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The First 7 Competitors Have Been Announced for the Global Cruiserweight Series, Featuring A Few Familiar Names

Ever since WWE announced their Global Cruiserweight Series in February, fans have wondered who would be included in this exciting 32 man tournament. Well, now we know some of them. As reported on WWE.com, the first seven participants are Rich Swann, Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, Zack Sabre Jr., Noam Dar, Ho Ho Lun, and Akira Tozawa. Other participants will be decided by qualifying matches hosted by EVOLVE, PROGRESS, and Revolution Pro Wrestling. I figure that Christopher Girard would have been in the series, but something probably cost him his chance.
The biggest name out of this group is obviously Zack Sabre Jr.. A 12 year veteran, Sabre Jr. is one of the most popular wrestlers on the British independent scene, currently holding the Revolution Pro Wrestling British Heavyweight Championship and the Pro Wrestling Guerrilla Championship, which he won from AJ Styles and Roderick Strong, respectively. Along with that, Sabre Jr. won the Wrestling Observer's award for Best Technical Wrestler in 2014 and 2015, ending Daniel Bryan's nine year streak.
NXT fans will be familiar with Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, and Rich Swann, who have been appearing on NXT TV for months now. Gargano is a well traveled veteran on the independent scene, winning major titles in Absolute Intense Wrestling and Dragon Gate USA, the latter of which he held the Open the Freedom Gate Championship for a record 873 days and was the only person to hold the title twice. Gargano has also won several tag team championships in Chikara, Dragon Gate USA, and EVOLVE, where he currently holds the Evolve Tag Team Championships with Drew Galloway.
Ciampa is best known for his work in Ring of Honor. where he is a one time ROH Television Champion, defeating Matt Taven for the belt at Final Battle 2013. He is also a former Chaotic Wrestling Heavyweight Champion, and ranked #67 on the PWI 500 in 2014. Swann has won several tag team championships across the independent scene since his debut in 2008. He has held the tag team titles in EVOLVE, Full Impact Pro, and Revolution Pro Wrestling, holding the titles with the likes of Johnny Gargano, Roderick Strong, and Ricochet. He has also held Full Impact Pro World Heavyweight Championship.
Noam Dar formerly competed on TNA's British Boot Camp, and has become a mainstay on the British independent scene. Dar has held cruiserweight and openweight championships across the UK, winning belts in promotions including Insane Championship Wrestling, Preston City Wrestling, and One Pro Wrestling. Tozawa is a mainstay in Dragon Gate and has held all but one title in the company, holding the Brave Gate, Owarai Gate, Triangle Gate, and Twin Gate Championships. This series is shaping up to be huge.
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