Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic
The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is an annual professional wrestling tag team tournament held by the U.S. based promotion WWE, and is featured on its NXT brand.
The tournament is named in honor of WWE Hall of Fame wrestler Dusty Rhodes, who died in 2015. The tournament has been compared to and (at least partially) inspired by the Crockett Cup tournaments of the 1980s that were promoted by Jim Crockett Promotions (which would later become more widely known as World Championship Wrestling). Rhodes himself had been both the behind the scenes creator of and a featured performer in those tournaments.[1]
The 16-team single elimination tournament was established in August 2015 as a tribute to Rhodes - who had been serving as a senior producer and trainer in NXT - and was formally announced during NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, which took place shortly after he had died. That year's Classic featured tournament matches taking place all through September both on NXT's weekly TV show and at NXT house shows, and would culminate in October at NXT TakeOver: Respect, with the team of Finn Bálor and Samoa Joe winning, having defeated Baron Corbin and Rhyno in the finals.[2]
The second Classic took place throughout the fall of 2016, eventually culminating in November at NXT TakeOver: Toronto, where it was won by The Authors of Pain.[3][4][5]
The winners of the tournament receive a trophy that is modeled in part after Rhodes' signature "cowboy" style wrestling boots.[6]
Finals dates and venues
| Event | Date | City | Venue | Winner | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NXT TakeOver: Respect | October 7, 2015 | Winter Park, Florida | Full Sail University | Finn Bálor and Samoa Joe | |
| NXT TakeOver: Toronto | November 19, 2016 | Toronto, Canada | Air Canada Centre | The Authors of Pain (Rezar and Akam) | Their manager Paul Ellering was suspended in a cage above the ring. |
