Tag Team Break-Ups

Unless your name is Vince McMahon, tag team wrestling has always held a special place in your heart. Sure, the singles division is what drives most wrestling companies, but the tag team division has provided just as many memorable moments and great matches.

These tag teams can show some tremendous charisma and become one of the best parts of the roster. They are a great way to showcase younger talent and build experience in the greener athletes on the roster.

As much as we all love tag teams it is inevitable that they will break up, but how and when can determine their success. There have been teams that have broken up much too soon while others needed to get the axe earlier. Below let's take a look at some such examples.

Too Soon: Enzo and Cass

The loudmouth tandem from New York was incredibly popular in WWE. Starting in NXT their schtick was fantastic. They had the right hook for their entrance to get the fans going and their ability to verbally spar with anyone was perfect. It was reminiscent of The New Age Outlaws for their ability to rile up the crowd.

Once on the main roster, this popularity grew. They were getting massive pops from the crowd and many thought it was only a matter of time before they won the tag titles. Unfortunately, WWE pulled the trigger on a break-up way too soon. The tag team had tons of legs left and they could have dominated the ranks for at least another year.

Not Soon Enough: Demolition

Working off the success of The Road Warriors, Demolition became one of the most dominant tag teams in WWE history. They beat every team there was to beat and were the longest-reigning champions in the company for over two decades.

Demolition will always be Ax and Smash. When it was clear that this wasn’t going to be a viable option anymore Crush was added to the group. It was a mistake to do this. It showed that the team was too old to continue. Why not just keep the aura around the team intact and end them when it was necessary? Holding on for too long was a mistake.

Too Soon: American Alpha

American Alpha were rock stars on NXT. They were incredibly over and would consistently steal whichever card they were a part of. This success continued, albeit shortly, once they made it to the main roster.

Jordan and Gable were cornerstones of the Smackdown Live tag division. They were at the top of their game, bringing their talent to a larger audience. Injuries slowed the team down but the over-correction of splitting them up was misguided. This could have been the team to carry the division and bring legitimacy back to the tag team ranks in WWE.

Not Soon Enough: Rhythm and Blues

Just because two men have nothing to do doesn’t mean they should be put into a tag team.

Honky Tonk Man and Greg Valentine were two such men. They had long past their spots on the mid- card and were mainly used as jobbers to up-and-comers. Hence they get thrown into a tag team.

It was a ridiculous notion and one that didn’t work. It was a joke and got the wrong laughs from the crowd. Either man should have been given anything else to do other than this.

They lost more than they won and it seemed pointless to throw them together in the first place.

Too Soon: Allied Powers

Now, this is how two successful single wrestlers can form a great tag team. Both Luger and Bulldog had come off great singles runs, but the division was getting full. Putting them together instantly gave us a credible tag team in a division short on them.

Their initial matchup against the Blu Brothers was a good way to introduce the team and it led straight into a program against the tag team champions. Facing Owen Hart and Yokozuna gave us some good matches and it was hoped that Luger and Bulldog would win the straps. Rather the team was disbanded shortly after robbing us of a deserved longer run for The Allied Powers.

Not Soon Enough: The Hart Foundation

Yes, the Hart Foundation was an all-time great tag team. They were at the top of the division during the Golden Age of tag team wrestling, but that still doesn’t give them a pass.

Bret Hart was the breakout star of the team, everyone knew it. His singles matches showed a burgeoning talent that was not going to be held back for long.

Frankly, Hart should have broken out on his own well before he did. It would have given him more time to ply his craft in the mid-card. It could have given us some great match-ups that we were deprived of.

Too Soon: Cryme Tyme

Cryme Tyme was together for quite some time on the main roster. They started in 2006 and were positively received by the crowd. JTG and Shad were charismatic and played the roles given to them perfectly. Their skits were some of the more entertaining ones and solidified their spot on the roster.

With all this talent it would have been nice to see them accomplish more. They were never given a legitimate shot at the championships and were relegated to the lowest part of the card.

Only after a pairing with Cena did they seem to move forward but they were broken up soon after. It would have been great to see them given more time and a championship run.

Not Soon Enough: Harlem Heat

Harlem Heat suffered from the Hart Foundation problem but in WCW. Stevie Ray and Booker T were great together but there was no doubt that Booker T was the breakout star of the group. He was younger, more charismatic, and showed the in-ring skills that could vault him to the top of the card.

In the beginning, both men ruled the tag division. It was theirs and they had the championship reigns to prove it. After a while, though, their act became dull. It was the same old routine and it was wearing thin on many. It also showed that Booker T needed to branch out, but they kept going. Luckily, when Booker did split he became a singles star but that trigger should have been pulled sooner.

Too Soon: The Legacy

Randy Orton is no stranger to stables. He has been part of some of the best in wrestling history, but the time spent with The Legacy was a slight flop. This could have been in large part due to the stable not getting the time that they deserve.

Having Dibiase and Rhodes as the tag team of The Legacy was a fantastic idea. They were third- generation stars that had the cocky demeanor necessary to run through the roster. They even accomplished this for a short time before being disbanded.

If The Legacy had been kept together longer they could have established themselves as top stars in the company. Their split and feud with Orton happened too soon and damaged both wrestlers.

Not Soon Enough: The New Day

As much success as these three men have had together, they clung to their gimmick for far too long. In the beginning, forming The New Day was a great idea. Woods and Big E had been going nowhere and it looked like Kofi Kingston had reached his limit in WWE.

The run that the trio went on was nothing short of spectacular. They held the tag titles for longer than anyone and became a very popular part of the roster. They continued this run for longer than anyone thought they could but this slowly became stale.

After years of being together, there was nothing new for the group to accomplish. They had done everything they could and most of their acts were nothing new. The group became stale and required a break to freshen things up. This is a fact that remains to this day.