Impact Wrestling: Blood, Brothers and Gang Warfare – Rebuilding the Tag Team Division

Impact Wrestling are rebuilding their tag team division with a combination of blood, brothers and gang warfare. Given more time and a few additions to the tandem ranks, Impact may just have a world-beating duo’s roster to further their resurgence.

The main event of this past weeks Impact Wrestling, saw OVE take on Pentagon Jr and Fenix in a superb example of the companies reinvigorated in-ring product. A heady mix of brawling, lucha high-flying and Ohio-led violence, this was another great bout that showcased a tandem league that has a tremendous upside. In 2018, Impact and tag team wrestling are in much better hands.

Impact/TNA/GFW has a rich tradition of tag team wrestling. In spite of the constant regime shifts, Impact has bred, built and proudly displayed a plethora of fantastic, crowd pleasing tandems.

In America’s Most Wanted, James Storm and (the long-lost) Chris Harris held a series of matches with XXX (Elix Skipper, Christopher Daniels and Low Ki) that still feature in highlight reels to this day; Elix Skipper’s tight rope walk and hurricanrana off the top of a cage is one of the all time spectacular moves in all of wrestling.

The Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin and Alex Shelly) contested a best of five series with Beer Money (James Storm and Bobby Roode) in the highlight of the 2010 wrestling calendar. Each match had a stipulation and each match delivered a unique and different showpiece for the performers.

The Hardy Boys, Team 3D (formerly the Dudley’s) and The Wolves (Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards) gave the world a sequel series to the Wrestlemania/Summerslam ladder matches of the early 2000’s. In 2014, the ex-WWE stars, ably assisted by The Wolves, rolled back the years and showed that a decade later, there was still gas left in their tanks.

Alongside Bad Influence (Frankie Kazarian and Christopher Daniels), The Dirty Heels (Austin Aries and Bobby Roode) and an array of other teams, Impact have cultivated a tag division that has often belied their creative mis-steps.

And what of 2018…

In January of this year, the tag team ranks of Impact Wrestling were somewhat destitute. While the 2017 series between OVE and LAX, carried over into 2018, there was no depth, little in terms of build and no focus on developing the neglected division.

Fast-forward eight months and we have a vastly evolved duo’s scene.

In 2017, LAX returned in the guise of Santana and Ortiz – a younger, fresher Latin American Exchange under the tutelage of, original godfather, Konnan. In 2018, the ranks have grown and splintered.

Original members Homicide and Hernandez have turned their backs on K-Dawg and “the young boys” and christened themselves the OGZ – all led by the charismatic and manipulative, Eddie Kingston. Gang warfare has erupted. The brutal, hardcore war ar Slammiversary was a bruising contest that both the originals and inheritors of the LAX mantle can be proud of. This war isn’t over and looks to carry on as the company head towards Bound for Glory.

The Desi Hit Squad are new contenders. An old school heel stable, led by the ultra boring, Gama Singh, their gimmick is in need of adjustments if it’s ever to wield results. The foreign menace heel seems at odds with Impact’s edgy and modern storytelling.

The team of Gursinder Singh and Rohit Raju would do well to hone their in-ring act and attempt to distance themselves from their ‘evil foreigner’ shtick. Both seem good wrestlers, if they continue to play heel, they need to come up with a legitimate reason as to why we should boo them. This team has a way to go to be convincing title chasers.

Z and E, the aerial specialists of DJZ and Andrew Everett, have already held championship gold in 2018. Both are premier league performers and excellent in-ring generals. However, much like Team Desi, they are in need of an identity. While far from a charisma vacuum, both personalities are disparate and do not convince as a team – Z is an outlandish, Ibiza DJ and Everett is The Skywalker (fan friendly acrobatic hero!).

Their work, and work ethic, is world-class; now it’s time to develop a cohesive team identity. Remember when The New Age Outlaws were, individually, The Roadie and Rockabilly? It took the Attitude Era and some fun creative decisions to make two directionless, bland individuals, a key part of the WWF revival.

A dose of comedy has been added to the Tag Team Division in the form of Fallah Bahh and KM. The mis-matched ‘buddy movie’ team, sees the likable, plus 400lb behemoth (who is big, but surprisingly agile), team with, natural heel and mean-spirited bully, Kevin Matthews. Opposites in every way, these guys have been a comedic delight.

Not the most graceful team but exuding personality, Impact might be wise to delay the inevitable break up of The Panda Express. The chalk and cheese pair are hugely popular and deserve a run in some quality tag rivalries. Their bickering ways and comedy timing might be the perfect foils for Grado and Joe Hendry. That’s a mid card feud that screams entertainment!

And so, back to last week’s main event. The Crist Brothers, OVE, and Pentagon/Fenix showed just what modern Impact tag wrestling is all about. The scum-bag, jackel-like, cult members sought to avenge Sami Callihan’s loss (of match and hair!), and rob The Lucha Bros of their masks. Vengeance vs Cultural Pride is a simple story. All four delivered a thoroughly contemporary, story-driven, tag battle. This is the type of match that turn heads and creates new fans – Impact would be wise to continue pushing these acts at the top of the card.

Building on a rich history, and delivering a varied and interesting tag team division, with a few tweaks and creative choices, Impact may just have the best tandem roster in North America.

Perhaps an addition or two wouldn’t go amiss…

Impact Wrestling announced that the team of LAX would take on the ROH/NJPW team of The Young Bucks, on The Cruise of Jericho.

The Bucks would be a fine addition to the rank and file of Impact Wrestling. The relationships that Impact have built with other wrestling companies in the past year could facilitate a working agreement between the two sides.

With Matt and Nick, recently liking Impact’s promotion of their run as Generation Me in 2010 (below), this could open up the doors to 2018’s hottest tag team, to superkick their way into the revitalised Impact Zone.

Bucks, or no Bucks, Impact need to continue laying the building blocks for the tag scene in 2019 (and beyond). Given the success of the warring factions, the brotherly combat and blood spilt in the pursuit of glory, a golden era of tag team wrestling awaits.