WWE ranks top 50 tag teams of all-time
WWE released the last part of its Top 50 tag teams of all-time list on June 30, and it has generated plenty of buzz.
The New Day was named the greatest team of all-time followed in the top five by The Hardy Boyz, The Hart Foundation, Edge and Christian and The Dudley Boyz.
While it could take two or three full columns to breakdown the entire list, let’s remember that at the beginning of the initial episode, which saw numbers 50 through 36 introduced, Breezango, the hosts, told everyone that title reigns and what teams did in the WWE mattered, but not what teams did in WCW, the NWA, etc.
I am good with WWE making The New Day number one because their longevity of seven years (as of later this month) is rare and they are the greatest selling tag team in terms of merchandise in WWE history.
Their 11 tag titles in WWE are a record, they are entertaining and are tremendous on the mic. Instead of getting boring because of overexposure, the group has reinvented itself numerous times to stay relevant.
Not bad for a team that was thrown together because WWE’s writing team had nothing for any of them.
When WWE returns to performing in front of crowds in less than two weeks, look and see how many performers or groups get reactions from the crowds.
The New Day will.
With that said, they would have been my No. 2 team behind Edge and Christian.
Demolition, who were ranked 11th and not higher only because of legal issues with WWE, would have been No. 3 if I made the list.
Rounding out my top five would have been The New Age Outlaws at four and the team of The British Bulldog and Owen Hart at five.
Far too many of the teams listed were thrown together for one PPV match (Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan, anyone?) or were given meaningless tag title reigns.
Two teams that should have been on the list that were not were the duo of Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard and The Revival (currently known as Wilder and Hardwood in AEW).
One team that should have been left off if we are following the criteria set in the first episode were The Briscos. While dominant in other promotions, they never held WWE gold and should not have been ranked 32nd.
Del Wilkes passes away
Best known as The Patriot in WWF during 1997, it was announced Thursday that Del Wilkes passed away. He was 59 years old.
Update on WWE releases
In last week’s column, we looked at WWE releasing NXT wrestlers Fandango, Chase Parker and Matt Martel, as well as 205 Live wrestlers Tony Nese, August Grey and Ariya Daivari.
Their releases were announced early Friday afternoon, but by Friday night, more releases were announced.
They included NXT wrestlers The Bollywood Boyz, Marina Shafir, Killian Dane and Tyler Breeze as well as 205 Live wrestlers Curt Stallion and Arturo Ruas.
This Day in History, July 4
In 1982 in a rare match between the top two champions of the world, WWF champion Bob Backland and NWA champion Ric Flair battled to a double count out.
In 1987, NWA debuted the War Games: The Match Beyond concept. The Road Warriors, Dusty Rhodes, Nikita Koloff and Paul Ellering defeated The Four Horsemen (Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard and Lex Luger) and James J. Dillon in the match.
In 1990, Brutus Beefcake suffered severe facial injuries during a parasailing accident in Lutz, Fla. His jaw was wired shut, his nose was crushed, and eight steel plates, 40 screws and more than 100 staples were inserted surgically. Beefcake did not return to in-ring action until 1993.
In 1992, Steve Austin retained the WCW TV title when he defeated Barry Windham.
In 1993, Lex Luger bodyslammed WWF champion Yokozuna on the U.S.S. Intrepid in NYC.
In 1994, Joey Marella, longtime WWF referee and the adopted son of Gorilla Monsoon, passed away while traveling from a WWF TV taping.
This week’s question
Will Jim Ross be fired from AEW for referring to Dynamite as WWE Dynamite? Ryan from California.
Ross will not face any disciplinary action from his comment at the end of Dynamite on Wednesday.
Slip ups happen all the time and this will be no different. If it were to happen again, it could lead to some issues behind the scenes for the great announcer of all-time in my eyes, but he will be alright.
Email questions/comments to powerhousehughes@gmail.com or tweet them to @BillHughes_III.