10 Best WWE Tournaments
There can be only one winner.
9. United States Championship Tournament - SmackDown 2003
Not long after Raw resurrected the Intercontinental Title, SmackDown decided to do the same with the United States Championship, giving both brands a proper secondary singles title for the midcard pack to fight over.
And the blue brand's roster stacked at the time with those at the top of their game and those desperate to truly break out.
The eight men vying for US gold were Eddie Guerrero, Ultimo Dragon, Matt Hardy, Rikishi, Rhyno, Chris Benoit, John Cena and Billy Gunn. The quarters and semis took place on television, with the final going down at Vengeance (the first SmackDown-exclusive pay-per-view of the brand split era).
In the final, Latino Heat bagged the strap by beating The Crippler in a customarily grand outing from two veterans who were very familiar with each other by that point.
Fittingly, it was the best bout of the tournament.
Overall, the tournament was a success, especially so for Guerrero, whose lying, cheating and stealing ways helped turn him from heel to babyface and shift him up the card.