Ricky "the Dragon" Steamboat, is an American retired https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_wrestling best known for his work with the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Wrestling_Association (AWA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Crockett_Promotions (JCP), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Championship_Wrestling (WCW), and the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWE (WWF, now WWE). Steamboat is often regarded as one of the best professional wrestlers of all time. In JCP and WCW, he was a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_NWA_World_Heavyweight_Champions https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NWA_World_Heavyweight_Championship,https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricky_Steamboat#cite_note-nwatitle-6 a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WWE_United_States_Champions https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWE_United_States_Championship, a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WCW_World_Television_Champions https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WCW_World_Television_Championship, a 12-time https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Tag_Team_Championship (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WCW_World_Tag_Team_Champions under the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WCW_World_Tag_Team_Championship, In the WWF/E, Steamboat was a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WWE_Intercontinental_Champions https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWE_Intercontinental_Championship, and was inducted into the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWE_Hall_of_Fame in 2009.
Blood debuted in 1976 as a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling) in the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Wrestling_Association (AWA) under his real name "Rick Blood". He went from the AWA to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Championship_Wrestling_from_Florida (CWF). Before his debut at CWF, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Graham gave him the ring name "Ricky Steamboat" based on his resemblance to Hawaiian wrestler https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sammy_Steamboat. According to Steamboat, Graham thought "Rick Blood" was a good name for a heel, but not a face. In 1977, Steamboat entered the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Wrestling_Alliance-sanctioned https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Crockett_Promotions (JCP) (which ran under the concurrent brand names "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WCW_Pro" and "Wide World Wrestling"—later "World Wide Wrestling"—as well as airing syndicated TV programs under those respective names), where he would remain for the next eight years of his career. Steamboat, who had been brought in by JCP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Book George Scott on the recommendation of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wahoo_McDaniel, was initially billed as a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling) protege of Wahoo and barely spoke above whispers in interviews. Matching him with his brash young counterpart, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ric_Flair, was a natural fit. Steamboat was doing an interview on the syndicated https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WCW_Pro when Flair, then Mid-Atlantic television champion, began goading him. Steamboat knocked Flair out with a backhand chop to set up a match between the two. Steamboat's star-making performance came when he https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pin_(professional_wrestling) Flair after a double thrust off the top rope to win the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WCW_World_Television_Championship at the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WRAL-TV studios in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raleigh,_North_Carolina. Notable moments involving Steamboat's time in the Mid-Atlantic territory include: the day Flair dragged his face around the television studio, causing facial scarring, and Steamboat retaliating the following week by ripping Flair's expensive suit to shreds (an angle that would be reworked several times involving other wrestlers in the years that followed); when longtime tag team partner Jones https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Turn heel on Steamboat at the end of a two-ring battle royal; Steamboat and Youngblood painting yellow streaks down the backs of Paul Jones and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baron_von_Raschke to embarrass them into defending the World Tag Team titles against the two; Steamboat and Youngblood's top drawing feud with https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sgt._Slaughter and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Kernodle; Steamboat and Youngblood being turned on by their friends https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Brisco and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Brisco; Steamboat in a shocking (and emotional) feud against former mentor McDaniel; and his last great series in the territory, feuding with https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tully_Blanchard over the NWA TV title. After creative differences with JCP booker https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dusty_Rhodes, Steamboat left the NWA.
Birth of "the Dragon" (1985–1986) In 1985, Steamboat was offered a contract by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vince_McMahon and joined the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWE (WWF). Shortly after his debut (where he defeated Steve Lombardi on Championship Wrestling), Steamboat was given the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Gimmick of a babyface nicknamed "the Dragon"; Steamboat's jacket-and-trunks attire was replaced by a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keikogi and long tights. Steamboat's mother is https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_American, hence his Asian features crucial for his "Dragon" gimmick. Steamboat kept the nickname and gimmick for the remainder of his career. On the November 22, 1986 edition of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWF_Superstars_of_Wrestling, Steamboat got a shot at the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWE_Intercontinental_Championship against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randy_Savage. Steamboat lost the match by countout but after the match, Savage continued to assault him and injured Steamboat's larynx (kayfabe) with the ring bell, beginning an https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Angle between the two. On the January 3, 1987 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturday_Night%27s_Main_Event_IX, Steamboat returned from his injury and prevented Savage from attacking https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Steele like he had done to Steamboat six weeks prior. At https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WrestleMania_III, Steamboat defeated Savage for the Intercontinental Championship. The highly influential match was considered an instant classic by both fans and critics and was named 1987's Match of the Year by both https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pro_Wrestling_Illustrated and the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling_Observer_Newsletter_awards#Worked_Match_of_the_Year. Several weeks after winning the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship, Steamboat asked WWF owner Vince McMahon for some time off to be with his wife Bonnie, who was expecting the birth of their first son, Richard, Jr. This did not sit well with WWF management as he had been groomed to become a long-term champion. The decision was made by WWF management to punish Steamboat by having him initially https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Drop the title to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butch_Reed, but Reed did not show up that night, so he dropped to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Honky_Tonk_Man on the June 15 edition of Superstars; his son was born a month later. Steamboat came back in time for the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor_Series_(1987) in November 1987. He returned to the Crockett-WCW and won the NWA title at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chi-Town_Rumble where Steamboat defeated Flair in the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_event for the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NWA_World_Heavyweight_Championship.