AEW star sheds light on breakthrough moment in WWE
Sometimes it can take a while for a character or move to really click with an audience in wrestling, but which AEW star found the key to success during a 1996 WWE house show?
The answer is Dustin Rhodes, who debuted in WWE back in 1995 as Goldust, a character who was extremely controversial at the time due to how flirtatious and feminine he was towards other male wrestlers.
One man who Goldust worked with on a number of occasions was Savio Vega, who Rhodes worked with at several house shows following his debut. It was during one of his matches against Vega at New York's famous Madison Square Garden that the character of Goldust became fully formed.
1996 Savio Vega / Goldust was the hottest WWF house show program in years. I got to see it twice, crowd was on š„ š„ š„ from bell-to-bell! @dustinrhodes @SavioVega https://t.co/q17E5nngcG
Speaking on the Wrestling Perspective podcast, Dustin Rhodes told the story of the night when the heat he got from touching Savio Vega inappropriately was the key to success for the Goldust character.
"It happened in Madison Square Garden, and it happened in 1996, I think. I was wrestling Savio Vega, and we've been making house show loops for weeks or months. I am getting my bearings trying to figure out the heel work, the character, and stuff like that--we get to the point of the match where I'm going to do this, basically going behind him and rubbing up and down his chest. He turns around, he charges me, and I bail out of the ring, that simple. The rubbing up of the chest part is what really p***ed off the fans." (H/T Fightful)
Rhodes elaborated by saying that he had to avoid garbage being thrown at him, he had annoyed the fans that much, all of this to the amusement of Vega, who according to Dustin, was laughing during the match.
"We locked back up, and I said, what are you laughing at? He said, see how easy that was. Now, watch. I'm going to make you do one more thing. I pushed him back to the corner, and he said, turn around and rub your a** in my crotch area. So, I did it right. I turned around and made these facial expressions. These weird-a** facial expressions, and he charged at me again, and I rode out again. The rest was history from that point on in. Goldust became Goldust, and I found the character that night, and it was freaking cool. I had a nice run for a while." (H/T Fightful)
Dustin Rhodes debuted for AEW at the first-ever Double or Nothing pay-per-view
AEW fans never got to see Goldust wrestle, as Dustin Rhodes left that character in WWE when he departed from the company in 2019. But AEW fans did get to see him wrestle as "The Natural," and in turn rejuvenate his career.
Dustin debuted for All Elite Wrestling at the inaugural Double or Nothing event in May 2019, where he wrestled a now classic match against his brother Cody, which is still considered one of the greatest matches in AEW history.
With the 3 year anniversary of AEW not far away, Iām gonna go watch the match that got me excited for what was to come with AEW.
Cody Rhodes vs. Dustin Rhodes at Double or Nothing 2019. https://t.co/9n6eaiiBB9
Dustin has challenged for a number of titles during his AEW career, including the TNT and Tag Team Championships, as well as the ROH World Championship, but has yet to pick up a win in a title match as of yet.
Do you think Dustin Rhodes will leave AEW in 2023? Let us know in the comments section down below!