wrestling / Columns

411’s Top 25 Tag Teams of the Last 25 Years (#10-#6)

November 3, 2011 | Posted by Larry Csonka

INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the 411 wrestling section, and welcome to our latest feature, the top 25 tag teams of the last 25 years. On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday the countdown started, and I would like to thank those of you that took the time to read and comment on the articles. Today we continue the countdown, from #10-#6. As a reminder, every 411 writer had the opportunity to share their top 25, and after over 25 writers produced and shared their list, the grand list was then complied to make the top 25. Remember, everyone has different values. Some value workrate and match quality, while other look at influence in the business or how much money they drew. While people will always disagree, we at 411 felt that this was the fairest way to make the list, and we know that some people will be left out. Here are the men that just missed the cut, and the first official members of the list…

Just missing the cut…
* Mitsuharu Misawa & Kenta Kobashi
* Ultimo Guerrero & Rey Buccanero
* Los Guerreros (Eddie & Chavito)
* The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton & Tommy Rogers)
* The Heavenly Bodies (Dr. Tom Prichard, Sweet Stan Lane & Gigolo Jimmy Del Rey)

#25. The Hollywood Blondes (Steve Austin and Brian Pillman)
#24. Los Gringos Locos (Eddie Guerrero and Art Bar)
#23. The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue)
#22. America’s Most Wanted (Chris Harris and James Storm)
#21. The Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero and Claudio Castignoli)
#20. The Briscoe Brothers (Mark and Jay)
#19. Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team (Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin)
#18. The Fabulous Freebirds (Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, Buddy Roberts and Jimmy Garvin)
#17. The Outsiders (Scott Hall and Kevin Nash)
#16. Miracle Violence Connection (Dr. Death Steve Williams and Terry Gordy)
#15. Beer Money (Robert Roode and James Storm)
#14. The Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannety)
#13. Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray)
#12. The New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg and Billy Gunn)
#11. The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and The Dynamite Kid)

Jeremy Thomas: It’s almost amusing, in that head-shaking way, to think about the Hardy Boys now. Yeah, Matt and Jeff are the jokes of the internet for their off-camera antics (or in Matt’s case, both on and off), but there was a time when they were considered to be one of the greatest tag teams of the late 1990s. While both the Dudley Boys and Edge and Christian played their part in contributing to the tag team renaissance that came to be in the era, no one excited like these two, and no one remained popular in the same way that they did. Let’s count the accolades: six-time WWF/E Tag Team Champions, to start with. They were WCW Tag Team Champions during the Invasion, and PWI Tag Team of the Year in 2001. They outlasted both of their chief rivals, as Edge and Christian went their own way with Edge’s King of the Ring win in 2001, and Bubba Ray and D-Von were split up in the first Draft Lottery. However, Matt and Jeff remained strong for a little longer, before the E made the decision to split them up. The Hardys set the standard for providing a resurgence of the high-flying, exciting tag team wrestling that older groups like the Rockers were known for, but had been largely been dead for a long time.

The Hardys simply didn’t fit the mold of what Vince McMahon likes in his superstars, but the fan reaction was so enormous that he couldn’t help but listen. Do you need any convincing of how popular Matt and Jeff were? Go rent Unforgiven 2006. Listen to the crowd pop when Matt, Jeff and Lita simply appear on-screen together. This was the first time they had in forever, and the crowd just ate it up. And it was just a brief backstage segment. It was pure joy to watch them come back together in 2006 and 2007 to face teams like MNM and Paul London and Brian Kendrick, two teams that in all honesty, probably wouldn’t have been put together in the WWE if not for the groundwork Matt & Jeff laid starting almost a decade earlier. And the best thing about it was, they were still easily holding their own and providing intensely exciting matches, and helping to bring about yet another (if brief) resurgence of the tag team division.

For a long time, their reputation as a tag team was so successful that it worked against them, making it difficult for fans to accept them as legitimate singles competitors. It certainly didn’t help that they’ve both had their personal demons of course. I think that, ultimately, when you count up the memorable tag team moments of the last twenty-five years you’re going to find a sizable portion of them belonging to the Hardys. Ladder Matches, TLC Matches, Tag Team Turmoil, injuring Joey Mercury’s face, their reunion at Survivor Series, their brief feud with Steve Austin and Triple H that resulted in Jeff’s first Intercontinental Title reign…that’s just a brief sampling of the moments saved into posterity. No amount of personal problems or squandering of their reputation can take that away from them.

