WWE Rumors: More Signs Are Pointing To ‘205 Live’s’ Imminent Cancellation, Per ‘WrestlingNews.co’
Just days ago, a report from WrestleZone cited a tweet from Post Wrestling’s John Pollock, who wrote that last Friday’s taping of 205 Live was canceled at the last minute. At that time, the publication suggested that this could have been a temporary move to make way for Friday Night SmackDown’s Fox premiere, but also warned that the cancellation could mark the “end of 205 Live going forward.” Sadly, the latest update on the situation suggests that the latter speculation might turn out to be accurate once everything is said and done.
Citing a post from the WWE Network News Twitter account, WrestlingNews.co reported on Monday that 205 Live is presently not listed on the network’s Friday night schedule. As pointed out by the publication, WWE has yet to officially confirm the struggling show’s fate, but by the looks of things, the above observation isn’t the only sign that WWE’s long-running cruiserweight program might be phased out very soon.
According to WrestlingNews.co, one of these signs is the fact that WWE’s title for 205-pounds-and-under male wrestlers was recently renamed the NXT Cruiserweight Championship, with reigning champion Drew Gulak set to defend his belt against Lio Rush on the black-and-gold brand’s programming. Likewise, the outlet added that there have been rumors pointing to an extra hour of WWE programming after Friday Night SmackDown on Fox. As this third hour would presumably be aired on the WWE Network, that could reportedly result in 205 Live losing its 10 p.m. slot on Fridays.
NEXT WEEK: The #Cruiserweight Title will be defended when @DrewGulak battles @itsLioRush on @USA_Network! #NXTonUSA #WWENXT pic.twitter.com/GkxgSTYTmO
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) October 3, 2019
At the moment, WWE seems to have some future plans for 205 Live‘s wrestlers, as some may be assigned to NXT or NXT UK. However, WrestlingNews.co’s sources also noted that the program is among the least-watched shows on the WWE Network at the moment. Furthermore, it appears that WWE does not plan to hold any more stand-alone live events featuring its cruiserweight wrestlers, due to the company’s unsuccessful attempt last year to hold such shows in the Northeast.
News and rumors hinting at 205 Live’s impending demise are nothing new. In an interview with Newsweek last month, WWE executive Paul “Triple H” Levesque seemed to suggest that the cruiserweight division would eventually fall under the NXT umbrella, with such a move designed to “[breathe] some life” into the division and its signature show. Triple H also hinted at the possibility that 205 Live’s performers could have some fresh matchups on NXT as they get a chance to compete against wrestlers outside their weight class.
