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DailyDDT’s writers rank the top ten greatest tag-teams of all time. Who will be number one?
What makes for a great tag team? It takes a lot of chemistry that for some pairings comes naturally. For others may take some time to develop. It takes charisma, the ability to get fans to invest in the two of you and want you to either succeed (as faces) or be knocked off the top (as heels). It takes great in ring work, longevity, and innovation. Some teams have a few of these traits, but the best ones of all time have it all.
The writers at DailyDDT have made their own lists of the top ten tag teams of all time. Those lists were compiled into one large list using the following formula: for every 1st place vote a team received, they got 10 points. 2nd place received 9 points, so on and so on with 10th place getting 1 point.
The writers who participated are:
Rob Wolkenbrod, Editor
Callum Wiggins, Staff Writer
Tobey Johnson, Staff Writer
Evan Wecksell, Staff Writer
Sherron Watson, Staff Writer
Evan Gomes, Staff Writer
Without further ado, the top ten tag teams of all time as well as some teams that just missed the cut.
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Just Missed The Cut
A few teams showed up on lists but just didn’t have enough points to crack our top ten. Here they are with their point totals:
The Rockers (Shawn Michaels & Marty Janetty) – 8 points
New Day (Kofi Kingston, Big E & Xavier Woods) – 7 points
British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith & Dynamite Kid) – 7 points
Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) – 5 points
Worlds Greatest Tag Team (Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas) – 4 points
Harlem Heat (Stevie Ray & Booker T) – 4 points
Rock n Sock Connection (The Rock & Mankind) – 4 points
Others receiving votes (alphabetical order):
The Briscoes
Miz & Morrison
Money Inc
Motor City Machine Guns
The Outsiders
PrimeTime Players
Team Hell No
The Usos
#9 Tie: Midnight Express (Dennis Condrey & Bobby Eaton) – 10 points
The Midnight express had many different forms over the years, but the Eaton & Condrey incarnation of the team was the most successful. One of the top teams of the 1980s, they racked up many championships across Mid South Wrestling and the National Wrestling Alliance. These included the Mid South Tag Team Championships twice, and the NWA Tag Team Championships in some form 19 times. They were also named the tag team of the year by the Wrestling Observer in 1986.
The team enjoyed success in Mid South under the guidance of famous manager Jim Cornette. Their major feud in Mid South was against Magnum T.A. and Mr. Wrestling II, even famously tarring and feathering Magnum in the ring. Eaton and Condrey also had feuds with the Road Warriors and the Rock & Roll Express.
The team had many different forms and members, including Randy Rose, Norvell Austin and Stan Lane. However the most famous and notable combination, Condrey & Eaton, tie for our #9 spot on DailyDDT’s top ten tag teams of all time.
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#9 Tie: The Steiner Brothers (Rick & Scott Steiner) – 10 points
Long before Scott Steiner was threatening to murder Hulk Hogan, and even long before he was known as Big Poppa Pump, Scott was teaming with his older brother Rick to be one of the most dominant tag teams in wrestling.
The Steiner Brothers first teamed together in the NWA and World Championship Wrestling in the late 80s. They would continue to fight in all sorts of promotions over the next 20 years, from WCW to ECW, WWF to TNA. They were the first team to ever win the WWF Tag Team Championship, WCW Tag Team Championship, and the IWGP Tag Team Championship.
The accomplished amateur wrestlers had a hard hitting style, but would only have a short stay in the WWF. They only ended up being there for just two years. They feuded with Money Inc, The Quebeckers and the Headshrinkers during their time in Vince McMahon’s federation. The Steiners are one of the most decorated tag teams in history and one of the most successful pairs of brothers to ever lace up boots. One pair of brothers is higher than them on our list though, so the Steiners come in at #9.
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#8: The New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg & Billy Gunn) – 14 points
Oh, you didn’t know?
The Road Dogg Jesse James and the Bad Ass Billy Gunn decided to team up back in 1997 when James convinced Gunn to turn on the Honky Tonk Man. The Attitude Era was never going to be the same. The struggling lower-card stars found instant chemistry with one another as heels, terrorizing the tag team division and everyone in it. They had some memorable moments, including pushing Chainsaw Charlie and Mick Foley off a stage in a dumpster. It was their run with DX that pushed (no pun intended) them over the top.
As the main tag team in D Generation X, the New Age Outlaws were the center pieces of a strong tag team division. They were some of the biggest merchandise movers in WWF history, and still to this day receive some of the biggest pops for legends during events like old school RAW.
