# List of WWE Cruiserweight Champions (1996–2007)

The WWE Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and was originally a World Championship Wrestling (WCW) title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 225 lbs. During the WWE brand extension, it was the only title to be exclusive to the SmackDown! brand during its entire tenure. There were a total of 36 recognized champions who had a combined 34 official reigns. This is a chronological list of wrestlers that held the original WWE Cruiserweight Championship, listed by ring name, with the longest reign being 385 days by Gregory Helms (as well as being the only person to hold this championship for 365 days or more), and the most reigns by Rey Mysterio with 8.
After WCW was purchased by WWE, the inaugural champion was retroactively changed from Shinjiro Otani to Brian Pillman, as WWE recognizes the former WCW Light Heavyweight Championship as part of the original lineage of the Cruiserweight Championship.

## Reigns
### Names

| Name | Years |
| WCW World Cruiserweight Championship | March 20, 1996 – November 18, 2001 |
| WWF World Cruiserweight Championship | November 18, 2001 – May 6, 2002 |
| WWE World Cruiserweight Championship | May 6, 2002 – September 25, 2007 |

### Reigns

Key :
| No. | Overall reign number |
| Reign | Reign number for the specific champion |
| Days | Number of days held |
| Days recog. | Number of days held recognized by the promotion |
| † | Championship change is unrecognized by the promotion |
| <1 | Reign lasted less than a day |
| No. | Champion | Championship change | Championship change | Championship change | Reign statistics | Reign statistics | Reign statistics | Notes | Ref. |
| No. | Champion | Date | Event | Location | Reign | Days | Days recog. | Notes | Ref. |
| | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | World Championship Wrestling (WCW) |
| 1 | Shinjiro Otani | March 20, 1996 | Hyper Battle 1996 | Nagoya, Japan | 1 | 43 | 42 | Otani defeated Wild Pegasus in tournament final to determine the first WCW Cruiserweight Champion. This was a New Japan Pro-Wrestling event. | |
| 2 | Dean Malenko | May 2, 1996 | WorldWide | Lake Buena Vista, FL | 1 | 67 | 66 | Aired on May 18 on tape delay. | |
| 3 | Rey Mysterio Jr. | July 8, 1996 | Monday Nitro | Lake Buena Vista, FL | 1 | 111 | 110 | | |
| 4 | Dean Malenko | October 27, 1996 | Halloween Havoc | Paradise, NV | 2 | 63 | 62 | | |
| 5 | Último Dragón | December 29, 1996 | Starrcade | Nashville, TN | 1 | 23 | 24 | This match was also for Dragon's J-Crown. | |
| 6 | Dean Malenko | January 21, 1997 | Clash of the Champions XXXIV | Milwaukee, WI | 3 | 33 | 32 | | |
| 7 | Syxx | February 23, 1997 | SuperBrawl VII | Daly City, CA | 1 | 125 | 124 | | |
| 8 | Chris Jericho | June 28, 1997 | Saturday Nitro | Inglewood, CA | 1 | 30 | 29 | Jericho won the match at a house show that was broadcast over the Internet as Saturday Nitro. | |
| 9 | Alex Wright | July 28, 1997 | Monday Nitro | Charleston, WV | 1 | 15 | 18 | WWE recognizes Wright's reign as ending on August 16, 1997, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 10 | Chris Jericho | August 12, 1997 | Saturday Night | Colorado Springs, CO | 2 | 29 | 28 | WWE recognizes Jericho's reign as beginning on August 16, 1997, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 11 | Eddie Guerrero | September 14, 1997 | Fall Brawl | Winston-Salem, NC | 1 | 42 | 41 | | |
