What Tag Team specialist would you have liked see as a Singles Champion?

[Funkydr79]

I was thinking about this in one of the Forums about Team 3D retiring. I have always thought Bubba Ray would make a great singles champion, especially as a heel. That got me thinking about some of the great tag teams in history, whose passion for tag wrestling (especially when it was booked as a legitimate division), kept them out of the singles picture.

So the question is this: What Tag specialist would you have loved to see as a singles World Champion?

Aside from Bubba Ray, my list would include:

1) Arn Anderson - the greatest wrestler to never hold the world championship (although he held plenty of mid-carder titles). His focus was always on being the enforcer and spent time in many GREAT tag teams with Tully Blanchard, Larry Zabysko, Bobby Eaton, etc.

2) Michael P.S. Hayes - The 2nd best strut in the business! Purely Sexy could have been a great champion. I would have loved to see them in the NWA Days with Hayes as world champion and Gordy/Roberts as Tag champs.

3) Rick Steiner - Although by modern standards he wouldn't be a great champion, back in the day when managers helped along the boys who couldn't talk great, I think we would have made a great champion. Being legit tough would have helped him, and the "dog faced gremlin" gimmick could have gotten him super over.

 

[La Parka]

First of all, Rick Steiner always was super over, when I watched him in the ring. The man was magnificent!

Anyway, I always wanted to see either Taka Michinoku, OR Funaki do more than they really did in WWF. I'll admit it, I wanted to see one of them take the strap. Rock or HHH or whoever, gets PLANTED with a Tornado DDT or a Michinoku Driver, boom, champion. That's what I wanted. I don't care if it's unrealistic.

 

[jmt225]

Bobby Eaton is the first name that comes to mind for me.

While he wasn't the most charismatic individual or the best on the mic, he was absolutely flawless in the ring. Everything about Bobby Eaton to me screams "Old-School World Champion." I mean, he's the type of person who would have been a PERFECT NWA Champion for some while during the eighties, or even WWWF Champion in the 70's. Unfortunately though, he began his career a little too late when wrestling was starting to gear towards the entertaining aspect of the business rather than the actual wrestling, and it really cost him as a singles competitor, which is truly a shame because there's no doubt this guy could have had absolute classics against the top names from the eighties and early nineties. Just imagine: Bobby Eaton vs. Ric Flair, Bobby Eaton vs. Ricky Steamboat, Bobby Eaton vs. Randy Savage, Bobby Eaton vs. Bret Hart, etc... all these matches would have been superb and easily stand the test of time.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Do we mean World Champ or Singles Champ? cos Arn was one of the best and most decorated TV Champions ever, Bobby Eaton held several too.. they had their singles success but they were not main eventers... Rick Steiner held singles titles before Scott debuted...

If we mean main eventers... I think the main guys that stand out for me are:-

Jim Brunzell - In the 80's he had something, especially the Killer Bees era... the look, the moves... make him heel, make him use the mask swap gimmick and you had a killer main eventer... easily the IC champion... They adapted it for Doink...

Paul Roma - Similar to Brunzell in that he was an easy IC champion had he had the right gimmick, talent wise the guy was never lacking... he had the look, he just needed a decent hook to get the fans in... Why was he not the Narcissist in 1991?

Nikolai Volkoff - He ended up playing a washed up sell out but at his peak in the mid 80's he was the perfect full on Hogan opponent... he got a minor run with him but they could have done a lot more with him.

The Warlord - Was far better than Vince allowed him to be... With a better manager.... yes Slick I am talking to you... he could have been a force... but between the choice of salt and pepper team and dodgy props (that wand was W for Wanker) the poor guy was sunk...

Jacques Rougeau - The Mountie got a 2 day IC title run, but as a worker he was worth a hell of lot more... to the point where Hogan himself jobbed out to him in his home town at his own suggestion... he was easily in the bracket of Bret, Curt and Shawn but, as he was canadian... hey... I really think WWE screwed up with the Mountie gimmick, they could have built Jacques off of being a bad ass after the infamous Dynamite Kid incident yet Vince loved Dino Bravo more... hey everyone has an off day...or year...

 

[wushady]

I don't think many tag specialist would make descent world champions. Both members of LOD especially Animal tried to have singles runs, but weren't successful. Same goes for the Dudleys, Rock n Roll Express, and Midnight Express. I do think Michael Hayes and both Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard could have made it as old school world champions. Though Anderson and Blanchard were in tag teams often, and Horsemen members. I think of them more as singles wrestlers.

 

[The Brain]

I would have liked to have seen Dynamite Kid get a singles run in the IC division. The IC champions were always the ones that seemed to put on the best matches during Dynamite's time. I picture him turning heel and first feuding with Davey Boy Smith and then move on against guys like Ricky Steamboat, Tito Santana, and Bret Hart. Too bad injuries and backstage issues shortened his WWF career because I think he could have been a great singles wrestler as either a face or heel.

 

[DeathClutch]

The only one tag wrestler who I'd liked to have seen become a singles World champion is Tully Blanchard, thus I don't class him a tag wrestler he was a Tag team World champion, but his in ring skills were the best in the NWA by leaps and bounds.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

I would have liked to have seen Dynamite Kid get a singles run in the IC division. The IC champions were always the ones that seemed to put on the best matches during Dynamite's time. I picture him turning heel and first feuding with Davey Boy Smith and then move on against guys like Ricky Steamboat, Tito Santana, and Bret Hart. Too bad injuries and backstage issues shortened his WWF career because I think he could have been a great singles wrestler as either a face or heel.

