2011 in review: The Tag Team Turmoil

Despite being aware of the fact that tag-teams are an exciting part of Pro-wrestling, WWE has ignored that part blatantly in the last few years. The tag-team division in the WWE has been overlooked in the past and even now WWE boasts just a handful of legitimate tag-teams. But I have a feeling that WWE’s attitude towards this division has changed this year. Tag teams are being given more of the spotlight. The tag team titles have gained significance and are not being treated as hot potatoes like the WWE Championship. Here’s an analysis of the tag-team championship reigns of 2011.

Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov (December 2010 – February 2011)

Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov

At the start of 2011, the tag-team of Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov were the champions. Their reign lasted for a period of 2 months after which they lost the title to Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater. Though Santino and Kozlov weren’t an outright tag-team, their pairing worked perfectly. Santino did the talking part while Kozlov was dominant inside the ring. They got the crowd behind them. Moreover, being a tag-team helped them to get more air-time which they did not get as singles stars. Their only drawback was the lack of creativity inside the ring. Santino’s Cobra got the victories for them on most occasions. Just a few months after loosing the titles, this team was split as Vladimir Kozlov was released from the WWE.

Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater (February 2011 – April 2011)

Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel

These two men were a part of the Nexus faction before while clubbed together as a tag-team. Being a heel tag-team, they did well to get noticed. Much like Santino’s Cobra, this team got most of their victories due to Justin Gabriel’s 450 Splash. However, they gained credibility due to their long championship reign of two months. Even after loosing the titles, Gabriel and Slater worked as a team for months but were eventually split.

John Cena and The Miz (February 21, 2011)

John Cena and The Miz

Yeah, you read it right! The unthinkable team of John Cena and The Miz beat Gabriel and Slater and were tag champs for approximately an hour. Gabriel and Slater evoked their rematch clause on the same night and regained their championships. It was ridiculous and clearly showed WWE’s utter disregard for the tag-team titles.

Big Show and Kane (April 2011 – May 2011)

Kane and Big Show with the Tag titles at Extreme Rules 2011

Yet another pair of singles stars became a tag-team just because WWE couldn’t come up with separate storylines for them. Kane and Big Show joined forces to wrest the titles from Slater and Gabriel and were successful in doing so at Extreme Rules 2011. The only thing consoling about this team was the fact that both the men had the size and it was logical when they dominated other teams for about a month. But it was ridiculous to see Kane as a face. It would have been perfect if the WWE had let this team to be a heel one. I was glad when this reign ended in a short period itself. Yet again, this team was split soon after they lost the titles.

David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty (May 2011 – August 2011)

David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty

With Nexus falling apart after the power struggle between CM Punk and Wade Barrett, WWE formed a new tag-team consisting of two members of Nexus – Michael and Otunga. These two men won the titles by beating Big Show and Kane and were off TV for a noticeable period of time. Even I forgot who the Tag-champs were as they weren’t given TV time. Even when they were on TV, they did not impress the audience. They lacked Charisma which was pointed out by Jerry Lawler and was even used as a storyline. Their in-ring work was satisfactory but not great. Their three month title reign was a disaster. After loosing their titles, Michael McGillicutty has faded into obscurity while Otunga has become Mr. Laurinitis’ mouthpiece.

Air Boom (August 2011 – present)

Air Boom

Otunga and McGillicutty finally lost their titles to Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne, another tag-team formed by clubbing two singles stars together. But WWE got the pairing right this time. They christened themselves as Air Boom and have been successfully holding on to the Tag championship till now. Air Boom has the perfect mix of athleticism and talent and hence they have gotten over among the WWE Universe. Moreover, they’ve had the longest tag title reign in 2011. Only time will tell whether their reign will continue in 2011 or not.

The Others:

The Usos dropped Tamina and have improved so much, after bringing in their war cry entrance, which is quite amazing. They got their chances at the titles but is good to let them stay in mix for a while before giving them the titles. Expect them to rise up to the challenge in 2012.

Another new tag-team which has emerged recently is that of the Colon Cousins – Epico and Primo. Rosa Mendes is the eye candy part of this team. Based on what we have seen so far, it is clear that these two men work well together. If they continue this good run, they’ll be holding the tag titles very soon.

Many are considering this to be the start of a new era of tag-teams in the WWE. Will there be drastic changes in the fortunes of the tag team division in 2012? I certainly hope so.