
Push or Break Up These 7 WWE and AEW Tag Teams and Stables?
The tag team scenes in WWE and All Elite Wrestling at the moment both boast a ton of talented teams and factions. Tandems such as FTR and The Usos are at the forefront as they should be, though many others could use a little more–or a little less–of the limelight.
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens recently capturing the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship breathes new life into WWE's tag team division. Assuming they can emerge from their upcoming rematch with The Usos victorious, they have plenty of potential challengers waiting in the wings.
Meanwhile, FTR regaining the AEW World Tag Team Championship from The Gunns gives AEW's tag title picture the boost it desperately needed. Many matchups await the top teams of each promotion, though certain tandems will first need to be built up.
There are also a number of teams and stables that have run their course and could benefit from a split. Regardless of whether uninteresting storylines or bad booking is to blame, it's time for the plug to be pulled on multiple pairings.
As WWE and AEW continue to shake up their rosters, significant change should be in store for the following seven teams.
Break Up: Damage CTRL
1 of 7For a group that started with so much promise, it's disappointing to see what has become of Damage CTRL since their SummerSlam debut.
Bayley, Dakota Kai and Iyo Sky are an incredibly accomplished and talented trio, and the group managed to give Kai and Sky an opportunity to shine on the main roster. Unfortunately, their booking took a turn for the worse after September's Clash at the Castle and they never recovered.
Damage CTRL now find themselves teasing tension, with Bayley growing jealous of Sky being the No. 1 contender to the Raw Women's Championship. The split should be coming sooner rather than later with the WWE draft rapidly approaching.
All three women should be better off on their own than they are together right now. Sky should be a singles champion before long, Bayley doesn't need a faction to remain relevant, and Kai could do exceptionally well back in the babyface role.
Although Damage CTRL started out strong, WWE's failure to follow up with them properly ruined what could have been.
Push: Blackpool Combat Club
2 of 7There was a point mere months ago when Blackpool Combat Club appeared to be on the brink of collapse following the departure of their leader, William Regal, from AEW.
Bryan Danielson was busy chasing MJF for the AEW World Championship, and Jon Moxley had his hands full with "Hangman" Adam Page, leaving remaining members Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta to toil away on the Dark shows.
Thankfully, Blackpool Combat Club's heel turn and ongoing rivalry with The Elite has rejuvenated them in a major way.
Danielson, Moxley, Castagnoli and Yuta have adopted a more aggressive edge and have done an effective job of turning the audience against them. Castagnoli currently holds the ROH World Championship, but their recent resurgence should lead to them all holding gold before long.
All roads will lead to a Blood and Guts match between Blackpool Combat Club and The Elite eventually, so making the former a focal point on Dynamite from here on out should be a top priority for AEW. They have the star power to be a dominant force for many months–and possibly years–to come.
Push: The Judgment Day
3 of 7The Judgment Day are similar to Blackpool Combat Club in the sense that they have only gotten better in time, especially once they found their footing under new leadership.
Edge's iteration of the group had untapped potential, but Finn Bálor replacing him took it to an entirely new level. Amazingly, a heel Dominik Mysterio proved to be the missing ingredient, as he has completely reinvented himself since joining last September.
Damian Priest has had plenty of exposure as part of The Judgment Day, and Rhea Ripley feels like their crown jewel in many ways. All in all, they've been one of the biggest highlights of Raw during the Triple H regime and have shown no signs of slowing down.
The key in the coming weeks will be to ensure they stick together post-draft, most likely on SmackDown with Ripley being the women's champion on the blue brand.
They have so much left to accomplish as a unit and have only begun to scratch the surface of what they're capable of.
Break Up: Alpha Academy
4 of 7No matter if it was Vince McMahon or Triple H running Raw this past year, Alpha Academy has thrived.
Chad Gable and Otis had other partners prior to teaming in 2021, but they formed an awesome bond upon joining forces and have been tremendous together on both Raw and SmackDown.
Their sole run as Raw tag team champions came in early 2022 and was sadly short-lived. Since then, they've wrestled regularly on Monday nights against a wide range of opponents but have lost a majority of their matches despite consistently looking stellar in defeat.
Maximum Male Models attempting to recruit Otis into their ranks as of late has made for entertaining television, but it should also spell the end of Alpha Academy when the WWE draft starts on April 28.
The primary reason behind breaking them up would be to finally showcase Gable as a singles star. It's comical to even suggest at this point considering how many times WWE has failed to do so in the past, but fans have really taken to him in recent months. It's worth a shot.
Otis has great comedic value, and Gable belongs in the midcard mix if not higher, so an Alpha Academy split could be mutually beneficial.
Push: House of Black
5 of 7Even as AEW world trios champions, House of Black still feel grossly underutilized.
The Malakai Black-led stable was just starting to catch steam prior to its leader's abrupt absence from AEW TV in late summer 2022. It took time for the group to regain momentum upon returning that November, but they have been the six-man tag champs since knocking off The Elite at Revolution in March.
The trios division has largely been an afterthought in AEW up to this point. House of Black headlined one episode of Dynamite in Canada but have been background players otherwise, and there's no logical explanation as to why that is.
House of Black belong in the AEW World Tag Team Championship mix as well, as an extended program with FTR could be something special. It would also be wise to use Black in singles competition more often and feature them all more consistently.
The spooky vignettes aren't enough, as House of Black are too talented of a trio to be relegated to Rampage most weeks. A prominent push is necessary if AEW has any intentions of making the trios titles feel like less props and more like a coveted championship.
Push: Los Lotharios
6 of 7It's been a rough few months for Los Lotharios, who have barely been seen on WWE TV.
Aside from the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal over WrestleMania weekend, their last televised appearance came on the Jan. 20 edition of SmackDown when they lost a tournament-opening match against Hit Row.
Angel unsuccessfully faced Rey Mysterio on the Dec. 23 edition of SmackDown, but otherwise, their last televised tag team match prior to that took place in late September. That's a complete waste of a team with so much to offer.
Humberto and Angel are real-life cousins and work wonderfully as partners. That's why it comes as such a surprise that WWE has seemingly never wanted to do anything of note with them or even considered moving them to NXT for a rehabilitation run.
It's going to take quite a bit for fans to get familiar with them again and view them as a legitimate threat to the titles, but they've sat on the sidelines for long enough and are overdue for an opportunity to show what they can do.
Break Up: Jericho Appreciation Society
7 of 7Fun fact: Chris Jericho has been associated with a stable for as long as Dynamite has been on the air.
Inner Circle, led by Jericho, debuted on the first-ever episode of Dynamite in October 2019. Once that faction ran its course, he immediately transitioned into Jericho Appreciation Society in March 2022.
Other than those first few AEW pay-per-views, the inaugural AEW world champion has never flown solo since signing with the company.
Both factions have been designed to put over the other stars involved, but a majority of their storylines have been horribly dragged out and have gradually gotten worse. The Jericho Appreciation Society shtick in particular has never been a bright spot of the shows because of how repetitive the rivalries have become.
An extended break from television for the JAS would be helpful if not breaking them up. With Blackpool Combat Club firmly established as AEW's top heel faction and House of Black not far behind, Jericho's group no longer serves a purpose and should be scrapped soon.
Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.






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