Tony Acero: Similar to Nash and Hall, their personal demons would get the best of them. I won’t focus too much on the whirlwind of madness that these two have fallen into, but suffice to say they are not who they used to be. Either that, or we truly never knew who they were. For the sake of our sanity, I’d like to focus on the positive aspects of The Hardy Boyz and not the weird angel’s blood filled Hardys. Two young guys from Cameron, North Carolina hopped on a trampoline, emulating the beloved superstars on their television that they loved. This obsession turned into something much more lucrative for the young guys when they signed with the WWE in 98 to become two of the most beloved wrestlers of all time. Their fame came mostly from the stunts they pulled where their body was just another weapon to use as opposed to something they should keep protected. As they were rising up the ranks, it was easy to see that Jeff was the carefree daredevil and Matt was the level-headed old hand which translated to a pretty solid in ring tandem. They have won numerous titles and have a huge following. Just as the Attitude Era was dying down, there came a flurry of action in different ways, and the Hardyz were a huge part of that, namely in ladder matches with The Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian. It was these matches that put the guys on the map and kept them there for a long time.

Starting as young green hands under the tutelage of Michael Hayes, they enticed the audience with high flying moves and sound wrestling. You knew when Matt Hardy was in the ring, the match would be pretty crisp and when Jeff jumped into the ring, you were just waiting for the next high risk move so that you could oooh and aahh. The Hardy boys redefined tag team wrestling and with the help of the Dudleyz and Edge and Christian, also redefined the ladder match. They rarely disappointed when they were in a WWE ring and both had some successful singles success, which is such a difficult thing to do as a former tag team. Regardless of their issues today (and damn, they got some issues), they were one of the most influential teams ever to grace the face of the WWE.

Jeremy Thomas: I hate the way Demolition is always looked upon like a poor man’s Road Warriors. Sure, that may be why they were created, but they went far beyond being a parody of Hawk and Animal by the time their careers were done. The team began when Vince McMahon after Vince tried to poach the Warriors and failed, making him decide “Well, fine. I’ll make my own Road Warriors!” And thus, Bill Eadie and Randy Culley were given the names of Ax and Smash and made their debut on January 17, 1987. Unfortunately for Culley fans recognized him as Moondog Rex and so he was quickly replaced by Barry Darsow, which in all honesty was probably the best thing to happen for the team as Darsow and Eadie had a great camaraderie with each other on camera. Demolition really probably should have failed; their look was as if Hawk and Animal had wandered into an S&M dungeon and gone on a shopping spree. But they had that something that made people pay attention to them; with Mr. Fuji as their manager, the group gained an immense following and people loved their aggressive, intense in-ring style. It didn’t hurt that they had one of the best-looking tag finishers at the time in the Demolition Decapitation. With a reign of terror that left teams like the Killer Bees, the Rougeaus, the Can-Am Connection, the Young Stallions and even the British Bulldogs staring at the lights, the era of Domination began and led up to their WWF Tag Team Title win against Strike Force at WrestleMania IV…a match that, interestingly, they got a bigger ovation during their entrance than the supposed fan favorites did. On that day began what is still the longest-ever WWF Tag Team championship reign, one that lasted for 478 days and help the team still sit at the top of the longest combined reigns as a team in WWF history.

As over with the fans as they were, it was no surprise that they would turn face at some point, and that point came a bit less than midway through that first title reign. The two were just as dominating of babyfaces as they were heels and they would win the titles two more times before Eadie’s health issues meant that McMahon would insert Crush into the group and Ax was moved to being a manager. That would more or less prove to be the downfall of the group, as the magic seemed lost with the new lineup and it was certainly gone by the time Eadie left the company shortly after Survivor Series 1990. However, in that short three year period Demolition left an unforgettable legacy of dominance. It’s too bad that the Road Warriors came in when they did, because I always felt that by jobbing Demolition out to the incoming Warriors, Vince did damage to the team’s legacy by emphasizing the fact that to him they were indeed just a recycled gimmick. To their legions of fans however—this fan included—they will always be more.

Scott Rutherford: I started watching wrestling just after I turned 9 years of age. My first watching experience was WM1 and I was instantly hooked on the atmosphere, drama and pageantry. I had no clue that any other wrestling existed outside of the WWF at the time because here in Australia it was the only thing that was showing. It wasn’t until I stumbled upon a PWI with Lex Luger on the front cover that I discovered whole other worlds, but up until then I was living in the Dark Ages thinking that the WWF was alone in the universe.