| 12 | Rey Mysterio Jr. | October 26, 1997 | Halloween Havoc | Paradise, NV | 2 | 15 | 14 | This was a Mask vs. Title match. | |
| 13 | Eddie Guerrero | November 10, 1997 | Monday Nitro | Memphis, TN | 2 | 49 | 48 | | |
| 14 | Último Dragón | December 29, 1997 | Monday Nitro | Baltimore, MD | 2 | 10 | 9 | | |
| 15 | Juventud Guerrera | January 8, 1998 | Thunder | Daytona Beach, FL | 1 | 7 | 6 | | |
| 16 | Rey Mysterio Jr. | January 15, 1998 | Thunder | Lakeland, FL | 3 | 9 | 8 | | |
| 17 | Chris Jericho | January 24, 1998 | Souled Out | Dayton, OH | 3 | 113 | 143 | | |
| 18 | Dean Malenko | May 17, 1998 | Slamboree | Worcester, MA | 4 | 25 | 26 | Malenko won a battle royal earlier in the night, wearing a mask as Ciclope, to earn a title shot. | |
| — | Vacated | June 11, 1998 | Thunder | Buffalo, NY | — | — | — | The championship was vacated due to Dean Malenko not earning the title shot as himself. | |
| 19 | Chris Jericho | June 14, 1998 | The Great American Bash | Baltimore, MD | 4 | 55 | 55 | Jericho defeated Dean Malenko by disqualification. On July 12 at Bash at the Beach, Rey Misterio Jr. defeated Jericho for the title due to interference from Malenko; Jericho was returned the title the following night. WWE recognizes Jericho's reign as lasting 56 days. | |
| 20 | Juventud Guerrera | August 8, 1998 | Road Wild | Sturgis, SD | 2 | 37 | 36 | Dean Malenko was the special guest referee. | |
| 21 | Billy Kidman | September 14, 1998 | Monday Nitro | Greenville, SC | 1 | 63 | 62 | | |
| 22 | Juventud Guerrera | November 16, 1998 | Monday Nitro | Wichita, KS | 3 | 6 | 5 | | |
| 23 | Billy Kidman | November 22, 1998 | World War 3 | Auburn Hills, MI | 2 | 113 | 112 | | |
| 24 | Rey Mysterio Jr. | March 15, 1999 | Monday Nitro | Cincinnati, OH | 4 | 35 | 34 | | |
| 25 | Psychosis | April 19, 1999 | Monday Nitro | Gainesville, FL | 1 | 7 | 6 | This was a four-way match also involving Blitzkrieg and Juventud Guerrera. | |
| 26 | Rey Mysterio Jr. | April 26, 1999 | Monday Nitro | Fargo, ND | 5 | 115 | 114 | | |
| 27 | Lenny Lane | August 19, 1999 | Thunder | Lubbock, TX | 1 | 46 | 45 | | |
| — | Vacated | October 4, 1999 | — | — | — | — | — | The championship was vacated due to Lenny Lane being stripped of the title after Turner Broadcasting did not approve of the publicity garnered through Lane's homosexual gimmick. | |
| 28 | Psychosis | October 4, 1999 | Monday Nitro | Kansas City, MO | 2 | <1 | <1 | Psychosis was awarded the title after the West Hollywood Blonde's angle was dropped. | |
| 29 | Disco Inferno | October 4, 1999 | Monday Nitro | Kansas City, MO | 1 | 48 | 49 | | |
| 30 | Evan Karagias | November 21, 1999 | Mayhem | Toronto, ON, Canada | 1 | 28 | 27 | | |
| 31 | Madusa | December 19, 1999 | Starrcade | Washington, D.C. | 1 | 28 | 27 | Became the first female Cruiserweight Champion. | |
| 32 | Oklahoma | January 16, 2000 | Souled Out | Cincinnati, OH | 1 | 2 | 1 | | |
| — | Vacated | January 18, 2000 | Thunder | Evansville, IN | — | — | — | The championship was vacated due to Oklahoma exceeding the weight limit. Aired on January 19 on tape delay. | |
| 33 | The Artist | February 20, 2000 | SuperBrawl 2000 | Daly City, CA | 1 | 39 | 38 | The Artist defeated Lash LeRoux in a tournament final to win the vacant championship. | |
