Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat is one of those guys that’s easy like Sunday morning.
The former NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion and WWE Intercontinental Champion has always been professional wrestling’s ultimate good guy, having never portrayed a heel during the course of his legendary career. He’s a member of every credible wrestling Hall of Fame that currently exists, and was inducted by WWE in 2009.
He’s also genuinely a great guy in real life. Pretty much the heroic character you see on screen is the same person you would meet on the street. He’s the real deal; accept no substitutes.
Ricky Steamboat appeared on AEW Dynamite this week in a backstage confrontation with his former WWE nemesis, Chris Jericho. It would end with a stare-down between the two. That leads one to believe that The Dragon will be involved in a storyline in All Elite Wrestling. If that’s the case, then it’s a terrific move, based on some very simple reasoning.
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat Still Blows Fire
Ricky Steamboat is a class individual by any measure of the description
Not only does The Dragon possess a vast knowledge of the inner workings IN the ring, but he can also teach life lessons, too. His total professionalism is a great example to younger stars. He has never been involved in a scandal or has ever been known to have any skeletons in his closet. The living legend is, in fact, a ‘toolbox guy’. He shows up, does the job correctly ad leaves without incident. You never have enough guys like that.
This is more like Tony Khan’s original vision for his promotion. The idea that you can marry old-school pro wrestling with the athleticism and technology of the modern era. If done correctly, it could draw both young and old fans.
Bringing in Steamboat is a smart move for the AEW President. One of the great complaints against the promotion’s product since its inception is that the talent does too much and moves too fast. Steamboat, on the other hand, was a master at pacing a match. He relied just as much on psychology as he did on his uncanny physicality. Any young wrestler would not only benefit by sitting under his learning tree.
You may not be able to teach an old dog new tricks. But a young pup can always learn something from an old dog.
And while Steamboat still looks young, he brings with him nearly 50 years of experience in the industry. His resume is as sparkling as his reputation. In the ring? There was no one better.
The Dragon will always be remembered for his epic matches against Randy Savage and Ric Flair
Ricky Steamboat had already been in the business for around a decade when he met up with Randy Savage. It was a brilliant contrast in style. The Macho Man was a raving maniac with an ungodly motor. The Dragon was cool and calculating but could fire up at any moment. Steamboat’s nickname was rather appropriate. Much like Godzilla, he may slumber for a while. But when awakened? He could breathe fire with the best of them.
But their feud took The Dragon to a whole new level in terms of notoriety and popularity. It all started with a brilliant injury angle that led to Steamboat capturing the WWF Intercontinental title in a classic at WrestleMania III.
But it was his trilogy of NWA World title matches with Ric Flair in 1989 that was likely the best work of Steamboat’s career. He would capture the championship in Chicago but eventually lose it back to The Nature Boy. Steamboat made a brief return to WWE for a while. Things had changed a lot by then, however. Fully embracing some of the goofiest gimmicks of all time in the early 90s, Vince McMahon tried to really play off of Steamboat’s gimmick name.
So, WWE dressed Steamboat up in a winged robe and began to refer to him most of the time just as ‘The Dragon’. (They would sometimes mention his real name, much in the same way they presented Kerry Von Erich as ‘The Texas Tornado’) His classic clash with Savage was rarely mentioned.
He would return to WCW and find more success there before a serious injury sidelined him from full-time action. He’s stayed involved, however, making appearances as a special referee, timekeeper, or in some official onscreen capacity. He also travels to make appearances at indie shows for seminars and autograph signings.
Seeing Ricky Steamboat on AEW programming is a great thing for the world of professional wrestling
With AEW currently going through some growing pains in its third year of existence, having a level-headed leader like Ricky Steamboat in the fold is a good move. Not just on the wrestling side of things, either. For the well-rounded human being he is and his ability to teach others to do things ‘the right way’.
It’s not clear right now how much he will be involved onscreen or behind the scenes, but here’s hoping that Tony Khan decides to keep him close by. Even if it’s just for guidance from time to time. With his wrestling IQ and the fact that he’s still immensely popular with the fans, he’s a lock as someone who can be a valuable asset to any promotion.
The legendary Dragon may have flown away for a while… but on Wednesday?
He lit up Dynamite with his fire.
