10 Thrown-Together Tag Teams that Really Worked

There seemed to be no reason for Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre to team up, but now there seems to be no reason for them to fail.

#8 Rusev DAY

You don't need a calendar to know what day it is. — You don't need a calendar to know what day it is

Rusev's undefeated streak upon entering the WWE main roster was impressive, encompassing a United States Championship reign and ending only when John Cena overcame the Bulgarian Brute at WrestleMania 31.

Since that time, WWE has seemed unsure of what to do with Rusev, and has seemed reluctant until very recently to let the Bulgarian showcase the natural charm, humor, and charisma he shows on his social media pages and Total Divas.

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After SummerSlam in 2017, where Rusev lost to Randy Orton in 10 seconds of bell-to-bell time (despite a prematch attack designed to weaken The Viper), Rusev got his revenge on Orton on SmackDown, celebrating with a ceremony wherein Rusev was awarded the key to his non-kayfabe hometown as Aiden English, whose operatic pipes Rusev admired backstage, literally sang Handsome Rusev's praises.

The former Vaudevillain had been allowed to flex his vocal pipes a great deal since the firing of his ex-partner Simon Gotch, but his appearances seemed relegated to pre-show segments designed to get a crowd hot through cheap heat.

English, singlehandedly creating 2018's favorite meme and chant, dubbed the day, "Rusev Day;" since then, English has sung Rusev to all of his in-ring appearances and led WWE to some of its most inspired merchandising (like a 2018 calendar where ever square has the holiday designation of Rusev Day). The duo still makes constant denigrating references to the cities where they perform, like English did when he was solo, but the reaction now is raucous applause instead of boos and jeers.

It's one thing to get crowds like those in Chicago, New York, or during Big Four pay-per-view weekends (where WWE's most dedicated fans buy travel packages including tickets to every taping) to chant "Rusev Day" and embrace English and Rusev as babyfaces; it's another thing entirely for traditional markets like Kansas City or Green Bay to cheer the duo enthusiastically and sing along to English's songs.

Like Breezango, the freedom to experiment and improvise has led Rusev to some of his best character moments and created some classic WWE comedy.

Edited by Nishant Jayaram