So when Demolition debuted on Superstars, I had no clue that they were Road Warrior knock offs. They were just some terrifying dudes with crazy face paint, leather, metal studs and a mean disposition. Originally managed by Jonny Valiant, they quickly moved to Mr. Fuji which was a perfect fit for them. They ascended through the tag team ranks and decisively beat Strike Force at WM4 and set about having the longest reign of any WWF/E tag team ever.

Soon they became “cool” heels and at Survivor Series they did a double turn with Powers of Pain and set about becoming one hugely over babyface juggernaut. Their feud with The Brain Busters was fantastic and sadly cut short when Tully Blanchard quit. They put over the “super” team of Haku and Andre the Giant and then got the titles back to a huge pop at WM6. Then having turned heel once more and adding a third member, they dropped the titles to The Hart Foundation, had a brief feud with The Road Warrior and then quietly broke up.

It seems such a dry retelling of their history but they were really not around for very long. The debuted, got over, won the titles kept ‘em for a couple of years on and off and then disappeared before they became a joke. For most fans they never lost that aura about them. For me they were the true originals. I had NEVER seen anything like them before and when I did become aware of The Road Warrior, to me they were the imitators.

Years later, I still prefer Demolition to the L.O.D. Why? They were better workers. L.O.D got by because they were insanely over but name me a classic, straight tag team match that they had? A classic that instantly jumps out of your mouth without thinking about it? The Demo’s had quite a few of these and they could go in the ring and while individually they were average, together they covered each others weaknesses and hold their end of the bargain. Go watch the 2/3 falls match against Tully and Arn from Saturday Nights Main Event. We know how talented those two were, but Ax and Smash matched them every step of the way. They were great at engaging the crowd and keeping them there, whether as heels or faces.

Sadly, they will forever lag behind L.O.D, which is a pity. While they did indeed start as knock-offs they were so good at what they did they were credible in their own right and deserve their place as one of the greatest tag teams of all time.

Chad Nevett: I put Edge and Christian at the top of my list. You’d assume it would be the Hart Foundation that get the top spot instead of this other Canadian tag team (that never seemed as Canadian) and, yet, Edge and Christian seem greater in retrospect. I love the Hart Foundation more than Edge and Christian, but I’d rather watch an Edge and Christian match. They seemed to be able to do it all: entertaining promos, insane spots, and great wrestling. As a team, they’re basically known for two things: the Five-Second Pose and the TLC matches with the Dudleys and the Hardys. As good as those other teams were, E&C were the glue that held together those matches. The Dudleys were limited in their moveset, but were fantastic at taking big bumps. The Hardys weren’t the best guys in regular matches, but could do insane spots like no one else. E&C seemed to be able to do all of that plus pull off great mat wrestling and other ground-based offense. Anything that needed doing, they could either do it or make their opponents look better doing it than they normally would. They seemed fearless and ridiculously short-sighted one moment, and smart and thinking three moves ahead the next. Outside of the ring, they were goofy and funny, particularly with their antics involving Kurt Angle and Mick Foley. They were naturals in that environment in a way that their peers (Dudleys, Hardys) weren’t. I’m convinced that they could do an Edge and Christian DVD set where one whole disc is their antics outside of the ring and no one would complain, because they were so entertaining. Part of what also makes them so great isn’t what they accomplished as a team, but what came after. How many tag teams amass seven title runs before both members go on to win multiple world titles? There’s the joke about every tag team having a ‘Jannetty,’ the guy who never goes anywhere while his partner main events. Now, Edge has been more successful than Christian no doubt, but it’s a not a case of the Showstopper and the ‘where is he now?’ Both men had legitimately spectacular careers after their partnership ended and that’s a testament to how great a team they were. Few tag teams are stacked with two future main eventers like Edge and Christian were.

Tony Acero: Edge and Christian were a tag team that I never was a big fan of. Truly, they had to grow on me before I saw their worth. I don’t know if I thought they tried too hard to be funny or perhaps my teenage mind was more interested in the thong-wearing Lita than anything they did in the ring. In retrospect, I have learned that they are two of the most influential men in the history of tag teams, which is also why they’re on this list. Looking back, I see the talent that both these guys had and considering the success they’ve both had as singles stars, it’s not hard to see that these two vets have only grown in terms of skills.

