Best Booking Options for Dudley Boyz at WWE Fastlane 2016, WrestleMania 32

On an episode of Raw highlighted by Daniel Bryan's emotional in-ring retirement, The Dudley Boyz managed to make a major impact that should surely put them in the WWE Tag Team Championship conversation come Fastlane 2016 and WrestleMania 32.

The iconic tandem teamed with The Usos to take on The New Day and Mark Henry in a thrilling eight-man Tables match on Monday night. Once Henry walked out on his partners, the Usos and Dudleys capitalized to score the victory.

Afterward, The Dudleys celebrated with the young guns before laying them out in shocking fashion. They proceeded to put them through tables via a top rope powerbomb, sending the message that they are more than a nostalgia act.

Days later on SmackDown, D-Von echoed those sentiments, and in explaining why they went rogue, he made it quite clear that the days of them taking a back seat to the rest of the division were over. They promptly cut ties with the use of the tables, much to the dismay of the audience in attendance.

Some fans may not have approved of their actions, but there is no doubt that turning heel was the best thing they could have done. Their change in character should shake up the entire landscape of the tag team scene going into Fastlane next Sunday.

Credit: WWE.com

Prior to Raw, there weren't any clear-cut contenders for tag team champions The New Day at the event. While The Usos have been building momentum of late, New Day already bested them at the Royal Rumble in decisive fashion, so there isn't a need for a rematch.

However, including The Dudley Boyz in the ongoing angle would make it significantly more intriguing. If you can recall, there is unfinished business between New Day and The Dudleys from the fall, as the latter noted on Monday night.

Additionally, the nine-time WWE tag champions now have a ready-made rivalry with The Usos, a match that has been many months in the making. It's also the first feud in the tag team division in which fans can actually invest.

Since returning to WWE last August, The Dudleys have done what was "best for business" and put over a multitude of up-and-coming tandems. But now is their time to shine and finally regain the gold after a decade-long drought.

Granting them a WWE Tag Team Championship opportunity at Fastlane would only be logical based on what we have seen this past week, but WWE would be wise to hold off on their winning the twin titles until WrestleMania 32.

Upon coming back to the company shortly after SummerSlam, the Dudleys specifically mentioned how they would be celebrating 20 years in the wrestling business in April 2016, right around the time of WrestleMania 32.

According to PWInsider.com's Mike Johnson, they are under contract to WWE for the next two years, meaning a tag team title run must be in their future at some point. That said, there is no better time to pull the trigger than on the grand stage of WrestleMania, where they have yet to win a match, surprisingly enough.

Of course, that raises the question of what they will be up to at Fastlane. It's possible WWE will do a title change there, but again, it's a monumental moment better saved for The Show of Shows.

Instead, a No. 1 Contender's match pitting The Dudley Boyz against The Usos would make the most sense. The Dudleys can emerge victorious to get their heel turn off to a strong start, yet the multigenerational wrestlers can somehow work their way into the title picture at WrestleMania.

The Dudley Boyz were hot when they initially returned over the summer, but they feel rejuvenated now that they have turned a corner in their careers. If anything is for certain, it's that The Road to WrestleMania will be an interesting one for the former tag team champs.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is a journalism major at Endicott College. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.

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