The portrayal of Goldust by Dustin Rhodes helped showcase the greatness of his career. Most of Dustin’s time in wrestling came with the character of Goldust. WWE giving the gimmick to Dustin in the mid-90s would see him pushing the buttons of the viewer with the character taking many twists and turns. Dustin also would find success earlier in his career in WCW along with the current run in AEW ending his career with more relevance.
We will look at the ten best overall matches to come from Dustin throughout his career. The run of Goldust in WWE and the portrayal of himself in other promotions will see quite a bit of variety on the list. Rhodes shows that wrestlers should adapt to any style of their opponents to make an impact in any situation. Find out just great his career has been with the ten best matches of Dustin “Goldust” Rhodes.
10 Dustin Rhodes, Dusty Rhodes, and the Nasty Boys vs. The Stud Stable (Fall Brawl 1994)
The Fall Brawl 1994 War Games match would give us the occasion of Dusty Rhodes and Dustin Rhodes teaming together along with the Nasty Boys. Col. Parker led the heel Stud Stable to face them with the heels of Terry Funk, Bunkhouse Buck and Arn Anderson teaming with him.
It wasn’t the best of the WCW War Games matches, but all eight performers gave a strong effort. Fans loved seeing the father and son Rhodes combination getting the better of the heels. This stands out as one of the best performances of Dustin’s early career.
9 Goldust and Cody Rhodes vs The Shield vs The Usos (Hell in a Cell 2013)
The 2013 run of Goldust provided some of the best outings of Dustin Rhodes’ career. Fans loved the tag team action of Goldust and Cody Rhodes teaming together as faces. They defended their newly won WWE Tag Team Championship against The Shield and the Usos at Hell in a Cell 2013.
All three teams provided an incredible performance to open the show in stellar fashion. Cody and Goldust retained the titles by outlasting two of the best young duos on the roster. Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins came close to winning back the straps, but the Rhodes boys continued their reign.
8 Goldust vs Razor Ramon (Royal Rumble 1996)
One of the first major wins for Goldust came at the Royal Rumble event in 1996 against Razor Ramon. The two entered a feud with the Intercontinental Championship on the line. Goldust started to pick up momentum with his character around this time.
WWE decided it was the right timing to have him win the Intercontinental Championship from a respected wrestler like Razor. It helped that Scott Hall was planning to leave WWE for WCW. Goldust still had a great performance and took home the IC Title to continue building up steam.
7 Dustin Rhodes vs Bunkhouse Buck (Spring Stampede 1994)
The stipulation of a Bunkhouse match between Dustin Rhodes and Bunkhouse Buck essentially saw them having no rules when facing off at Spring Stampede 1994. Both men had a bitter rivalry that came to a head here with the bloody brawl showcasing the story.
Buck scored the win, but fans started to gain more respect for Dustin. The early struggles of getting pushed as a legend’s son made fans hesitant to cheer for him. Matches like this played a role in Dustin gaining respect and finding a fan base.
6 Goldust vs. Roddy Piper (WrestleMania 12)
The Hollywood Backlot Brawl between Goldust and Roddy Piper was one of the main attractions for WrestleMania 12. Goldust and Piper entered personal feud leading up to the biggest show of the year. They brawled throughout the show in different locations.
Violence was the theme here with many weapons being used all night. Goldust had a tremendous performance stepping up against the legend, but Piper still scored the victory. This entire night of segments helped make Goldust a bigger star for WWE.
5 Goldust vs Randy Orton (Raw: September 9, 2013)
The return of Goldust to WWE was not a long-term plan. WWE found magic with a storyline of The Authority holding down Cody Rhodes and the Rhodes family in general. Following Cody’s “firing” from the company, Goldust made a return to face off with WWE Champion Randy Orton.
The stipulation indicated that Cody would get his job back if his big brother pulled out the win. Goldust had one of the best performances of his career with the instant classic against Orton. Fans were with him until Orton won in the end. The impressive outing led to WWE signing Goldust to a contract that lasted almost six years.
4 Goldust, Steve Austin, LOD and Ken Shamrock vs The Hart Foundation (In Your House: Canadian Stampede)
The addition of Goldust to a face team opposing the Hart Foundation allowed him to become part of history. Goldust was involved in a feud with Brian Pillman of the Hart Foundation setting him up as part of the ten-man main event at In Your House: Canadian Stampede.
The faces of Goldust, Steve Austin, Ken Shamrock and the Legion of Dooms were treated like villains due to the Hart Foundation being huge faces in Canada. This match was an absolute classic with everyone coming off well. The Harts won and it was considered one of the best matches in WWE history.
3 Dustin Rhodes and Cody Rhodes vs Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins (Battleground 2013)
WWE knew the feud of the Rhodes family vs The Shield and The Authority was getting over with the audience. This inspired a huge match at Battleground 2013 of Cody Rhodes and Goldust with Dusty Rhodes in their corner against Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns with Dean Ambrose at their side.
Fans were 100% behind the Rhodes due to the stipulation that they would get their jobs back if they could beat The Shield. There was a strong level of emotion involved in the match. Dusty hitting a Bionic Elbow on Ambrose and the Rhodes brothers scoring the win made it one of the best WWE matches of 2013.
2 Sting’s Squadron vs The Dangerous Alliance (WrestleWar 1992)
The War Games match at WrestleWar 1992 is often named as the best of the match stipulation’s history. Sting led Dustin Rhodes, Nikita Koloff, Barry Windham and Ricky Steamboat as Sting’ Squadron. The Dangerous Alliance team opposed them with the heels of Rick Rude, Steve Austin, Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton and Larry Zbyszko.
All ten wrestlers contributed to a special match that showcased the violence and unpredictability of War Games. Sting’s Squadron scored the victory to the delight of the audience. Dustin delivered one of his best WCW performances in the memorable match.
1 Dustin Rhodes vs Cody Rhodes (AEW Double or Nothing)
Dustin Rhodes made a huge decision to leave WWE for a fresh start in AEW. WWE would have kept Dustin on the payroll for many years with rumored plans to transition him into a full-time trainer or producer for the company.
Dustin believed he could still perform and took the risk joining AEW at the age of 50. The match against his brother Cody Rhodes at AEW’s first show Double or Nothing was a classic. Dustin turned back the clock and had arguably the best performance of his career. Cody won the match, but the two brothers hugged and cried in the ring taking in the magical performance.