“The Natural” Dustin Rhodes—or Dustin now. He was rising up in early 90s WCW. As a matter of fact, he was a good sign of what WCW’s late 90s could’ve been had the company continued building towards youth. He earned his nickname by quickly picking up wrestling. Dustin is one of my biggest ”What Ifs” when looking back at the 90s.
His contemporaries would’ve included Shane Douglas (hard maybe), “Stunning” Steve Austin, Flyin’ Brian, and probably Johnny B. Badd. That is until the likes of Eddie, Malenko, Benoit, and the Harlem Heat show up. Then you’re seeing the picture getting mix up a bit.
Or maybe not considering how the company went. The thing is, they had a period to run its own Next Generation. Of course, most of those listed ended up becoming part of WWE’s Next Generation and later Attitude Era.
Could Dustin Rhodes Have Been WWE World Champion?
Back to Dustin Rhodes. I believe he had three periods that he could’ve been World Champion in WWE. The first would be during the Attitude Era.
While he wasn’t Austin, Triple H, The Undertaker, The Rock, or Mick Foley, Dustin as Goldust was one of the memorable talents of that period. Right in there with Shamrock, Owen, D’Lo Brown, Chyna, and The New Age Outlaws.
This was a period where WWE really hotshot the belt. These feuds were on speed and something else. While some of the main event talents rarely clashed in the ring until PPV (Austin vs. Rock), that WWE World Title really got around. Goldust could’ve squeezed in a short reign here as a transitional champion. You know, to break of the monopoly of Austin, Undertaker, Rock, Mankind at this time.
Is that the only reason? Pretty much. Also, why wouldn’t the character of Goldust want to get his hands on the WWE World Title? The Eagle Belt at that!
Now, the other period for Dustin Rhodes is more reasonable. SmackDown 2002-2006 or 2009-2011. The first span is can be iffy because of the talent that was on SmackDown during that time. Unless you look at Great Khali being champion in 2007 for two months.
Late 2000s-Early 2010s SmackDown and Forgettable Reigns
Once you get to 2009-2011 and look at the champions, Dustin could’ve squeezed in there if booked. Hell, William Regal after taking the 2008 King of the Ring could’ve been put in line to snag the belt. Of course, things happened that derailed it.
But looking at the champions in that period: Kane who had a solid run in 2010, Christian who held it twice in 2011—which I forgot about, and Jack Swagger among others. Then Mark Henry wins it in 2011 when the belt left the brand. Goldust on SmackDown would’ve been odd but he could’ve hung with that crew and gotten one reign in there.
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