Sadly by the time this was even an option, Dynamite was... well literally beyond that to the locker room... as a worker I would have loved to see him scale the heights... the one part of Bret Hart's book that just about got me teary was when Dynamite asked if Bret was IC champ and Knobbs had to tell him he had "the big belt"... but enough of his peers felt he was a bully... and I have nothing but respect for Jacques Rougeau for ending that reign... Dynamite blew it afterwards noone else...

Had he done it tho, yep, heel run against DBS, moved on to a face Perfect... lost the strap... maybe got a few title matches with Savage.... he was never going to get the "big belt" as he didn't have the personality... that Chris Benoit managed to copy him and get there with less is a damned shame... but as someone who hates bully's, its hard to feel too broke up for Dynamite... His place in history is there... its just not what it could have been, but the same could be said for any guy who worked for WWE in the 80's....

 

[RVDisTNA]

Jim Neidhart would've been a good WWF champ if he would've gotten past his drug problems. Could've had a good program with Bret in 92/93.

Dynamite Kid, Michael Hayes, Tully Blanchard, Arn Anderson, and Rick Steiner would've been great too.

 

[bigbadwolf8169]

-Personally, i would have loved 2 see Bubba Ray Dudley/Brother Ray as a big star. He did have a singles run i think in '02, but i dont think he was used correctly. He kinda has a mix of Dusty Rhodes and Stone Cold in him. He's great on the mic and is a great worker. I think even know in TNA he could be thrown into the main event mix, at his stage in his career, just like DDP in WCW.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Jim Neidhart would've been a good WWF champ if he would've gotten past his drug problems. Could've had a good program with Bret in 92/93.

Dynamite Kid, Michael Hayes, Tully Blanchard, Arn Anderson, and Rick Steiner would've been great too.

If built right Neidhart could have been a good challenger to Savage in 89... they did split the Foundation at the time with a view to that but Bret was too far over with nothing to do singles wise to allow it... Jim's problem came from his airline lawsuit... yes coulda, shoulda, woulda... but again self destruction comes to the fore... the common thread seems to be that tag teams then had one who "carried" and covered the other one for their indiscretions... Rockers anyone?

 

[darbare]

well you guys pretty much said all the ones I was gonna say, but in todays era I would say Dashing Cody Rhodes...he has been in a tag team for the last 3 years...either Hardcore Holly, Ted DiBiase or Drew McIntyre....Cody has lots of promise in my eyes to be world champ someday..one tag team wrestler gone solo i didnt like was Matt Hardy, and we all know how that turned out..but yea Dynamite Kid, Tully Blanchard are great choices. I wouldnt say Rick Steiner because he was solo in WCW...he was a great midcarder at best to me, but a damn good one...of course I would still love to see Christian win the title in WWE

 

[Dyno Kid]

I'm gonna give a vote for "The Rock" Ole Anderson ! One of the best tag wrestlers ever having taged with guys like Gene Anderson, Arn Anderson, Stan Hansen, and Ivan Koloff to name a few.

He was a great worker and one of the best promo guys in his day and I think he would have made a fantastic champ for at least a short run.

 

[Tougie]

Gonna have to give my vote to Tully Blanchard. Not really a tag specialist but as a member of the Horsemen and Brainbusters (With Arn Anderson in WWF) he could be considered one. Easily one of the top 5 US Champions ever and one of the top heels Jim Crocket Promotions ever saw. Just an all around great wrestler that drew a tremendous amount of heat because honestly he was the Million Dollar Man before Ted Dibiase. He was always flaunting his money.

Maybe he was another one like Dynamite Kid who was so good they didnt need a title, or maybe it was all the backstage politics, or just a case of people being more popular at the time (Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes leading the NWA its not hard to figure out why Tully never got a shot). The most recent comparasion I can make to a current wrestler is William Regal. Both are great technicians and really know how to make people look good. (Only brought that up because Tully's fued with Magnum TA really gave Magnum a chance at the World Title until his car wreck, Regal has been setting up guys in the WWE for years, most recently CM Punk.)

 

[TMStick62aw]

Since I've seen a number of post in which the wrestlers named had won singles gold and that gold not being the World Championship, I'm going to go that rout. I would have like to have seen Owen Hart win a world championship. That guy was gold, he made anyone look good, as a parter and opponent in a tag match and same could be said as a solo wrestler.

 

[Dyno Kid]

Jim Neidhart would've been a good WWF champ if he would've gotten past his drug problems.

I wouldn't agree with that. Jim was never really a good worker and I myself just couldn't see him at the main event world champ level.

While Tully Blanchard was a great wrestler and was in 2 great teams, one with Arn the other with Gino Hernandez, I wouldn't call him a tag team specialist. Having said that he would have made a GREAT world champion and it's a shame it never happened !

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I would have liked to have seen Bulldog get a run with the world title, he certainly had the talent, was super-over and looked the part. For some strange reason this never happened, even after his epic matches with the Hitman. I reckon Davey would have been a fantastic champion.

Cant really think of too many other tag-team wrestlers who should have been pushed as world champion, but werent. Maybe Rick Steiner as some others have said, or Arm Anderson, but apart from those 2 and Bulldog, none really spring to mind.

Dynamite Kid was awesome, but was a physical wreck by the time he became a big star, so he wouldnt have been able to last as a champion.

 

[Dagger Dias]

A tag team wrestler that I would have liked to see win a singles championship is Brian Kendrick. He was the better half of the "London & Kendrick" tag team who held the tag titles for about 330 days. I liked his singles run on Smackdown as "THE Brian Kendrick" and he could have made a great champion because he had what it took both in the ring and on the mic. Unfortunately he messed that up, hopefully he'll get a title or two over in TNA. We'll see how that goes. I would have really enjoyed seeing him get some title reigns during his WWE run though.