T.J. Perkins is set to defend the WWE Cruiserweight Championship against Brian Kendrick at the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view on October 30. The latest rumors imply that Perkins will not be dropping the title to Kendrick but he will lose it to a fellow Cruiserweight Classic competitor in the near future.
TJP shocked the world when he defeated Gran Metalik at the finals of CWC. He defeated so many favorites en route to the finals of the tournament including Johnny Gargano, Rich Swann and Kota Ibushi.
Perkins recently defended his title against Kendrick at Clash of Champions but the challenger was granted another shot. Kendrick defeated the champ the next night on Raw in a non-title match to earn the opportunity once again.
However, the 37-year-old superstar is not expected to win the Cruiserweight championship. According to Marc Middleton of Daily Wrestling News, WWE top officials are high on a different former CWC participant and they are rumored to be giving him a push later.
That former CWC participant is none other than current WWE superstar Tony Nese. He faced Perkins in a non-title match on the September 26 episode of Raw but he lost. However, his performance has earned him a lot of praise backstage.
"WWE officials are very high on Tony Nese right now...Nese is scheduled to get a Cruiserweight Title shot in the near future and apparently there was discussion given to a potential Nese title run," Middleton noted.
Nese made it to the Round of 16 of the CWC when he defeated Anthony Bennett in the first round. He lost to Kendrick via submission in the Round of 16 but he was brought in for the newly-established cruiserweight division on Raw.
The 31-year-old superstar made his name on the independent circuit mainly wrestling for New York Wrestling Connection, Pro Wrestling Syndicate, Dragon Gate USA and Evolve. He also had a brief stint in TNA Wrestling from 2011 to 2013.
According to Sportskeeda, it is possible that the WWE will book Triple Threat Match for the Cruiserweight championship involving Perkins, Kendrick and Nese at the Survivor Series. However, it should be noted that these are just rumors at the moment and should be taken with a grain of salt.
Check out the video below to see the highlights of Perkins vs. Nese on the September 26 episode of Raw.