WWE NXT: All 26 Champions in Brand’s History, Ranked

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18. DIY

Remember the days of Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa being the “hottest free agents” to come into WWE NXT? Well, they parlayed those unsigned-newcomer roles into the No. 1 face of the tag teams in the summer of 2016. There was never an issue taking over for American Alpha, and if anything, Gargano and Ciampa have been better than Chad Gable and Jason Jordan.

At NXT TakeOver: Toronto, NXT gave Gargano and Ciampa — now known as DIY — the NXT Tag Team Championship in arguably the best match of 2016. They went to war with Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder, putting on an unforgettable showing that only made the win feel more special.

The question would be, how WWE books the duo? In NXT, there have been issues handling most babyface champions, while an incredible job is done getting them to their pinnacle. Gargano and Ciampa really didn’t have a bad fallout, holding off the Revival in a fun rematch and cutting decent promos. However, once they were paired with the Authors of Pain for TakeOver: San Antonio, you could tell the end was near.

The title reign wrapped up after two months, somewhat predictably. If they had a longer run, their spot would have been pushed up considerably. Maybe that will come with a second championship win.