The team reunited in TNA as the James Gang and Voodoo Kin Mafia, but it was never the same as in WWF/WWE. The Outlaws proved they still had it, wrestling the Shield at Wrestlemania 30 along side Kane in a losing effort. The five time WWF/WWE Tag Team Champions are one of the most entertaining teams in history. To quote Billy Gunn, “If you’re not down with that, we’ve got two words for ya.”
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#7: Demolition (Ax, Smash & Crush) – 15 points
Demolition, clad in KISS like facepaint and intimidating leather outfits, burst into the World Wrestling Federation in the late 1980s and tried to take it over. They would end up succeeding and becoming one of the most successful duos (and later trios) in wrestling.
Ax and Smash were the original members of Demolition, and with their red, silver and black facepaint on they became unstoppable. They ran over all the face tag teams that Vince McMahon’s promotion had to offer, winning the WWF Tag Team Championships three times between 1988 and 1990. They were effective as both menacing heels and believable bad ass good guys, especially when being put up against the despicable Bobby Heenan and the Heenan Family.
Smash soon joined a then-heel Demolition to make it a three man unit. This gave them an unfair numbers advantage and they used the Freebird Rule (similar to how any two members of New Day could defend the tag titles for the group) to their own advantage. Eventually Crush would replace Ax as the main member of Demolition along side Smash and the group would never have the same success. They would reunite over the years for independent shows, but the popularity of another facepaint wearing group knocked them down the ladder in the WWF and in our rankings.
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#6: Fabulous Freebirds (Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy & Buddy Roberts) – 17 points
The team for which the famous Freebird Rule is named (where all members of a group are recognized as tag team champions, and any two can defend the title) have a history of one of the most legendary tag teams in the business.
Most of the success of the Freebirds came in NWA affiliated promotions like World Class Championship Wrestling. It was there where one of their most famous feuds took place against the Von Erich family. The feud would be Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s Feud of the Year for 1983 and 1984. The Freebirds were briefly in WWF as well in 1984, but it was not as successful a run as they would have elsewhere.
Not just talented in the ring, the Freebirds were known as innovators for professional wrestling. The Freebird Rule was created for them, and they are credited as being the first wrestlers to use rock music as an entrance theme. The group was known for dastardly heel tactics, such as Terry Gordy slamming a steel cage door into Kerry Von Erich’s head, and Michael Hayes being one of the loudest braggarts in wrestling history. The Fabulous Freebirds were members of the Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame Class of 2015, and are our #6 tag team of all time.
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#5 Hart Foundation (Bret Hart & Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart) – 22 points
The Excellence of Execution Bret Hart had a long and storied singles career with many highlights, WWF Heavyweight Championship runs, one Montreal Screwjob, and a long road to reconciliation with WWE. Before all of that though, he was part of an excellent tag team with his real life brother-in-law, Jim Neidhart.
In 1985, the two wrestlers teamed up with legendary managed Jimmy Hart (no relation) to form the Hart Foundation. Taking on teams such as The Killer Bees and the British Bulldogs, eventually winning the WWF Tag Team Championship. Their relationship with Jimmy Hart would eventually deteriorate as Jimmy Hart turned on his team and began managing the Rougeau Brothers, sparking a feud between the Hart Foundation and any wrestlers managed by Jimmy Hart. The “Pink and Black Attack” were a perfect combination of technical skill in Bret and power in Jim. They would end up with two reigns as Tag Team Champions before Bret focused on his singles career.
There would be other incarnations of the Hart Foundation, including the stable that took over WWF in 1997, but the greatest tag team success for the Hart family came with Bret and Jim. They start off our top 5 for the best tag teams of all time.
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#3 Tie: Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy & Jeff Hardy) – 42 points
A big jump up to the first of two teams tied for the 3rd spot on our list. Jeff and Matt Hardy are two young guys from North Carolina with an exciting style that took the WWF/WWE by storm. The pair of high flyers would really hit their stride once they teamed up with Lita to form Team Xtreme.
The Hardyz had many managers during their first couple years in the WWF, including winning the services of Terri Runnels in a ladder match, forming the New Brood with Gangrel, as well as being managed by Fabulous Freebird Michael Hayes. However it was when the brothers teamed up with Lita that something seemed to click.
