10 youngest WWE United States Champions in history
With a history of nearly five decades, the WWE United States Championship is the second-oldest active championship in the company, behind only the WWE Championship.
From being the second most prestigious title in Jim Crockett Promotions and WCW to being the counterpart of the Intercontinental Championship as the twin Mid-Card titles post Monday Night Wars, the United States Title has been a constant presence in the wrestling industry since 1975.
From Harley Race, Ric Flair, and Dusty Rhodes to AJ Styles, John Cena, and Kevin Owens, the prestigious title has been held by some of the biggest names across generations.
While superstars such as Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and JBL won the title after making a name for themselves in the main event scene, a large number of superstars won the title at a very young age and used the momentum to kickstart a run at the top of the ladder.
The current United States Champion, Theory, also falls under the latter group and has all the boxes ticked that a wrestler needs to be a superstar. Over the years, many superstars have held the US title in their 20s, including the current holder. Here are the 10 youngest holders of the United States Championship.
#10 John Cena (Record five-time WWE United States Champion)
John Cena has held the World Title 16 times, a record he holds along with Ric Flair. He has also held the United States Championship a record five times, along with the likes of Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Lex Luger, Chris Benoit, and Wahoo McDaniel.
Every time Cena has held the United States Championship, he has elevated the prestige of the title to a new level with his brilliance. While his later reigns easily rank among the best in the history of the title, he also belongs on that list of superstars who used the title to catapult to superstardom.
The Doctor of Thuganomics, as he was known during his early days, won his first United States Title when he was two months short of his 27th birthday, following his career-making win over The Big Show at WrestleMania XX. Cena was a constant feature in the US Title picture throughout the year, battling the likes of Booker T and Carlito before entering the World Title picture in early 2005. The rest, as we all know, is history.
#9 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper (3-time NWA/WCW United States Champion)
There is no list in history titled 'Best Wrestlers to Never Hold a World Title' that does not feature Roddy Piper. For almost two decades, he was easily among the most popular superstars on the planet, yet the best he was able to achieve was winning the Secondary Titles in both WWE and WCW.
His Intercontinental Title win in 1992 and the subsequent feud and match with Bret Hart are well documented, but not a lot is known about his three reigns as the United States Champion. The Hot Rod won his first US title back in January 1981, aged 26 years and 9 months, while working for NWA/JCP, and held the title for more than six months.
He had a really short run two years later for the same promotion, before winning the title one last time in 1999. This was 18 years after his first US Title win, from the same person who took the Intercontinental Title away from him - Bret Hart.
#8 Zack Ryder (1-time WWE United States Champion)
Zack Ryder's only WWE US Championship win was a legitimate feel-good moment. After spending years in the lower mid-card post his run with La Familia, Ryder used the power of social media to generate momentum and support from the fans, the culmination of which happened at TLC 2011.
On a show that featured monumental World Title wins for Daniel Bryan and CM Punk, it was the US Title win for the now Matt Cardona that generated the biggest pop of the night. At 26 years and 8 months old, Ryder became the 7th youngest United States Champion in the illustrious Title's history.
It's a shame that WWE was not able to capitalize on Ryder's popularity and momentum, as Browski ended up losing the title less than a month later to Jack Swagger. While Zack was back to being a jobber less than six months later, his win will always remain one of the best US Title changes in history.
#7 Rhyno (1-time WCW United States Champion)
Finding Rhyno's name on the list of Youngest US Champions might surprise some casual fans, given the fact that he was already an accomplished performer in ECW before joining the WWE during the Invasion storyline.
However, the former ECW World Champion was just two months away from his 26th birthday at the time of his US Title win at Unforgiven 2001. The Man-Beast, representing the Alliance, defeated WWF's Tajiri in a short match to win his only US Title.
His reign, however, was short-lived as he lost the title to fellow Alliance member Kurt Angle just 29 days later before disappearing from the WWE for almost 18 months due to health issues.
#6 Magnum T.A. (2-time NWA United States Champion)
Had it not been for that unfortunate car accident that ended his career at the age of just 27 in 1986, Magnum T.A. would have been one of the biggest stars on the planet in the late 80s/early 90s.
Before his injury, The American Heart Throb was a big star in the United States Tititlecene, having held the title for almost a year across two reigns in 1985-86. With his first title win in March 1985 at the age of 25 years and 9 months over Wahoo McDaniel, Magnum T.A. became the then second-youngest US Champion.
