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Tag Teams are a mainstay of current WWE programming and have always had an important place on the roster. The current Tag Team Division of WWE is packed and has a number of talented wrestlers teaming up to compete for the WWE Tag Titles.
Throughout history however, there have been numerous talented tag teams which were not able to stay together and had to break up due to an injury to one of the members.
These splits were either temporary in nature, but in some unfortunate cases they were permanent and the talent never got back together to team up again.
#10 Tyson Kidd and Cesaro
One of the biggest tragedies in WWE’s history is the injury suffered by Tyson Kidd. Kidd was an extremely talented wrestler who was navigating the WWE mid-card in the singles scene after his partner Harry Smith left the company.
Cesaro and Kidd teamed up to form an extremely impressive and effective tag team, who even managed to win the WWE Tag Championships at one point in time. Their unique strength and athletic based offense allowed them to be one of the tag teams that caught the eye. This all came to a rushed and rather pathetic end one day, when on a Raw dark match, Kidd took on Joe.
Joe hit him with the musclebuster, but something went wrong and Kidd suffered a horrifying life-threatening injury. The injury not only brought an abrupt stop to the tag team, it also stopped Kidd’s career and he retired from wrestling.
Currently, Kidd works with WWE as a producer backstage, and Joe has been banned from using the move again.
#9 Rybaxel
When Rybaxel was first formed it seemed like there were great things destined for the future of the team. The two teamed up and had several amazing matches, but more than that their manager was Paul Heyman, who was known for backing the best wrestlers.
This particular team went wrong though, and the two did not last as a team for too long. Ryback needed hernia surgery, and the team came to an end in August of 2014.
Ryback came back to have a run with the company, while Curtis Axel slowly faded from the scene, only jobbing to other wrestlers, till he was recently brought back as part of the Miztourage with Bo Dallas, as The Miz’s henchmen.
#8 The Fabulous Rougeaus
The Rougeau brothers were a promising tag team, well known in the wrestling industry in the 80’s. They came to WWE in 1986, and even won the Tag Team titles in a house show, though the title change was not recognized by WWE.
The Rougeaus had a good feud against the Hart Dynasty though they officially never won the tag titles in WWE. Their other notable feud was against the Rockers in 1989, before they became a comedic tag team who faced opponents like the Bushwhackers.
Raymond Rougeau had always suffered from chronic back pain, and had to retire from it in 1990 bringing the tag team to an abrupt end. Their promise as a team remained unfulfilled, as Raymond worked as an interviewer for WWE, while Jacques came back to the company rebranded as ‘The Mountie’.
#7 D-Generation X
Though technically not a tag team, Shawn Michaels and Triple H’s D-Generation X faction, with Rick Rude and China, was one of the top teams in WWE at that time. Constantly pushing the button, on what was or was not acceptable in wrestling they helped change the wrestling scenario all-together with edgier content filled with sexual innuendo.
Extremely popular among the fans, they helped usher in the Attitude Era, right alongside the likes of Steve Austin, Mankind and The Rock. Their consistent ability to entertain the fans with something new each week helped make for great television, even while the more traditional-minded wrestlers and fans fumed.
Shawn was the obvious arrogant leader of the team, but he was working with fatigue and drug-abuse at that time. In a coffin match with The Undertaker he fell back-first onto the edge of the coffin injuring his spine. The injury was extremely severe, but he continued to wrestle through the pain, and went on to face Austin at WrestleMania. He lost the title to Austin on the grandest stage of WWE after a spectacular match given that he was wrestling with such a severe injury.
He effectively retired from WWE following the loss, to recover from his injuries, while Triple H changed the entire look of the faction by himself.
Shawn would come back later in 2002, where he would discover that he was still able to wrestle despite suffering from chronic back pain. He went on to compete in singles matches, but teamed with Triple H as DX again, this time as a tag team. They had another run as DX, though less successful than the previous one, before HBK finally retired from wrestling following his famous feud with the Undertaker.
#6 Chris Jericho and Edge
This team did not last at all long, as Jericho and Edge teamed up at the Bash pay-per-view in a surprise move to win the WWE Tag Team Titles. Jericho had competed earlier that night when he had lost the Intercontinental Title to Rey Mysterio.
The then General Manager of SmackDown, Theodore Long, was being pressured by Vince McMahon to improve the quality of the show. He decided to make the match between Legacy and the Colons for the Unified WWE Tag Team Titles a Triple Threat match, teaming together Edge and Jericho.
Edge managed to hit the spear during the match and picked up the win for their team. Unfortunately for him, shortly after winning the titles, just as Edge and Jericho looked like they were in for a run as a tag team, Edge suffered an injury. This led to Jericho getting rid of Edge as a partner and taking in Big Show as well.
