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9 Thrown Together Tag Teams That Resurrected Careers

986 views 4 replies 5 participants last post by  Buffy The Vampire Slayer 
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Professional wrestling is an ever-changing industry, where individuals must frequently evolve and reinvent themselves to stay relevant in a most competitive environment. The longer an individual takes to take off to the stratosphere the harder it becomes, as younger talent joins the rapid stream of piranhas already flooding past.

Whilst this is daunting, professional wrestling also comes with a traditional little thing called tag team wrestling, a sort of side division to the main event that allows inexperienced workers to learn the ropes and for older talent to be showcased without being overexposed.

Tag team wrestling also provides interesting stories for those singles stars that are treading water somewhat. World Wrestling Entertainment does this more than most, due in part to their decade-long negligence of the tag division and their overabundance of mid-card singles performers.

The majority of thrown-together tag teams fizzle out (hey Val Venis and Viscera!), but every now and then creative can magically strike gold. An out of nowhere duo catches on, and those men involved in the team get a brand new lease of life. Whether it actually leads to somewhere is another matter, but tag team wrestling has proven to be wrestling rehabilitation on a number of occasions.

Here are nine tag teams that resurrected the careers of one or two (and possibly three) of the members. Included are two TNA teams, the resurrected from which find themselves in WWE today.
Credit: https://whatculture.com/wwe/9-thrown-together-tag-teams-that-resurrected-careers

9. Samoa Joe & Magnus

When all is said and done on the career of the Samoan Submission Machine, it is unlikely that this chapter will get much coverage. Without this chapter however the Samoa Joe that we all enjoy in NXT today may not have come to be, and whilst the duo only teamed for a short time at the beginning of 2012 the run reinvigorated the current NXT Champion.

After coming into TNA as one of the top wrestlers in the world 2005, the initial strong booking that Joe received was long gone by 2011. Joe's performances had gone from being top of the tree to sluggish to say the least, and many were lamenting times gone by.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the team with Magnus happened. The duo won TNA World Tag Team gold, and Joe was able to work quality matches somewhat under the radar. His Nation of Violence misery was forgotten for a moment, and when the team ended Joe returned to form somewhat in matches against Austin Aries and his former partner, Magnus.

Whilst Joe didn't magically return to 2005 'Joe's Gonna Kill You' super warrior at this point, the brief teaming threw his career a much-needed lifeline.
8. The Real Americans

Guess which member of The Real Americans I'm talking about?

Antonio Cesaro and Jack Swagger joined forces in the summer of 2013, ostensibly as a vehicle to create a character for the Swiss Superman. Manager Zeb Colter hyped him up as the ultimate legal immigrant, thus the realest of Americans. It never felt as though this would lead to a long-term partnership with Swagger, more a short program to give both something to do.

Almost by accident, the pairing opened the eyes of the mainstream audience to the incredible abilities of the man formerly known as Claudio Castagnoli. In truth most were already aware, but his team with Swagger really brought this to the fore. Cesaro somehow managed to make Jack Swagger relevant.

The Real Americans had a great run as a team, but unfortunately came short of winning the Tag Team Championships. Cesaro is yet to win gold since the split of the team, but his profile has never been higher.
7. American Alpha

So it might be a little bit early to tell with this, but if American Alpha hasn't resurrected Jason Jordan's career you could argue that it has saved it. Jordan was signed to WWE developmental in July 2011, where he was soon assigned to Florida Championship Wrestling.

Despite winning the FCW Florida Tag Team Championships with CJ Parker, Jordan didn't experience a whole lot of success. This continued in NXT, where he was mostly used as an enhancement talent. He teamed with Tye Dillinger for a while, but they didn't exactly set the world alight. Jordan was running the risk of spending too long in developmental, to the point where it was time to, you know, do your work or get off the pot.

Enter Chad Gable.

It would have seem far-fetched if it wasn't true, but career salvation for Jason Jordan came in the shape of a weirdly charismatic wrist-lock machine. Gable was signed in November 2013 but didn't make it to TV until May 2015, where he attempted to convince Jordan to team with him. Jordan was reluctant but eventually gave in, and American Alpha was born.

The duo are now arguably the hottest tag team in World Wrestling Entertainment.
6. Team Hell No

It would have taken something truly special for the general WWE audience to truly care about Kane by the summer of 2012. He had been around for some 15 years at that point, had done everything there was to do and hadn't really been involved in anything compelling since the return of Deadman Undertaker in 2004.

Luckily for the Big Red Machine, Daniel Bryan was something truly special. Their rivalry wasn't really a rivalry, more two guys coming out of a losing battle against then-WWE Champion CM Punk and having nothing to do heading into SummerSlam. They faced each other in one of those 'two guys who need to be on the card' matches, and a number of comedic skits followed.

Somehow, this led to the duo becoming one of the most popular tag teams in a long time, getting an entire crowd to bellow their hearts out at their reluctance to hug. For the first time in a long time Kane was interesting again, no, Kane was popular again.