His rivalry with Tully Blanchard over the said title, including the famous I Quit match from Starrcade 1985 where he won the title for the second time, elevated the prestige of the title to new heights.
#5 Carlito Caribbean Cool (1-time WWE United States Champion)
Despite holding the United States Championship for a short period of 42 days, there is no denying that Carlito Caribbean Cool was easily the coolest US Champion in the title's WWE history. After all, the man's ring name had the word 'Cool' in it. What else can we say?
The fact that the Puerto Rican won the title on his first night as a WWE performer only makes the moment special. Defeating John Cena on an episode of Smackdown, Carlito became the US Champion at 25 years and 7 months, one of the youngest champions in the history of the title.
Even during his short reign, he successfully defended the title against the likes of Rey Mysterio, RVD, and Eddie Guerrero before losing the title back to Cena following a real-life injury. Carlito continued to feature prominently for the remainder of his run on Smackdown, but his title win on debut remained the highlight of his career.
#4 Ricky Steamboat (4-time NWA/WCW United States Champion)
Much like Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat's four reigns as United States Champions came in NWA and WCW. With 17 years between his first and last reign, the Dragon was instrumental in putting the title in the picture during its early days back in the late 1970s.
His first US Title win came way back in October 1977 when Steamboat, then aged 24 years and 8 months, defeated a young Ric Flair at a live event from Jim Crockett Promotions. The two would continue to feud over the title over the next 12 months. This resulted in great matches at live events and more reigns for both Steamboat and Flair.
His remaining two reigns came in 1984 and 1994. However, they were short compared to the first two reigns. His last reign in WCW involved a rivalry with an up-and-coming Steve Austin, who Steamboat defeated at Clash of the Champions XXVIII for the title.
#3 Theory (1-time and current WWE United States Champion)
Theory has been on an absolute roll since the start of 2022. With Vince McMahon himself being his on-screen and off-screen mentor, the current United States Champion has faced some of the biggest names in the industry in the past four months. He finally achieved title glory a couple of weeks ago.
His US Title win over Finn Balor was undoubtedly a big surprise as Balor had only won the title less than two months ago. But it was a clear sign that WWE saw a future star in the young performer. At 24 years and 7 months, Theory is the third-youngest United States Champion in history, and the youngest to win the title under WWE Banner.
It is still too early to say that his reign would catapult him to superstardom the same way it did for John Cena, who the Chairman of the WWE sees in the young star, as per reports. Nonetheless, he is guaranteed to have a long and successful run with the title with the Chairman by his side.
#2 Dustin Rhodes (2-time WCW United States Champion)
Dustin Rhodes is a legend, and very few people will contradict this statement. Having been in the business for 30 years, Rhodes has managed to carry the name of his father and family with acclaimed runs under his real name and as Goldust.
Before he became an icon with his run as Goldust in WWE, Rhodes was a highly successful mid-card performer in WCW. In fact, barring a three-month period when the United States title was vacated, Rhodes was the US Champion for the better part of 1993. During his first title win in January 1993 against Ricky Steamboat, Rhodes was just 23 years and 8 months old and was the youngest Champion at the time.
Across his two reigns, he had memorable encounters with the likes of Rick Rude and Steve Austin, the latter of which defeated him for the title at Starrcade 1993. Although Rhodes is more associated with the Intercontinental Title courtesy of his run as Goldust in the late 1990s, his run as the US Champion did help in establishing him as a superstar.
#1 David Flair (1-time and youngest WWE/NWA/WCW United States Champion)
Not only are Dustin Rhodes and David Flair the two youngest United States Champions ever, but they are also the only two Second Generational United States Champions in history. A surprising fact, isn't it?
Their respective journeys to the title win, however, are very different. While Rhodes won the title fair and square, Flair was awarded the US Championship by his father Ric Flair, who was the on-screen WCW President, in July 1999.
This made Flair, who was just a little over 20 years old, the youngest superstar to hold the prestigious title. Flair's reign, however, was relatively short-lived as he ended up losing the championship to Chris Benoit a mere 35 days later, having defended it successfully on a solitary pay-per-view.
Despite that, the younger Flair, who was 23 years old when he won the title, still holds the record of being the youngest NWA/WCW/WWE United States Champion.