Seven Time Tag Team Champions, these guys are and even though they’ve probably made their last tag ever, there’s no denying their spot on this list. Edge came into the WWE in 98 and Christian followed shortly after. They were part of the numerous ladder matches with The Hardyz and the Dudleyz that are now infamous. When you look at tag teams that changed the landscape of wrestling, you needn’t look any further than E&C, The Dudleyz and The Hardyz. While the Hardyz were risk takers and the Dudleyz were…just crazy, Edge and Christian were the winners. If memory recalls, they won the first two TLC matches and with style. Edge’s spear from the ladder will forever be in highlight reels. Their tag team success was only trumped by their singles success with multiple world championships between them (even if Christian has only had two short reigns…) and great series of matches with numerous opponents. It’s very telling, also, that these guys were only a team for about 3 years before splitting as a team and attempting to achieve singles success. So yes, in a matter of three years, these two men managed to garner the adoration (even if through hatred) of the fans and leave behind a legacy of good matches that no wrestling fan will ever forget.

Mike Campbell: Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson, were brought together by mere chance. Jerry Jarrett paired them up as a second fiddle tag team to the Fabulous Ones to work tag matches on the Memphis Territory B-shows. Bill Watts took them as part of a talent exchange. Watts put the Rock and Rolls together with the Midnight Express and the rest was history.

Why are the Rock and Roll Express considered one of the most influential tag teams? Because they helped to perfect the formula for tag team matches, to the point that being the babyface in peril is referred to as “playing Ricky Morton.” It’s easy to see why, Ricky is 150 lbs soaking wet, with that blonde hair, and able to sell like he’s an inch away from death. The reaction to the Rock and Roll Express during the 1980’s was what Jeff Hardy was getting during his big 2008-09 run.

The Rock and Roll Express are also one of the longest lasting and well traveled tag teams of all time. Memphis, Mid South, NWA, AWA, WCW, USWA, SMW, WWF, and countless indy shots. They’ve literally been everywhere and done everything. Aside from a period of a little more than a year when WCW broke them up in 1991 until Ricky joined up with Robert in SMW in August of ’92, they were always together. Their list of great matches and great opponents is endless, both versions of the Midnight Express, Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson, Ole and Arn Anderson, Nikita and Ivan Koloff, Rick Rude and Manny Fernandez, the Heavenly Bodies, the Studd Stable, and many others. They’re five time NWA Tag Team Champions, ten time SMW Tag Team Champions, and dozens of other regional titles.

Shawn Lealos: There is one tag team from my childhood that always remained my favorite, regardless of who else came along: Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson, the Rock ‘n Roll Express. I think part of what made me love them so much was that they wrestled in the Mid South when I started getting into wrestling. There were other teams similar to them, from the Fantastics to the Fabulous Ones, but no one in my eyes matched the Rock ‘n Roll Express.

Now, that time frame is BEFORE this timeframe began, which is why I don’t have a problem at all with where they are ranked. They became my favorite tag team around 1983-1984 in Mid South but became world famous when they went to Crockett Promotions in 1985 and had some of the best tag team matches in wrestling history with the Midnight Express (Dennis Condrey and Bobby Eaton’s version). While the Midnight Express became the more generally favored tag team in wrestling history, I still hold a place for Ricky and Robert.

The era for this voting takes up back to 1986, during which time they feuded with the Midnight Express and the Four Horsemen. I remember some of the best memories of that era, such as the scaffold matches with the Express, the backstage attack where the Horsemen messed up Ricky’s face and the bloody feuds with just about every bad guy tag team that came through Crockett Promotions. They ended up holding the NWA titles there four times.

I can still remember the ELO song “Rock and Roll is King” that they came to the ring with. Hell, they sold me on the fact that a double freaking dropkick could knock someone out for the three count. When teams today like the Motor City Machine Guns wrestle, they owe a lot to the Rock n Roll Express. I always liked to say when Beer Money fought The Machine Guns, it was like the Rock n Roll Express and the Midnight Express. I really believe that.

After they left Crockett, they traveled to the AWA and fought the Midnight Rockers (Marty Jannetty and Shawn Michaels), they returned to the NWA and feuded with the Road Warriors and Steiner Brothers. It was almost time for them to pass the torch on to the new generation of tag teams.