The team of Jericho and Edge was short-lived, but it had the potential of being an amazing team. Jericho and Big Show had a good run as champions for a while before they lost to DX. Jericho would later have a feud with his returning former partner, Edge where he would defend the World Title against him.
#5 Stone Cold and Dude Love
Another team that ended way too soon was the team of Stone Cold and Dude Love. Mick Foley in his comedic Dude Love persona was the literal opposite of the extremely real and serious Stone Cold, and them being teamed together made for some comedic greatness.
Stone Cold had refused Mankind’s help for the match against Owen Hart and the British Bulldog, but Dude Love came to help anyway, as Steve Austin needed help in the handicap situation.
The two won the Tag Team Titles and became partners for a short while, in a comedic team the fans greatly appreciated. The two would never be able to defend their titles however, as Austin went to Summerslam embroiled in a feud with Owen Hart. He won the match against Owen, but not before he had been seriously injured with a broken neck from a Piledriver, that temporarily paralyzed the Rattle-Snake.
He had to relinquish the Intercontinental and the Tag Team titles, and one of the funniest teams ever made came to an abrupt end.
#4 MNM
MNM had the potential to be the next Hardy Boyz or Edge and Christian. Johnny Nitro (better known as John Morrison) and Joey Mercury, together with their manager Melina, were a force to be reckoned with on the tag team division.
The two spent an entire year as a tag team, during which they won the Tag Team Championships in their debut match against Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero. They would go on to lose the titles to Heidenreich and Road Warrior Animal, although they did win the titles two more times.
Involved in some high profile feuds, MNM were billed for greatness, and they were two of the best heels on the roster. The fans hated everything about them, be it their flashy gear, their obvious arrogance, or even their ‘diva’ attitudes.
Unfortunately for them, they could not last long as a tag team. Mercury and Nitro did not get along well behind the scenes, and on top of that Mercury was suspended for a wellness policy violation. It looked like they were coming back once again when they teamed up to face the Hardy Boyz.
In a four-way ladder match with the Hardys, Mercury was horribly injured after being struck by a ladder across the face. He suffered a broken nose and needed stitches. The injury was the final straw, and after a couple more matches, the two officially finally disbanded.
#3 Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins
The most recent incident on this list, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose were getting along just fine in 2017, till Ambrose suffered a torn bicep. The injury came as a huge blow for the team, as the duo were in the middle of a tag team title feud with Cesaro and Sheamus. They were also in the middle of a reunification of the Shield which came to an effective end with the injury.
While it is sure that Rollins and Ambrose may be able to team up again when the latter comes back, it looks like it won’t be for a long time, with Ambrose set to be out of action for 8 to 9 months. As of now, things are not looking promising for them as a team, as Rollins was teamed with Jason Jordan and the two of them managed to win the Tag Team Titles.
Dean and Seth had a long history in The Shield, where they even feuded after Rollins betrayed Reigns and Ambrose to side with the Authority. Since then they came a long way, where they were able to put aside their differences enough to team up and compete in the tag team division.
As of now, it is not sure whether they will team up again when Ambrose returns, because even if there is no reason not to now, nine months is a long time and a lot may happen by then.
#2 DIY
Another recent breakup, DIY splitting broke the hearts of wrestling fans everywhere. Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano teamed up to form DIY and looked extremely good together as a team. They were able to put on show after show which left them as one of the most beloved tag teams on the roster.
They won the NXT Tag titles from The Revival, though they eventually lost them at the next Takeover to the Authors of Pain. They would be unable to get back the titles at the following Takeover, or the next one at Chicago.
After they lost to the Authors of Pain at Chicago in a ladder match, Ciampa suddenly turned on Gargano. The turn was sudden and left fans with broken hearts. They were split up by WWE, as Ciampa was suffering from an injury and needed time off television to heal.
The split from Ciampa still haunts Gargano, as he even recently lost a match against Almas, after Zelina Vega distracted him with a DIY t-shirt.
#1 The Two Man Power Trip
The team of Stone Cold and Triple was intimidating, to say the least, as they went on their way in WWE in their quest to win all the gold. Stone Cold held the WWE Championship (then WWF) and Triple H held the Intercontinental Title as they both teamed up.
They won the Tag Team titles from the Brothers of Destruction and the newly heel Stone Cold, and Triple H went on a rampage in WWE.
They feuded with the Brothers of Destruction, but it was during a match against Chris Benoit and Jericho that their fate was decided. Triple H misstepped and tore his left quadriceps in a career-threatening injury.
He completed the match in a heroic effort despite not being able to put any weight on that leg at all. The two split up on screen, so that Triple H could take the year off to heal from his injury.
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