The Golden Era may not have been WWE‘s greatest era but it was one of the most important ones. The Golden Era was filled with many stars with the likes of Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, and The Ultimate Warrior spearheading the World Title picture at the top of the card. However, while the Golden Era featured many wrestlers with a plethora of experience, there were some younger talent who held their own and won major championships.
10 Youngest Champions In WWE’s Ruthless Aggression Era
The Ruthless Aggression Era was a strong period for WWE, and some young titleholders got their hands on the company’s championships.
The WWE Championship, Intercontinental Championship, WWE Women’s Championship, and the WWE World Tag Team Championship were in operation for the entirety of the Golden Era. Furthermore, there were some championships that WWE had functioning aligning with their partnership in Japan, but they became surplus to requirements when those ties came to an end.
The Dynamite Kid Reshuffled His Focus During His WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship Reign
Age: 25 Years, 2 Months, And 2 Days
|
Date Of Birth |
December 5, 1958 |
|---|---|
|
Start Of WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship Reign |
February 7, 1984 |
|
End Of WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship Reign |
November 6, 1984 |
|
Length |
273 Days |
The Dynamite Kid was one of the most talented wrestlers in the Golden Era alongside his cousin The British Bulldog. Kid defeated The Cobra for the vacant WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship in February 1984.
Kid had a superb run with the championship and, he was 25 when he got his hands on the gold. He was the reigning champion for 273 days, but he vacated the title in November 1984 as he departed Japan embarking on a full-time career in WWE.
Barry Windham Won Tag Team Championship Gold With His Brother-In-Law
Age: 24 Years, 6 Months, And 17 Days
|
Date Of Birth |
July 4, 1960 |
|---|---|
|
Start Of WWE World Tag Championship Reign |
January 21, 1985 |
|
End Of WWE World Tag Team Championship Reign |
March 31, 1985 |
|
Length |
69 Days |
The U.S. Express was comprised of brother-in-laws Barry Windham and Mike Rotundo. Windham was from the Windham family as the son of Blackjack Mulligan. The U.S. Express was one of the most patriotic tag teams in WWE history, and they defeated The North-South Connection (Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdoch) for their first WWE World Tag Team Championship reign.
Windham was 24 and his brother-in-law was 26 when they won the titles. They were a part of the inaugural WrestleMania but dropped the titles to The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff. The U.S. Express regained the titles from them three months later, and almost 40 years later the U.S. Express was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2024.
Tiger Mask Was One Of The Major Stars In Asia
Age: 24 Years, 1 Month, And 14 Days
|
Date Of Birth |
November 27, 1957 |
|---|---|
|
Start Of WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship Reign |
January 10, 1982 |
|
End Of WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship Reign |
April 30, 1982 |
|
Length |
119 Days |
Tiger Mask was a big deal in Japan but he got his hands on some silverware in WWE but the WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship was primarily defended in the Land of the Rising Sun. Nevertheless, Tiger Mask made some appearances in WWE as WWE and New Japan had a working relationship.
Tiger Mask saw off Dynamite Kid in January 1982 to win the vacant championship. However, the 24-year-old had to relinquish the championship as he sustained an injury but he managed to regain the championship in May 1982.
Rockin’ Robin Was The Final Women’s Champion In The Golden Era
Age: 24 Years And 30 Days
|
Date Of Birth |
October 9, 1964 |
|---|---|
|
Start Of WWE Women’s Championship Reign |
November 8, 1988 |
|
End Of WWE Women’s Championship Reign |
February 21, 1990 |
|
Length |
501 Days |
Rockin’ Robin is the younger half-sister of Jake “The Snake” Roberts and she is a former WWE Women’s Champion in her own right. Robin won the Paris, France championship when she defeated Sherri Martel in November 1988.
The 29 Longest Championship Reigns By Women In WWE History
Many female WWE Superstars have had epic and lengthy title reigns. Which championship reigns stand above the rest?
The women’s division was almost non-existent when Robin held the Women’s Championship. She sang America the Beautiful at WrestleMania 5, and she defended the WWE Women’s Championship against Judy Martin at the 1989 Royal Rumble before then. Rockin’s 501-day Women’s Championship reign is the second-longest WWE Women’s Championship reign in that title’s lineage.
Hiro Saito Was The Penultimate WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship
Age: 23 Years, 11 Months, And 26 Days
|
Date Of Birth |
May 25, 1961 |
|---|---|
|
Start Of WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship Reign |
May 20, 1985 |
|
End Of WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship Reign |
July 28, 1985 |
|
Length |
69 Days |
The WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship reached its demise in 1985 as WWE and New Japan’s partnership came to a halt. Saito kickstarted his 69-day WWE Junior Heavyweight Championship run by curtailing The Cobra’s championship reign.