They had a second run at stardom in Cornette’s Smokey Mountain Wrestling where they feuded with teams like the Heavenly Bodies, Chris Candido and Brian Lee. While in SMW, they held the belts there 10 times. They later hit the WWE as part of the NWA Invasion angle with Jim Cornette but were made to look like punks the entire feud. They also appeared early on in TNA’s history as part of the SEX faction.

Historically, whenever a tag team has a member play the face in peril hoping to make the hot tag, they are often said to be playing the part of Ricky Morton. That is because, in the history of wrestling, there is no greater face tag team than the Rock n Roll Express.

Jeremy Thomas: When people think of heel tag teams, these are the guys who almost always come to mind first. The Dudley Boys took the idea of heel heat and made it into a true art form. Bubba Ray and D-Von had fans who legitimately wanted to see them get brutalized, and in the late ’90s after the death of kayfabe, that’s not something you get to see often. Sure, when people didn’t know it was all an act lots of heel teams had that reaction, but the Dudley Boys managed to pull it off against the wrestling-savvy fans of ECW, as well as the WWE fans in the late ’90s and early ’00s. During their ECW run they built their reputations with hardcore brawls and intense rivalries with the likes of the Gangstas, Dreamer and Sandman, the Eliminators and more. ECW fans loved to despise the team, who grew out of the more comedic Dudley family to become the “true Dudleys” and virtually synonymous with ECW tag team wrestling.

When they jumped to the WWF in 1999, Bubba Ray was given back the stuttering gimmick that he had during the early days of his ECW run. A lot of fans shook their heads in amazement at this, because they felt it would take away Bubba’s ability to get heat by his incredible promos. As it turned out, the stuttering was done away with fairly quickly but even with it the team got over quickly with fans. It was during the team’s WWE run that they not only reached new heights of success, but their in-ring work improved quite a bit. They were great brawlers already, but they gained a new level of rounding to their in-ring skills and it showed in the improved quality of their matches. Of course, it didn’t hurt that the team had incredible in-ring chemistry with both the Hardys and Edge and Christian. The three-way rivalry changed the game of tag team wrestling and gave it a resurgence that we’re still hoping for the return of some day.

Really, the Dudleys’ tag team accomplishments pretty much speak for themselves. They held the WWF/E’s Tag Team Titles a total of nine times, the ECW tag belts eight times and the WCW tag belts once. They’ve captured Japanese tag gold in New Japan and Hustle and held the NWA straps once and TNA belts twice. That’s twenty-three tag team title reigns, an unprecedented number. They were labeled the PWI tag team of the decade, and while I may take issue with PWI’s lists from time to time that’s one I really cannot disagree with. Bubba (sorry, Bully) may be in the midst of his singles run now while D-Von is floundering, but you can’t deny that if they were to reunite, they would have instant credibility and be incredibly over with the fans. Few tag moves in this day and age pop the crowd the way a 3D does. When it comes to tag team dominance of the last fifteen years, no one’s done it better than these guys.

Tony Acero: Coming in at Number 6 are two of the most decorated champions ever, who are still going strong today. 23 tag team titles under their belt and had they not split up last year, I’m sure that number would only grow. Bubba Ray and D-Von got their start in ECW and were some of the vilest, most egotistical and unabashed promo men ever. They’d piss off crowds to the point of people wanting to beat their ass. While in ECW, they helped usher in a new era of wrestling and considering the way the company was run, they were also able to get the true to life inner workings of the behind the scenes business that needed to be done. After their stay in ECW, they went to greener pastures with the WWE. IF ECW was where they bred their promo skills, it was in WWE where they honed their wrestling skills and create a fan base that was all Dudley, all the time. They were villains to the core, being people that you didn’t even love to hate, you just hated. True, I hated them more because they had Stacy Keibler as a manager than anything, but they practically perfected the act is what I’m trying to say.

One thing you can’t not bring up when talking about the Dudleyz are the tables. The team automatically brings about an image of Bubba powerbombing ladies left and right into a table. From Mae Young to Victoria, no one was safe. The simple command to D-Von to garner the rectangular slab of wood became commonplace with the crowd as they chanted along with Bubba whenever he’d say it. Their wassup headbutt into the nuts was also a piece of cleverness that they gave to the fans. Whether cheering or hating, they knew how to catch a response from the fans of wrestling and it’s probably why they’ve lasted so long. Even today, as they find success as singles stars in TNA, they’re still some of the better promos in the business and Bubba just gets better with age, I think. Starting with their thick rimmed glasses all the way to their bad assery in TNA, these guys more than deserve to be on this list…oh Testify!