Show

We know Triple H is hoping to spin this tournament into a weekly WWE program, probably on the Network. With that in mind, they definitely picked the right four semifinalists and built them in the right way. Pete Dunne looks genuinely menacing as the cheating bruiser, and Tyler Bate feels like he could emerge as a low key British Hulk Hogan. Wolfgang was a major surprise as an easy-to-like roguish face, especially given his look and size. Oh, and Mark Andrews is a global star in the making. These four guys are varied and dynamic enough to carry that weekly show WWE were hoping for.

 

2. Mark Andrews has the Highest ceiling

This probably isn’t news to anyone who’s already seen what Andrews can do from his time at TNA. Out of all the guys in the tournament, even the two finalists, Andrews has that lucky array of tools to be a big star. His ring style is exciting, his selling is great for his age, he can bust out some great moves and he looked surprisingly comfortable in his brief promo. At certain moments his mannerisms remind me of Sami Zayn. Give this guy time and he’ll have no trouble getting over in major promotions across the world.

 

3. The Tournament Might have benefited the UK scene more than WWE

If the rumour is true that WWE wanted to cut off any UK competition at the knees, this tournament might have had the opposite effect. After viewing the tournament I’m reasonably sure the rumour is only partly true, though. WWE did everything they could to make big names out of top UK indie guys like Trent Severn, Joseph Conners and Pete Dunne. Details are still murky, but it still seems up in the air whether contracts for the UK show would include WWE exclusivity. Could participants still appear on Progress, ICW, WCPW and other UK indies, with the added plus of WWE level exposure?

 

4. The Storylines have huge potential

You have to wonder if Triple H has actually learnt a few things since the Cruiserweight Classic. As a pure display of wrestling the UK Championship tournament didn’t come close to matching the best Cruiserweight Classic matches. Thanks to smart booking and storylines though, a WWE UK wrestling show is in a far better starting position. Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate are over as the monster heel and top babyface respectively, while Mark Andrews and Joseph Conners feel perfect as another major feud. By injecting more story and squashing it into two nights WWE have set up their UK show to succeed.

 

5. This is what World of Sport Should have been

Let’s deal with the elephant in the room. There’s a very good chance this tournament was put on simply to put a dampener on ITV’s World of Sport revival. If so, it succeeded in every way. After viewing the New Year’s Eve World of Sport special, I was left wondering if ITV really wanted a wrestling show, or just something kid friendly for Saturday teatime. It wasn’t terrible, certainly, but it clearly had no ambitions beyond the usual light entertainment ITV clogs up its Saturday evenings with. Not that this is a bad thing, but now we’ve seen how WWE can mesh light entertainment with a deeper commitment to wrestling psychology, the new World of Sport pales in comparison.