10 Examples of Pro Wrestling Jargon

John Cena reads Roman Reigns the riot act
John Cena reads Roman Reigns the riot act

#9: Hot Tag

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John Cena gets the Hot Tag from Kane.
John Cena gets the Hot Tag from Kane.

What it means: Specifically in tag matches when one opponent has taken a great deal of punishment and finally makes the tag to his 'fresh' partner, who comes into the ring with a lot of heat and devastates the opposition even in two on one situations.

Also known as: Desperation tag, a term used by announcers until Hot Tag became more the norm.

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Likely origin of the term: No one can say for sure when it first saw use backstage, but announcers started using it kayfabe during the 2000s.

The hot tag is one of the most unique aspects of pro wrestling and is famous for unleashing tension and creating high pops from the audience.

Without question, the unmitigated masters of the hot tag were the Rock N Roll Express. Ricky Morton would get pummeled for up to half an hour before finally tagging in Robert Gibson, who would proceed to clean house to a tremendous babyface pop.

You're likely to see at least one during any tag team match in any promotion, but some say the WWE overuses the concept.

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Edited by Alan John
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