WWE Tag Team Champions Team Hell No have enjoyed one of the best — and not to mention, most interesting — title reigns in WWE history. In the course of their eight-month run as champions, Kane & Daniel Bryan have gone from being two opposing forces destined to clash at every turn, to two opposing forces (somehow) destined to work as a cohesive and efficient tag team unit.
To the shock of … well, pretty much everyone, we’d venture … Kane & Bryan found a way to harness all the negative feelings that plagued their early days as a team and developed into one of the most impressive and longest-reigning title-holding pairs of all time by unleashing their fury on the competition. But that reign becomes even more impressive when measured against those of other great tag duos. In the case of Bryan & Kane, the list of teams they’ve surpassed in terms of title reign length is staggeringly impressive.
This weekend, as they head into Extreme Rules to face off against The Shield’s Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins, Team Hell No will overtake Money Inc., while The British Bulldog & Owen Hart are next on the list.
In honor of that achievement, WWE.com takes a look at five other popular tag teams surpassed by Team Hell No on that illustrious list.
We kick off our short list with a team close to the (black, cold) heart of The Devil’s Favorite Demon himself.
Individually, they are two of the most terrifying grapplers of all time, but when horrifying siblings The Undertaker & Kane united on a number of occasions to form The Brothers of Destruction, nobody was safe. Enjoying three separate reigns as tag team champions, the destructive duo has gone down as one of the greatest of all time … but their longest reign (29 days) pales in comparison to Kane’s teaming with Daniel Bryan.
With a classic 209-day reign as World Tag Team Champions, the legendary Hart Foundation has earned their place among the greatest duos of all time. Bret “Hit Man” Hart & Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart did the seemingly impossible, making pink look cool — especially when it was paired with (championship) gold.
Arguably the greatest one-two punch of technician and powerhouse in wrestling history, the brothers-in-law were perfect complements for one another as Bret’s skill on the canvas blended beautifully by the sheer intimidation factor offered by “The Anvil.”
In fact, stylistically at least, Team Hell No more evenly matches up against The Hart Foundation than any other duo on this list.
One of the most beloved tag teams of all time, The New Age Outlaws were staples of The Attitude Era, providing the WWE Universe with some of the most memorable moments from a time when memorable moments happened on a weekly basis. Together, “Road Dogg” Jesse James & Billy Gunn pieced together six different title reigns, and all but one of those lasted for more than 100 days, with their longest clocking in at an impressive 125 days.
Whether inside the ring or out, from Road Dogg’s incomparable intro on the mic to the pair’s unique in-ring style, The New Age Outlaws put the “entertainment” in sports-entertainment, gluing fans to the television in a fashion similar to the new-classic antics of Team Hell No.
Remembered for being one of the most extreme tag teams in WWE history, The Dudleys put their bodies on the line in some of the most unforgettable matches of their generation. Bubba Ray & D-Von may have hailed from Dudleyville, but they felt right at home in Tables, Ladders & Chairs Matches, carving out their place in wrestling history after a series of instant-classic bouts against the likes of Edge & Christian and The Hardys.
And yes, they might be among the most decorated tag teams of all time, but The Dudley’s longest reign — 84 days — still falls well short of Team Hell No’s run with the title gold.
What do you get when you put together two best friends with lifelong dreams of becoming WWE Superstars? A duo that reeked of awesomeness, that’s what.
Through insane TLC Matches, seven separate WWE Tag Team Title reigns and countless memorable (and hilarious) interviews backstage, Edge & Christian helped to define the most popular era in WWE history, revolutionized tag team wrestling and endeared themselves to a new generation of the WWE Universe.
Sure, all of the above contributed to their being ranked as the greatest tag team in WWE history by WWE.com, but even Edge & Christian can’t match the run currently being put together by Team Hell No.