A DIY reunion would be a hit for the WWE main roster

WWE looks to rebuild its tag team division and perhaps they could bring back DIY to help further the cause.

One of the most sensational storylines born out of the famous black and gold era of NXT was the formation and subsequent breakup of the tag team of Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa, otherwise known as DIY. As a team, Gargano and Ciampa wowed the NXT audience with their performances at TakeOver events. As adversaries, the two men showed why brutality and heartbreak still have a place in wrestling.

Their final encounter, appropriately titled “one final beat,” occurred on the April 8th edition of NXT and saw Gargano land the final devastating blow to his former partner and best friend. They would briefly reunite as a team on the Nov. 23rd edition of NXT as part of Team Black and Gold against a new era of superstars trying to make their mark on the brand. Despite losing the matchup, the NXT audience clapped in admiration and respect for Gargano, who afterward chose not to renew his WWE contract and took a brief break from wrestling.

After what seemingly was Gargano’s final match in the company, Ciampa would debut on the main roster and align himself with The Miz. The move confused fans who knew what Ciampa had accomplished on the black and gold brand and wanted him to continue where he left off. After unsuccessfully challenging Bobby Lashley for the United States championship and having a few run-ins with Dexter Lumis, Ciampa disappeared from television. Meanwhile, Gargano came back into the fold and joined the main roster on Raw.

The Rebel Heart gave a passionate promo on his first night back, laying out his intentions and aspirations to become champion. With singles gold on his mind and the accolades from his career on the black and gold brand tattooed across his body, Gargano entered into a program involving The Miz and Dexter Lumis. Within a few weeks, it became clear to many fans that Gargano would have a long and treacherous road back to being the Johnny Wrestling of old and the man who could overcome the odds despite his size.

Ciampa and Gargano’s disappointing beginnings on the main roster don’t undo what they accomplished as a tag team. For fans of NXT’s black and gold era, DIY represented a time when tag team wrestling held a prominent place in a WWE landscape crammed with singles competitors and underdeveloped tag team “feuds.” Triple H, who was the one behind most of what fans loved about the black and gold era, is now trying to bring more focus to tag team wrestling on the main roster in his new role as Head of Creative for Raw and SmackDown. He also had a deep affection for DIY and was there when the two men fought together and against one another.

DIY would help change the current state of tag team wrestling in WWE

The future for Ciampa and Gargano could rest on the two reuniting as a team and being a focal point in the tag division on either Raw or SmackDown. Currently, the entire division is held hostage by The Usos, who have both the Raw and SmackDown Tag Team Championships and are on their way to possibly lose the titles at WrestleMania. If that happens, Triple H could tell the story of a reunited DIY scratching and crawling to earn a shot at the tag titles.

The storyline has the potential to match other famous underdog stories in WWE that have impressed fans in the past. Although the actual journey was a bit convoluted, Bryan Danielson’s march to becoming dual champion at WrestleMania 30 still permeates the minds of supporters of the American Dragon. Additionally, it brings in another familiar element from Triple H’s NXT.

That’s not to say there won’t be some hurdles to overcome. While Triple H has brought back numerous names who were unceremoniously let go from the company, a good handful of them have yet to make a significant impact on the main roster. Karrion Kross entered into a feud with Drew McIntyre, only to come out on the losing end. Others like Candice LeRae, Hit Row, Dexter Lumis, Santos Escobar, and more have barely scratched the surface and are just spinning their wheels in the mid-card. The same could be said for both Gargano and Ciampa.

Another possible hurdle is that The Usos have reveled in a storyline as part of the company’s hottest act, and their demise may come at the hands of former Bloodline member Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens. Wherever the team ends up following WrestleMania and the WWE draft, one could only wonder if the audience will be more invested in what Zayn and Owens are doing than other babyface tag teams.

DIY has proven that their wrestling expertise and ability to tell a compelling story between the ropes is enough to attract the audience’s attention. It’s just a matter of if their being still mid-card on the main roster will be detrimental to their long-term success as a team. Fans who know of DIY may believe a reformation of the team on the main roster would absolutely be a hit when in reality, the audience who have yet to follow NXT may ignore them and focus on other acts in the company.