Round One of Mike Rickard's fantasy tournament of all the great Jim Crockett Promotions U.S. champions to determine the "Greatest U.S. Champion of All Time" wraps up this week!
This week, it's "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes vs. Greg "The Hammer" Valentine.
Dusty came close to first winning the title in 1979 when special referee Buddy Rogers aided him in defeating Ric Flair for the belt in Greensboro, only to have the NWA return the title to Flair days later. Having three short NWA World title runs under his belt by 1987, he finally capture Crockett's top title by defeating Lex Luger in a cage match at Starrcade '87 in Chicago.
Greg Valentine is a former three-time U.S. champion having defeated Ric Flair (1980), Wahoo McDaniel (1982), and Roddy Piper (1983) for the honors.
Valentine and Rhodes didn't meet often in the ring over the years, but Valentine was a top contender for the NWA title when Rhodes had it during the summer of 1981.
So, who you got? Check out this final match in the first round of the tournament on Canadian Bulldog World's website.
Round Two begins next week!
For the complete history of Jim Crockett Promotions' United States Championship, check out our book at the Gateway Book Store or on Amazon.com.