Team Hell No prolonged the Devil's Favourite Demon's career, without doubt. Whether you view this as a good thing or not is up to you, but I don't think it is undeniable.
5. The Miz & John Morrison

13 days before defeating similarly thrown-together team MVP and Matt Hardy for the WWE World Tag Team Championships, John Morrison and The Miz went one-on-one to decide the #1 Contender to CM Punk's ECW Championship. Heck, five days after they won the titles the duo took on Punk in a triple threat match for his title at Survivor Series. They were rivals, thrown together when neither was able to dethrone the Straight Edge Superstar.

Somehow, the aligning of Miz and Morrison performed legitimate miracles for the career of the then-Chick Magnet, Miz. Until this point, Mike Mizanin was seemingly a joke with no punchline in sight. He obviously loved the business, but he simply wasn't going to be accepted.

Well, that's how it seemed.

Miz and Morrison went on to be one of the most dominant teams of their era, and despite everyone and their dog assuming that Morrison would be the one to benefit the most, Miz found himself as WWE Champion in winter 2010 and subsequently victorious in the main event of WrestleMania XXVII.
4. Booker T & Goldust

Booker T was one of the few Alliance superstars not to be entirely embarrassed during the botched Invasion story, but this isn't saying much. Booker T was the only WCW roster member involved in the big WWF vs. The Alliance Survivor Series match that ended the feud, which tells you a lot about how WCW was booked during that time.

Booker feuded with Stone Cold Steve Austin afterward, a feud that gave us the infamous scrap between the two in a supermarket. Once this was done however, Booker was reduced to what seemed like midcard purgatory for life, feuding with Edge over the rights to appear in a Japanese shampoo advert. This was a WrestleMania feud ladies and gentlemen.

After a brief run with the WWE version of the New World Order, Booker T found himself teaming with Goldust in a midcard comedy team. The two had fantastic chemistry from the start, and by the time they split amicably a few months later Booker T was one of the most popular babyfaces on the roster.

He would go on to challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship against Triple H at WrestleMania XIX, and we all know how that went.
3. Beer Money, Inc

Beer Money, Inc came together in TNA in the summer of 2008. Consisting of 'Cowboy' James Storm and Robert Roode, both men had experienced tag team success earlier on in their TNA tenure. Storm was one half of those most successful tag team in TNA history (at that point), America's Most Wanted, with 'Wildcat' Chris Harris (Braden Walker). Roode had also won TNA tag gold as a part of Team Canada.

Following the splitting of their previous teams, both men entered the singles ranks as heels. Despite getting considerable support from TNA creative, something was off with both men. Storm had a series of forgettable feuds revolving around beer, and Roode found himself spending more time arguing with valets than anything else.

Beer Money, Inc. was a random pairing of two guys with a similar look and not much else, but from the get-go it was clear TNA was on to a winner. They would go on to become the most successful team in modern TNA, winning tag gold on five occasions overall.

Not only that, but both men were able to launch far more successful singles careers out of the team. Storm had a briefer than brief run in NXT last year, which is where Bobby Roode now finds himself. Without Beer Money, the chances are neither would have received the opportunity.
2. The New Day

When The New Day came together and got off to the worst possible start, it seemed as though it would be the final unsuccessful throw of the dice for Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. Whilst it was plausible that Big E. would get another chance if the project failed, Kofi and Xavier were two men at different points in their careers but at a similar crossroads.

As it transpires, The New Day has gone on to be one of the most successful new creations in modern WWE, a trio that has breathed new life into the careers of all three. It has given Big E. the chance to show off his charismatic side, and it has also made Kofi Kingston more relevant than he has been in seven years.

Most impressively though, it pretty much saved Xavier Woods' job, as the man himself as admitted in the past. Woods, whilst immensely talented, just didn't seem to be clicking on the main roster of WWE, and could not have been too far away from the chop. The New Day was his brainchild, and the success (or failure) of the group would be his to shoulder.

There's a reason Xavier Woods looks somewhat more thrilled than his partners when faced with adulation from crowds. The New Day saved his career.
1. The New Age Outlaws

Is there a more lauded thrown-together tag team in modern wrestling history? As october 1997 came around, Billy Gunn and Jesse James were doing a grand total of absolutely nothing in the World Wrestling Federation. Gunn was going by the name of Rockabilly, working under the tutelage of The Honky Tonk Man and going nowhere fast. As for James, he was still 'The Real Double J', and the brief rivalry between the two didn't set the world alight.

One conversation on an episode of Saturday Night Shotgun later, everything had changed. James convinced Gunn to form a tag team, Rockabilly blasted Honky with his guitar and the rest was history. 'Badd Ass' Billy Gunn and the 'Road Dogg' Jesse James were born, Jim Ross christened them the New Age Outlaws and just a month after joining forces they were defeating the Legion of Doom for the WWF Tag Team Championships.

At this point, Billy Gunn had been in the company four years, and it was generally assumed that his best times were behind him in the shape of The Smoking Gunns. James had only been around on and off for three years, but was pretty much the definition of lower-mid card. Until the Outlaws took off, I dare say neither man's name came up at creative meetings too much.

They soon joined D-Generation X and became an integral part of one of wrestling's most important stables. They won tag gold on six occasions, and also both got singles championships out of their resurrected popularity. The New Age Outlaws will forever the benchmark against which thrown-together tag teams are judged.
 
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