WWE has had several noteworthy tournaments in its past, which comes to mind with the current Dusty Classic tag team tournaments for male and female Superstars currently being featured on NXT and 205 Live in recent weeks. Through recent tournaments like the UK title quest, the Cruiserweight Classic, or the lasting legacy of the KIng of the Ring, WWE has utilized this device to make their Superstars shine brighter.
This format allows for multiple Superstars to be highlighted, if even for a single match, in an interweaving story that plays off an ensemble cast and raises the status of everyone involved. You don’t have to even know or be familiar with every competitor to get into it, and sometimes that makes it more interesting. Who will step up and knock others off their perch?
This year’s pursuit of silver boots of the legendary Dusty Rhodes has seen upheaval on new levels as this is the first year a Women’s Dusty Classic has been presented concurrently with the men’s tag team series, which started in 2015. No matter how you clamor over Thursday afternoon releases of overnight ratings from the previous day’s TV ratings tussle between WWE NXT on NBCUniversal’s USA Network and AEW Dynamite on Warner Media’s TNT, the Dusty Classic has already provided an elevated sense of must-see action.
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Just this week, the established pairing of Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter were bested by the nefarious Dakota Kai and her one-woman goon squad, Raquel Gonzalez, to advance to the Women’s Dusty finals.
Much like New Japan Pro Wrestling’s lengthy summertime G1 Climax tournament, there are always unexpected upsets and surprising setbacks, with favorited competitors being ousted from the field before meeting preconceived expectations. Though pro wrestling is a storytelling sports performance, it still plays off the natural formation of a contest, and a tournament has its own built-in twists and turns. As viewers, we all want to live conflict of our favorites advancing with surprises that keep us guessing.
A tournament with a busted bracket bet is still one worth watching, so let’s look at the biggest tournament upsets in WWE history. Much like in the Royal Rumble, it's not just who 'wins' the whole thing that comes out as elevated from the proceedings.
#4 Junkyard Dog vs. ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage - WWE Wrestling Classic
In 1985 at one of the greatest venues or professional wrestling, the Rosemont Horizon (now known as the Allstate Arena), Randy Savage and JYD surpassed the field in a one-night tournament, months after the success of the first WrestleMania. Savage positioned his valet, Miss Elizabeth, in front of himself as he faced more competition in the road to the final, and the Dog drew the lucky bye to skip a match earlier in the tourney.
The look and feel of the match on the WWE Network remind you how the athletic expectations of the time were quite different. A flying ax handle smash off the top rope does not provoke the same audible reaction from a crowd nowadays. Imagine how fans in our current era would respond to future WWE Champion Macho Man losing a tournament final to the Junkyard Dog via countout. The match can't be considered an all-time classic, but in retrospect, with how prolific Savage would become, it's hard to fathom him losing a highlighted showdown like this.
#3 Kairi Sane vs. Shayna Baszler - WWE Mae Young Classic 2017 Final
The WWE Mae Young Classic is arguably one of the best presentations of women’s pure wrestling action with a presentation in 2017 and 2018. The second incarnation of the series featured a who's who of signed and unsigned female wrestlers from around the world, with two very different finalists emerging from the field of 32.
Former UFC fighter Shayna Baszler was heavily favored in the final match, which took place in the elevate of an arena setting compared to the more intimate setting of Full Sail Live in Florida. The bigger stage does not equate to a larger competitor winning, as 5’2 Japanese breakout Kairi Sane tested the Queen of Spades and paving the road for her success in WWE. Sane’s bright spirit glowed off the screen as she slew Baszler with an impressive ‘Insane Elbow’ off the top rope to win it all.
Though Sane would go on to succeed as the Pirate Princess on NXT and capture the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships with Asuka, this tournament win stands out as her shining singles competition accomplishment after leaving the Stardom promotion in her native land.
Now this actual match may be better bell-to-bell than some other bouts on this list, but other choices on this list get a higher rank for the upset factor.
#2 Bart Gunn vs. ‘Dr. Death’ Steve Williams - WWE Brawl For All
Maybe this should not count as it’s a straight-up MMA/Boxing hybrid fight, but it features two well-known roughneck tough men from WWE and was broadcasted on RAW. In a recent episode of the VICE docuseries 'Dark Side of the Ring’, 'Brawl For All' -- the much-maligned not-so-legitimate fighting tournament featuring pro wrestlers in the Attitude Era -- was featured with several injuries and unfortunate setbacks for participants.
In one of the more lopsided bouts, ‘Dr. Death’ Steve Williams, who came to WWE off years of success in Japan and proven fighter in collegiate wrestling, was shockingly defeated by tag team journeyman Bart Gunn. Gunn in the ‘Dark Side’ episode even said he entered the underdog based on his impression from the locker room, who he says made jokes at his expense prior to the fight. Williams suffered a leg injury in the fight and had his lights turned out with a harsh KO punch. The injury and loss for Williams greatly contributed to his prospects in WWE being diminished.
Williams would never regain his mojo in WWE, while Gunn would gain the dubious distinction of getting demolished in less than 30 seconds at WrestleMania XV in a boxing match at the crushing hands of superheavyweight Butterbean.
It was an upset in the ranks of this tournament but also a career-changing downturn for both men.
#1 TJP vs. Kota Ibushi - WWE Cruiserweight Classic
Kota Ibushi stormed through the critically-acclaimed Cruiserweight Classic into the semifinals. The future Tokyo Dome main eventer had the odds in his favor to make it to the finals. TJ Perkins (TJP) came into the match with 18 years on his boots, fighting out of homelessness to reach this level, and entered the match as the ‘Rocky’ to Ibushi’s ‘Apollo Creed’.
“Everybody thinks Kota Ibushi is going to the finals,” said Daniel Bryan on color commentary during the introductions for the match, laying the groundwork for another table-flipping outcome.
Ibushi’s signature maneuvers faced shifting counters from TJP, including cutting off the ‘Golden Triangle’ moonsault and simply enduring the moonsault later on in the breathtaking performance. The technical trade-offs, the explosive striking, and agonizing submissions holds presented with pacing that rival any classic action movie this match should be remembered as one of WWE’s greatest cruiserweight matches.
“These are the moments that show a man’s heart,” exclaimed Bryan on commentary as the crowd roared to a fever pitch. TJP did what was believed to be unthinkable; he forced the tournament favorite Ibushi to submit with a neck-wrench. Ibushi and TJP may no longer be in WWE, but this could be remembered as the greatest hit in their prolific careers around the world.