| 34 | Billy Kidman | March 30, 2000 | House show | Baltimore, MD | 3 | 1 | <1 | | |
| 35 | The Artist | March 31, 2000 | House show | Pittsburgh, PA | 2 | 10 | 9 | | |
| — | Vacated | April 10, 2000 | Monday Nitro | Denver ,CO | — | — | — | The championship was vacated by Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo, along with all other WCW titles. | |
| 36 | Chris Candido | April 16, 2000 | Spring Stampede | Chicago, IL | 1 | 29 | 28 | Candido defeated The Artist, Juventud Guerrera, Shannon Moore, Lash LeRoux and Crowbar in a six-way match to win the vacant championship. | |
| 37 | Crowbar and Daffney | May 15, 2000 | Monday Nitro | Biloxi, MS | 1 | 7 | 6 | Crowbar and Daffney defeated Chris Candido and Tammy Lynn Sytch in a mixed tag team match to become co-champions. | |
| 38 | Daffney | May 22, 2000 | Monday Nitro | Grand Rapids, MI | 1 | 15 | 14 | Daffney defeated Crowbar to become undisputed champion and second female to win the title. | |
| 39 | Lieutenant Loco | June 6, 2000 | Thunder | Knoxville, TN | 1 | 55 | 54 | This was a three-way match also involving Disco Inferno. Aired on June 7 on tape delay. | |
| 40 | Lance Storm | July 31, 2000 | Monday Nitro | Cincinnati ,OH | 1 | 14 | 13 | | |
| 41 | Elix Skipper | August 14, 2000 | Monday Nitro | Kelowna, BC, Canada | 1 | 49 | 48 | Skipper was awarded the title by his Team Canada partner Lance Storm, who called it the "101 KG and Under Championship". | |
| 42 | Mike Sanders | October 2, 2000 | Monday Nitro | Daly City, CA | 1 | 63 | 62 | Sanders and Kevin Nash defeated Skipper in a Handicap Powerbomb match. | |
| 43 | Chavo Guerrero Jr. | December 4, 2000 | Thunder | Lincoln, NE | 2 | 104 | 103 | Formerly known as Lieutenant Loco. Aired on December 6 on tape delay. | |
| 44 | Shane Helms | March 18, 2001 | Greed | Jacksonville, FL | 1 | 107 | 109 | WCW was purchased by the World Wrestling Federation later that month. WWE recognizes Helms' reign as ending on July 5, 2001, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) | World Wrestling Federation (WWF) |
| 45 | Billy Kidman | July 3, 2001 | SmackDown! | Tacoma, WA | 4 | 27 | 24 | This was the first title change in the WWF. WWE recognizes Kidman's reign as beginning on July 5, 2001, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 46 | X-Pac | July 30, 2001 | Raw is War | Philadelphia, PA | 2 | 71 | 73 | Formerly known as Syxx. X-Pac's WWF Light Heavyweight Championship was also on the line. WWE recognizes X-Pac's reign as ending on October 11, 2001, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 47 | Billy Kidman | October 9, 2001 | SmackDown! | Moline, IL | 5 | 13 | 11 | WWE recognizes Kidman's reign as beginning on October 11, 2001, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 48 | Tajiri | October 22, 2001 | Raw | Kansas City, MO | 1 | 162 | 163 | The title became the WWF Cruiserweight Championship when the WWF defeated The Alliance at Survivor Series on November 18 and replaced the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship. The title became exclusive to SmackDown! on March 25, 2002. | |
| | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown | World Wrestling Federation: SmackDown |
| 49 | Billy Kidman | April 2, 2002 | SmackDown! | Rochester, NY | 6 | 19 | 16 | WWE recognizes Kidman's reign as beginning on April 4, 2002, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 50 | Tajiri | April 21, 2002 | Backlash | Kansas City, MO | 2 | 23 | 24 | The title became the WWE Cruiserweight Championship on May 5 when the WWF became World Wrestling Entertainment. | |
| | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown | World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): SmackDown |
| 51 | The Hurricane | May 14, 2002 | SmackDown! | Montreal, QC, Canada | 2 | 40 | 38 | Formerly known as Shane Helms. This was a triple threat match, also involving Billy Kidman. WWE recognizes his reign as beginning on May 16, 2002, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 52 | Jamie Noble | June 23, 2002 | King of the Ring | Columbus, OH | 1 | 147 | 146 | | |
| 53 | Billy Kidman | November 17, 2002 | Survivor Series | New York, NY | 7 | 98 | 97 | | |
| 54 | Matt Hardy | February 23, 2003 | No Way Out | Montreal, QC, Canada | 1 | 100 | 101 | | |
| 55 | Rey Mysterio | June 3, 2003 | SmackDown! | Anaheim, CA | 6 | 112 | 111 | Formerly known as Rey Mysterio Jr. Aired on June 5 on tape delay. | |
| 56 | Tajiri | September 23, 2003 | SmackDown! | Philadelphia, PA | 3 | 98 | 95 | WWE recognizes his reign as beginning on September 25, 2003, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 57 | Rey Mysterio | December 30, 2003 | SmackDown! | Laredo, TX | 7 | 47 | 44 | WWE recognizes Mysterio's reign as beginning on January 1, 2004, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 58 | Chavo Guerrero | February 15, 2004 | No Way Out | Daly City, CA | 3 | 79 | 80 | Formerly known as Chavo Guerrero Jr. | |
| 59 | Jacqueline | May 4, 2004 | SmackDown! | Tucson, AZ | 1 | 12 | 9 | Jacqueline answered an open challenge; became the third female to win the title. WWE recognizes her reign as beginning on May 6, 2004, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 60 | Chavo Guerrero | May 16, 2004 | Judgment Day | Los Angeles, CA | 4 | 2 | 3 | Guerrero won the championship with one hand tied behind his back, though his father Chavo Classic untied it during the match. | |
| 61 | Chavo Classic | May 18, 2004 | SmackDown! | Paradise, NV | 1 | 28 | 27 | This was a triple threat match also involving Spike Dudley. Aired on May 20 on tape delay. | |
| 62 | Rey Mysterio | June 15, 2004 | SmackDown! | Rosemont, IL | 8 | 42 | 41 | Aired on June 17 on tape delay. | |
| 63 | Spike Dudley | July 27, 2004 | SmackDown! | Cincinnati, OH | 1 | 138 | 135 | WWE recognizes Dudley's reign as beginning on July 29, 2004, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 64 | Funaki | December 12, 2004 | Armageddon | Atlanta, GA | 1 | 70 | 69 | | |
| 65 | Chavo Guerrero | February 20, 2005 | No Way Out | Pittsburgh, PA | 5 | 37 | 38 | This was a six-man Cruiserweight Open, also involving Akio, Spike Dudley, Shannon Moore and Paul London, who Chavo last eliminating. | |
| 66 | Paul London | March 29, 2005 | SmackDown! | Houston, TX | 1 | 126 | 127 | This was an eight-man battle royal, last eliminating Billy Kidman. Aired on March 31 on tape delay. WWE recognizes London's reign as beginning on October 11, 2001, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 67 | Nunzio | August 2, 2005 | Velocity | Bridgeport, CT | 1 | 68 | 64 | WWE recognizes Nunzio's reign as beginning on August 6, 2005, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 68 | Juventud | October 9, 2005 | No Mercy | Houston, TX | 4 | 37 | 36 | Formerly known as Juventud Guerrera. | |
