Pro wrestling is no stranger to tournaments.

The NWA world junior heavyweight champion was determined in one as far back as 1950, when the legendary Verne Gagne won the title in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Following a controversial angle involving twin referees and Andre the Giant selling his newly won WWE Championship to Ted DiBiase, the company crowned its new heavyweight champion in a tournament that encompassed all of WrestleMania IV and ended with "Macho Man" Randy Savage winning it all.

A decade later, the company hosted its "Deadly Game" Tournament to crown a new WWE champion at the Survivor Series. The Rock claimed the title there, kicking off an iconic run as one of the industry's most prominent stars.

Nearly three decades later, WWE and its counterpart, All Elite Wrestling, have built on those epics of bygone eras, ushering in a golden era that is delivering some of the best tournament action we have seen.

Here are a few reasons why.

What Makes A Golden Era Tournament?

WWE and AEW have both managed to take tournaments and evolve them beyond just an excuse to have a collection of good matches en route to crowning a new champion.

They have both utilized these competitions to continue ongoing stories, weaving different narratives throughout the scheduled matches so that no time is wasted. While the focus may be on the in-ring content, there are still developments featuring the Superstars involved that have a greater impact on the larger stories at play.

AEW used its recent World Tag Team Championship Tournament to highlight the dissension between and the eventual breakup of Best Friends' Orange Cassidy and Trent Beretta.

Beyond storylines, the tournaments also allow the elevation of stars whom the companies are interested in pushing moving forward.

Look no further than how effectively WWE utilized Ilja Dragunov and Lyra Valkyria on the Raw side of the King and Queen of the Ring brackets.

Dragunov, the former NXT champion, defeated Ricochet in an extraordinary contest and then gave Jey Uso everything he had en route to a defeat Monday night in the main event of the show.

Valkyria has been on an even greater roll since her call-up to the main roster, advancing to the semifinals of the tournament, where she will meet Iyo Sky in a match that just happens to also progress her story as the backup to Becky Lynch in her battles with Damage CTRL and Liv Morgan.

The in-ring content is of great significance in the tournament setup and both companies have brought the goods in that regard.

Whether it's for a title or the Owen Hart Classic, AEW has utilized its tournaments to present quality in-ring content, sometimes at the expense of stories and the presentation of new stars.

WWE has done the same, be it in the King and Queen of the Ring or in the build to WrestleMania 40, when SmackDown was determining which teams would challenge for the tag titles on the grandest stage.

If there is a wrestling-centric tournament, it becomes key to deliver the best in-ring action possible. Anything else waters down the concept.

The Deadly Game tournament for the WWE title at Survivor Series 1998 featured the memorable moments of Shane McMahon betraying "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, and The Rock screwing over Mankind and his fans by revealing himself to be the corporate champion. By and large, though, it was a bad tournament full of subpar matches.

Both Triple H and Tony Khan, who were both fans before becoming involved in the business, recognize the significance of delivering quality matches alongside evolving stories and breakout stars. Their understanding of the importance of the entire package has helped elevate the quality of the tournaments, leading to this great era for them.

It will also be key for both to understand when not to oversaturate the product with them.

Tournaments cannot become a booking crutch. Producing them just as a means of stealing weeks of television time because there is nothing else going on creatively will erode the idea and fans will see through it.

Thankfully, we are not there quite yet, but it will be imperative for WWE and AEW to be careful to not overdo a concept that even grizzled veteran fans of pro wrestling can appreciate.