He who hesitates in war is he who has lost. Unfortunately for Aleister Black & Ricochet, that lesson was learned in the final minutes of a full-throttle tag team showdown against NXT’s barbarous throne, The War Raiders.
After overcoming every conceivable combination in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, including a well-oiled #DIY reunion, Black & Ricochet brought the storm to the much-grizzled Hanson & Rowe. But, in the midst of their fast-paced, both sides shared nothing but respect. A fist bump was shared between Rowe and Black, as they started the bout with excellent mat-wrestling, followed by a stare down between all four Superstars that presented quite the stalemate. For all the fire thrown by the swift and fierce challengers, the champions’ unrelenting offense helped repress extensive dents in their armor.
In the early goings, as Black torpedoed Rowe with blistering strikes around the ring, the modern-day Viking responded with a punishing knee strike to the jaw. The action intensified once Hanson tagged in, as he rammed both challengers into the turnbuckle like a battering ram. The crowd went into a tizzy after Ricochet flung the super heavyweight across the canvas with an astounding fallaway slam.
From there, the 82nd airborne would’ve had a hard time controlling the action. After War Raiders sought to pin Ricochet following a series of tandem offense, The Dutch Destroyer thwarted the attack with a diving kick, which later culminated with the action spilling out of the ring and from there welcomed a flying senton by Hanson that squashed everyone on the outside.
Black & Ricochet appeared to be moments away from victory when The Striking Man from Amsterdam struck Rowe with a Black Mass that was then followed by a 630 Splash from The One and Only. Hanson prevented the three-count, leading to the mighty duo tossing Black out of the ring and planting Ricochet into the canvas with the Fallout to claim victory.
The valiant effort by Black & Ricochet resulted in a mutual show of respect, as Hanson & Rowe hugged their challengers and gave them a bow. As the fast-and-furious tandem prepare to go for the SmackDown Tag Team Titles at WrestleMania, they delivered one heck of a pre-game. Still, in the fight for the throne, Hanson & Rowe retained the crown to maintain their rule over the black-and-gold brand's Tag Team division.