| 69 | Nunzio | November 15, 2005 | House show | Rome, Italy | 2 | 7 | 9 | | |
| 70 | Juventud | November 22, 2005 | SmackDown! | Sheffield, England | 5 | 26 | 22 | WWE recognizes his reign as beginning on November 25, 2005, when the episode aired on tape delay. | |
| 71 | Kid Kash | December 18, 2005 | Armageddon | Providence, RI | 1 | 42 | 41 | | |
| 72 | Gregory Helms | January 29, 2006 | Royal Rumble | Miami, FL | 3 | 385 | 384 | Formerly known as The Hurricane. This was a six-man Cruiserweight Open also involving Jamie Noble, Nunzio, Paul London, and Funaki, who Helms pinned. Helms, who was on the Raw roster at that time, moved to SmackDown! after winning the championship. | |
| 73 | Chavo Guerrero | February 18, 2007 | No Way Out | Los Angeles, CA | 6 | 154 | 153 | This was an 8-man Cruiserweight Open, also involving Daivari, Shannon Moore, Funaki, Jamie Noble, Scotty 2 Hotty and Jimmy Wang Yang, who Guerrero last eliminated. | |
| 74 | Hornswoggle | July 22, 2007 | The Great American Bash | San Jose, CA | 1 | 65 | 68 | This was a six-man Cruiserweight Open also involving Jimmy Wang Yang, Shannon Moore, Funaki and Jamie Noble, who Hornswoggle pinned. WWE recognizes his reign as ending on September 28, 2007, when the following episode aired on tape delay. | |
| — | Deactivated | September 25, 2007 | SmackDown! | Indianapolis, IN | — | — | — | The championship was vacated on the September 25, 2007 edition of SmackDown! (aired September 28 on tape delay) by acting General Manager Vickie Guerrero, citing that Hornswoggle's status as Mr. McMahon's son and his diminutive stature would eventually jeopardize his well-being. The title was then retired without an official announcement. A new WWE Cruiserweight Championship was introduced in September 2016, but despite originally sharing a name with this title, it did not share its lineage. | |

## Combined reigns

| Rank | Champion | No. of reigns | Combined days | Combined days recognized by WWE |
| 1 | Gregory Helms/Hurricane Helms/Shane Helms | 3 | 532 | 529 |
| 2 | Rey Mysterio/Rey Mysterio Jr. | 8 | 486 | 476 |
| 3 | Chavo Guerrero/Chavo Guerrero Jr./Lieutenant Loco | 6 | 431 | 431 |
| 4 | Billy Kidman | 7 | 334 | 321 |
| 5 | Tajiri | 3 | 283 | 284 |
| 6 | Chris Jericho | 4 | 231 | 255 |
| 7 | Syxx/X-Pac | 2 | 196 | 195 |
| 8 | Dean Malenko | 4 | 188 | 185 |
| 9 | Jamie Noble | 1 | 147 | 146 |
| 10 | Spike Dudley | 1 | 138 | 135 |
| 11 | Paul London | 1 | 126 | 127 |
| 12 | Juventud/Juventud Guerrera | 5 | 113 | 105 |
| 13 | Matt Hardy | 1 | 100 | 101 |
| 14 | Eddie Guerrero | 2 | 91 | 89 |
| 15 | Nunzio | 2 | 75 | 72 |
| 16 | Funaki | 1 | 70 | 69 |
| 17 | Hornswoggle | 1 | 65 | 68 |
| 18 | Mike Sanders | 1 | 63 | 62 |
| 19 | Elix Skipper | 1 | 49 | 48 |
| 19 | The Artist | 2 | 49 | 47 |
| 21 | Disco Inferno | 1 | 48 | 48 |
| 22 | Lenny Lane | 1 | 46 | 45 |
| 23 | Shinjiro Otani | 1 | 43 | 42 |
| 24 | Kid Kash | 1 | 42 | 41 |
| 25 | Último Dragón | 2 | 33 | 32 |
| 26 | Chris Candido | 1 | 29 | 28 |
| 27 | Evan Karagias | 1 | 28 | 27 |
| 27 | Madusa | 1 | 28 | 27 |
| 27 | Chavo Classic | 1 | 28 | 27 |
| 30 | Daffney | 1 | 22 | 20 |
| 31 | Alex Wright | 1 | 15 | 18 |
| 32 | Lance Storm | 1 | 14 | 13 |
| 33 | Jacqueline | 1 | 12 | 9 |
| 34 | Crowbar | 1 | 7 | 6 |
| 34 | Psychosis | 2 | 7 | 6 |
| 36 | Oklahoma | 1 | 2 | 1 |