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Heading into WrestleMania 37, three young and hungry teams are trying to chase down two of the most accomplished veterans in the WWE locker room — Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler. Clearly, the SmackDown Tag Team Division has really been picking up steam as of late.
Whether it's The Street Profits, Rey and Dominik Mysterio, The Alpha Academy, or some combination of those teams, The Dirty Dawgs will be out to prove that they are the class of the SmackDown Tag Team Division.
Speaking to Sportskeea Wrestling this week, Robert Roode discussed the origins of their Dirty Dawgs tag team name. He said it's really all about the mentality that he and Dolph bring to SmackDown every Friday.
"Dolph and I have been around for a minute in this business. You know what I mean? Broke in, in '98. Dolph, I think he broke in like '57. He's been around forever. No, but seriously. I mean, we're two veteran guys. Even though we weren't in the same company together, we've kind of seen it all. Been there, done that. Been in the ring with the best of the best. And we know that being the old dogs in the locker room, so to speak, sometimes you got to play a little dirty. You gotta play dirty sometimes you get the job done and get what you want in this business. And that's the kind of moniker that we want to go by. Two veteran guys that, that are here to make a paycheck and be champions. And make a name for ourselves as a tag team."
Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler started tagging together in the summer of 2019. At the time, it seemed like a really odd and random pairing. However, on their first night together, they won a tag team turmoil match to become the No. #1 Contenders for the RAW Tag Team Championships.
They would go on to win those titles a few weeks later when they defeated Seth Rollins and Braun Strowman at Clash of Champions. So how did that happen?
It turns out they got a little push from the man who was running Monday Night RAW at the time.
"Well actually it was a Paul Heyman idea, to be honest with you that... I can speak for myself, that during that time period, I wasn't really doing much. You know? I was on the live events and I was coming to TV, but sometimes I'd do Main Event. You know, the Main Event tapings. Sometimes I get sprinkled in on RAW doing something, but a lot of times I wasn't doing much. And at the time, Paul had an idea to put Dolph and I together and he thought we'd be a great tag team."
Robert Roode told Sportskeeda Wrestling that Paul Heyman was absolutely right. He says the two of them have always had great chemistry together, and it didn't take long at all for that chemistry to shine through as tag partners.
"When I came up to the main roster, the very first guy I got into a program with was Dolph Ziggler. And I knew from the moment I stepped in the ring with him the very first night, he was one of the best I've ever been in the ring with. Just as the way he moves... the chemistry. We think on the same wavelength, you know what I mean? We have that same mentality when it comes into the business and what to do while we're in the ring and how to present ourselves and all that stuff."
Speaking of presentation, it would be hard not to notice the new overall look and feel of the Dirty Dawgs these days. The pair recently made the necessary switch from being Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler to becoming a real tag team.
Robert Roode on why the robe and "Glorious Domination" had to go
The Dirty Dawgs have undergone a number of changes in the last few weeks — new gear, new merchandise, and most notably, new entrance music. Robert Roode told Sportskeeda Wrestling that after nearly two years of tagging with one another, it was time that he and Dolph Ziggler presented themselves as a real team.
"Being an old school guy, if we're going to be a team, I wanted to be presented as a team. And for the longest time I would still wear my robe with the glorious stuff on it and he would wear his stuff. And so we kind of took a little bit of both and kind of meshed it together. As well as our music, as you can tell now, we have the same music. So it's taken a little while, but now we are a team. We're being presented as a team."
Robert Roode's old theme song, "Glorious Domination," holds a special place in the hearts of many wrestling fans. While many were sad to see it go, Roode did offer a glimmer of hope that it's not gone forever.
"Yeah. I mean, that song will always be around, right? If anything ever happens, you know, I can always go back to it. But like I said, as an old school guy and a tag team fan, you know, I want to be presented as a team and so did Dolph. if we're going to be a team, let's truly be a team. And the music was one of those things that had to change."
It doesn't sound as though "Glorious Domination" will be making a return anytime soon. However, Robert Roode says he and Dolph Ziggler are really starting to hit their stride as a team, and even though they've been together for a couple of years now, he feels like they are just getting started.
Make sure to check out PART ONE of our conversation with Robert Roode in the video embedded above. Also, make sure to subscribe to the Sportskeeda Wrestling YouTube Channel and keep an eye out for PART TWO of our conversation.