The Hardy Boyz began feuding with the Dudley Boyz and Edge & Christian in what became one of the most iconic tag team feuds in history. The teams constantly worked to one up each other, with the Hardyz providing some jaw dropping maneuvers. This all culminated in the epic triangleladder match at Wrestlemania 2000 for the tag team titles.
The Hardys would continue to team off and on in WWE and TNA, winning a total of 8 tag team championships between the two promotions. They would enjoy singles success, but never as much as their tag team performances. Their roles as innovators and risk takers endeared them to the fans during the Attitude Era, and they come in tied for third on our list of the top tag teams of all time.
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#3 Tie: Legion of Doom/Road Warriors (Animal & Hawk) – 42 points
OOOOOOOHHH WHAT A RUSH.
A team that was known by two names but dominated the same regardless of what you called them, Hawk and Animal are the #3 tag team according to DailyDDT.
The accolades of the Road Warriors are numerous and impressive. They won tag team gold in WWF, AWA, AJPW, and WCW/NWA. The Road Warriors were known for their facepaint and spiked shoulder pads as well as their appetite for destroying the competition. Starting in Georgia Championship Wrestling, the dominating duo were managed by Paul Ellering and instantly found success due to their strength and intensity. They would be named Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Tag Team of the Year 4 times between 1983 and 1988.
The Road Warriors seemed to be perfect heels, but their intense ring style and dominating presence made it hard for fans to cheer against them. For years regardless of what promotion the duo were in they took on all comers whether in North America or Japan. Their initial WWF run would be cut short due to Hawk no-showing some shows in 1992, but they would return as LOD 2000 and gain some success.
The Road Warriors are still relevant today, as the Ascension use the Road Warriors as inspiration for their attire and in-ring style. Hawk and Animal were two of the toughest wrestlers who ever laced them up, and were rightfully inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame alongside Paul Ellering in 2011.
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#2: The Dudley Boyz (D-Von Dudley & Bubba Ray Dudley) – 51 points
The Dudley Boyz are recognized as one of, if not the most, decorated tag team in the history of wrestling. They are 23 time tag team champions in a number of promotions, holding the WWE, WWF, ECW, WCW, NWA, TNA & IWGP Tag Team Championships at varying points.
That is simply astounding.
The Dudleys may be most famous for their time in ECW and WWF/E. They went from part of a comedic stable to the cornerstone of the tag team division for Paul Heyman’s promotion, winning the tag belts 8 times between 1996 and 1999. The team began their love affair with tables in ECW as well, including famously using flaming tables and putting Spike Dudley though them at Heatwave in 1999.
The Dudleys would then make the jump to the WWF/E and were a part of one of the brightest eras for tag team wrestling in history. The team’s affinity for tables combined with their feud with the Hardy Boyz and Edge & Christian lead to the creation of the TLC match: Tables, Ladders & Chairs. They would win the second of these matches at Wrestlemania X-7. They won a total of ten Tag Team Title reigns with the WWF/E, and were named Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Tag Team of the Decade for the first decade of the 2000s.
The Dudleyz had a long lasting impact on the tag divisions in multiple companies, but they fell one point short of our top team. Now, for the benefit of those with flash photography…
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#1: Edge & Christian – 52 points
From childhood friends, to the Brood, to five-second-poses and con-chair-tos, Edge and Christian are DailyDDT’s #1 Tag Team of all time.
Edge and Christian came up together, going to wrestling school together and began a tag team together with Gangrel in the Brood. They played the role of vampire followers of Gangrel, covering opponents in “blood baths” and finding some success in the mid card.
They would turn on Gangrel and break away on their own, fighting in a Terri Invitational Tournament against the Hardy Boyz, kicking off one of their longest and most famous rivalries. The duo would move away from the gothic theme and become the best arrogant tag team in WWE history. They would allow fans “five seconds” before each match to get photos of them in poses. During this gimmick they would participate in matches already touched on in this article: the triangle ladder match and the first TLC match.
These matches were career definers for all performers, but Edge and Christian especially. They would win both the triangle ladder match and the first TLC match. The duo would end up with a total of 7 Tag Team Championship reigns during their time together, making them one of the most prolific teams in WWE history. They were fantastic to watch in the ring, and though they split up in 2001 and went on to both have storied singles careers, people look back fondly on watching Edge and Christian. Their combination of charisma, in-ring talent, look, and memorable moments has catapulted them to the top of our list.
And that just totally “reeks of awesomeness.”
Agree with our list? Who is ranked too high or too low? Let us know your opinion in the comments below.
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