Saito’s championship reign was ended by The Cobra on July 28, 1985. Ironically, Saito beat The Cobra for the NWA Junior World Heavyweight Championship on the same night but his title reign wasn’t long for this world as The Cobra regained the championship from him.
Wendi Richter Is The Youngest Titleholder Of The Original WWE Women’s Championship
Age: 23 Years, 10 Months, And 15 Days
|
Date Of Birth |
September 8, 1960 |
|---|---|
|
Start Of WWE Women’s Championship Reign |
July 23, 1984 (The Brawl to End It All) |
|
End Of WWE Women’s Championship Reign |
February 18, 1985 (The War to Settle the Score) |
|
Length |
209 Days |
Unquestionably, Wendi Richter is one of the biggest female stars in the Golden Era. She made history in 1984 as she became the youngest WWE Women’s Champion with the original iteration of the title at just 23 years old. Richter ended The Fabulous Moolah’s 28-year Women’s Championship reign to kickstart her first run with the title.
Richter was a brilliant in-ring competitor and she had Cyndi Lauper by her side when she recaptured the Women’s Championship from Leilani Kai at the first WrestleMania. Richter remains one of the youngest Women’s Champions in WWE history and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2010.
The British Bulldog Won His First Championship In WWE In 1986
Age: 23 Years, 4 Months, And 11 Days
|
Date Of Birth |
November 27, 1962 |
|---|---|
|
Start Of WWE World Tag Team Championship Reign |
April 2, 1986 (WrestleMania 2) |
|
End Of WWE World Tag Team Championship Reign |
January 26, 1987 (Superstars) |
|
Length |
294 Days |
The British Bulldog is one of the greatest overseas talents to compete in a WWE ring. Bulldog was a tag team specialist and he teamed up with his cousin Dynamite Kid to dethrone The Dream Team for the WWE World Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania 2.
British Bulldog: The Legacy & Tragic End Of Davey Boy Smith, Explained
“The British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith was a great in-ring worker in WWE and beyond, but he tragically passed away in 2002.
Bulldog was 23 when he got his hands on the WWE World Tag Team Championship for the first time in his career. The British Bulldogs had a solid championship reign that lasted 294 days, and their family members The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart) stopped their title reign in January 1987.
The Jumping Bomb Angels Were A Top Team In The ’80s
Ages: Itsuki Yamazaki – 22 Years, And 21 Days; Noriyo Tateno – 22 Years, 1 Month, And 23 Days
|
Itsuki Yamazaki’s Date Of Birth |
January 3, 1966 |
|---|---|
|
Noriyo Tateno’s Date Of Birth |
December 1, 1965 |
|
Start Of WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Reign |
January 24, 1988 (Royal Rumble) |
|
End Of WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Reign |
June 8, 1988 (House show) |
|
Length |
136 Days |
The Jumping Bomb Angels comprised of Itsuki Yamazaki and Noriyo Tateno had an excellent WWE run despite being short. They were just 22 years young when they captured the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship from Glamour Girls (Judy Martin and Leilani Kai) at the 1988 Royal Rumble.
They only defended the titles three times and got the better of The Glamour Girls a couple more times. They were the penultimate titleholders with The Glamour Girls recapturing the title from them before the titles were retired in 1989.
Princess Victoria Sustained A Career-Ending Neck Injury Which Led To Velvet McIntyre Finding A New Partner
Ages: Velvet McIntyre – 20 Years, 5 Months, And 19 Days; Princess Victoria – 21 Years And 8 Days
|
Princess Victoria’s Date Of Birth |
May 5, 1962 |
|---|---|
|
Velvet McIntyre’s Date Of Birth |
November 24, 1962 |
|
Start Of WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Reign |
May 13, 1983 (House show) |
|
End Of WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Reign |
December 7, 1984 (House show) |
|
Length |
574 Days |
In May 1983, Princess Victoria and Velvet McIntyre made history as the inaugural WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. They were also the youngest tandem to hold the titles as Velvet McIntyre, a future WWE Women’s Champion was just 20 years of age, and Princess Victoria was 21 years old when they got their hands on the championship.
Unfortunately, Victoria sustained a career-ending neck injury that forced her to retire from the squared circle at just 22. McIntyre continued to hold the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship with Desiree Petersen as her new tag team partner.
