Stomping Grounds 2019 Tony Nese v Akira Tozawa v Drew Gulak

At WWE Stomping Grounds, WWE Cruiserweight Champion Tony Nese will face his greatest challenge to date when he battles two of his toughest rivals – Akira Tozawa and Drew Gulak – in a Triple Threat Match.

Since defeating Buddy Murphy for the WWE Cruiserweight Title at WrestleMania, Tony Nese has been a fighting champion, never backing down from a challenge and retaining against the likes of Ariya Daivari and Murphy and also besting Gulak in non-title competition. With The Premier Athlete hungry for his next challenger, several Cruiserweights set out to make their case for a title opportunity, and Tozawa took the bull by the horns by defeating Oney Lorcan, The Brian Kendrick, Mike Kanellis and Ariya Daivari in a frenetic Fatal 5-Way Match last month. Nese was more than willing to defend his title against Tozawa, but WWE 205 Live General Manager Drake Maverick – seemingly distracted by his quest for the 24/7 Championship -- did not make the match.

As Tozawa prepared to battle Noam Dar to further his case, a returning Drew Gulak attacked The Scottish Supernova and defeated The Stamina Monster in an impromptu bout, once again complicating the title picture.

Facing criticism for his handling of the WWE Cruiserweight Championship situation, Maverick then announced a Fatal 4-Way Match featuring Gulak, Tozawa, Humbert Carrillo and Lorcan to determine who would challenge The Premier Athlete. Following a controversial ending in which Tozawa and Gulak each scored a pinfall, both were declared victorious.