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Follow @TheDocLOP QUESTION OF THE DAY: Did Ibushi vs. Alexander overtake your Round 1 favorite for best match of the CWC thus far? Welcome back to continued coverage of the WWE Cruiserweight Classic. Tonight marked our first foray into Round 2 after a highly engaging Round 1 wrapped up a week ago. The bar was set to be raised with less matches in the hour leaving more time for each Sweet 16 contest to take place and there was no let-down whatsoever. Let's get to the action! Match 1: Gran Metalik defeated Tajiri in 10:54 (Doc's Rating - *** ¼) (Doc's Notes – What a great opening match to kick off the second round. You could have cut their nearly 11 minutes into four equal parts. Part one featured some of the best grappling sequences of the tournament thus far, with escape after escape after escape. If Zack Sabre Jr is the doctor of escapology, then to me it would seem that, based at least on this sample, Tajiri and Metalik hold escapology Master's degrees. Truly brilliant work to start the match. Tajiri took control for part two, utilizing an impressive combination of submission holds and strong kicks. Metalik dominated part three, putting his aerial prowess on display but also echoing the early match evidence that he is not all high flying. The fourth part was an entertaining and rather rapid exchange of momentum that led to the finish, which continued to put over the Michinoku-esque Metalik Driver as one of the most dangerous match-enders in the field. If the final match of Round 1 was the best match of the tournament before tonight, then Metalik vs. Tajiri ended the night very much in the conversation for one of the CWC's Top 5 matches to date, slightly behind Gargano vs. Ciampa in action and well behind it in story, but right there with the best of the rest of the first round. It was not as good as tonight's main-event, but it was a match that I would rewatch in a heartbeat all the same) Match 2: Kota Ibushi defeated Cedric Alexander in 15:07 (Doc's Rating - ****) (Doc's Notes – If you love a good story told on the 20'X20' canvas, then it is no wonder that you would consider Ciampa's narrow defeat at the hands of Gargano last week to be the reigning match of the tournament and the current Match of the Month in WWE. It would be tempting to state that Ibushi vs. Alexander only exceeded the Ciampa-Gargano match in its overall in-ring action, as the wrestling on display was both very innovative and quite well-executed, but what impressed me most about tonight's main-event was that the presentation shaped it as Alexander being such a big fan of Ibushi that he came into Round 2 both extra motivated and with a great, personally compiled scouting report. It was that narrative, anchored by strong work from the announce team again, which drove the match to greater success than even the awesome battle between tag team partners a week ago. While not equal in story to Ciampa vs. Gargano, it told a very good story that, combined with an extra four minutes of incredible if not archetypal cruiserweight wrestling, allowed it to edge ahead to become the tournament's finest effort through 18 bouts and set the tone a week and a half early for Summerslam weekend. I actually had to use the Network's track back 10 second feature to replay the hurricanrana sequence off the top turnbuckle. It proved to be the start of my favorite tit for tat of the night, but I had to check my eyes to make sure that I saw it correctly. Alexander, who was amazing despite his loss and who should almost assuredly earn a spot in WWE's forthcoming Cruiserweight division on Raw, pushed Ibushi off when the Golden Star was attempting the hurricanrana, then jumped like he was selling the move and landed on his feet near the middle of the ring. I had never seen that before. Just a great match overall) All in all, we got one of the Top 5 matches of the tournament supporting the best match of the tournament, so I'd call this the most successful night yet in the Cruiserweight Classic. The various styles that comprise the CW genre really do lend themselves to incredibly satisfying viewing experiences. You might read my full star ratings list and see the CW action from WCW so often rating really well throughout the Monday Night War and think, “it's an exaggeration.” If you feel that way about mine, check out Dave Meltzer's full star ratings list from that era. The thing is that it's not an exaggeration. Cruiserweight wrestling is just simply put one of the most enjoyable types of action on the planet in any form of sport or entertainment. The prospect of Metalik vs. Gallagher or Tozawa and Ibushi vs. Kendrick have me already excited for the Elite Eight and we're three weeks away from it. If you're not watching the CWC, you're seriously missing out
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