Roman Reigns & 9 Reigning World Champions Who Have Competed For A Tag Team Championship On PPV
Traditionally, World Championship matches are the main event on pay-per-views. They are usually the biggest matches on the card which garners the most interest. However, there have been several instances when a World Champion in WWE or another wrestling promotion has not defended their championship on a pay-per-view. Sometimes, some World Champions have been featured in a high-stakes Tag Team Championship match on pay-per-view.
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Some World Champions have pulled double duty on pay-per-views as they have held a World Championship but have also defended or challenged for a Tag Team Championship. It's not uncommon for a World Champion to be involved in a Tag Team Championship match on pay-per-view, but it creates compelling television when it happens as it elevates the Tag Team Championship.
10 Kurt Angle - Victory Road 2007 & Hard Justice 2007
There was a Winner Takes all match at Victory Road 2007 as Kurt Angle's TNA World Heavyweight Championship and Samoa Joe's TNA X Division Championships were on the line. Whilst their titles were in jeopardy, they challenged Team 3D for the TNA World Tag Team Championship.
Angle and Joe managed to retain their respective singles titles, and they beat Team 3D for the TNA World Tag Team Championship. A month later, Angle gained control of all of the major male championships in TNA as he defeated Joe at Hard Justice 2007.
9 Kane - Judgment Day 2008
Kane defeated Chavo Guerrero in 11 seconds to win the ECW Championship at WrestleMania 24 and he successfully defended the title in a rematch at Backlash 2008. However, the Big Red Machine teamed up with Mr. Money in the Bank, CM Punk at Judgment Day 2008 and they were gunning for The Miz and John Morrison's WWE Tag Team Championship.
It's easy to forget that this match happened considering Kane and Punk weren't a tag team for long. Nevertheless, it wasn't a surprise that Miz and Morrison retained the WWE Tag Team Championship in a decent bout.
8 Becky Lynch - TLC 2019
Becky Lynch was the reigning Raw Women's Champion by the time TLC 2019 rolled around and she teamed up with her former rival Charlotte Flair. The former best friends were looking to win the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship for the first time but they had their hands full in a TLC match against the Kabuki Warriors.
It was the second year in succession that Lynch, Charlotte, and Asuka were involved in a TLC match together. Their match lasted 26 minutes with Lynch and Charlotte failing to take home the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship.
7 Seth Rollins - Clash Of Champions 2019
Seth Rollins was in store for a long night at Clash of Champions 2019 as he had two matches in one night. Rollins was the reigning Universal Champion and he was the co-holder of the Raw Tag Team Championship alongside Braun Strowman.
The Architect and Strowman dropped the Raw Tag Team Championship to Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode. Furthermore, in the main event, Rollins ensured that he'd leave the event with at least one championship as he retained the Universal Championship against Strowman.
6 Asuka - TLC 2020 & Royal Rumble 2021
Asuka's Raw Women's Championship was not at stake at TLC 2020 but she was looking to add some more gold to her collection when she and a mystery partner challenged Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship. Asuka's former rival and Charlotte Flair, returned to WWE and she sided with the Empress of Tomorrow.
Asuka and Charlotte got the job done by becoming WWE Tag Team Champions with Charlotte completing her set as a Grand Slam Champion. A month later, Asuka was once again involved in a WWE Tag Team Championship match on pay-per-view at the 2021 Royal Rumble kickoff show, but she came up short with Jax and Baszler recapturing the gold.
5 Sasha Banks - Elimination Chamber 2021 & Fastlane 2021
Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair had a mouthwatering SmackDown Women's Championship match in the main event of night one of WrestleMania 37 on the horizon. However, that didn't stop the Boss and the EST of WWE teaming up a couple of times in an attempt to dethrone Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship.
They failed to take the titles away from them at Elimination Chamber 2021 and they had a rematch at Fastlane 2021. The result remained the same with Jaz and Baszler retaining the gold, but the SmackDown Women's Champion Banks and Belair could not co-exist with the pair bickering after the match.
4 Steve Austin - Fully Loaded 1998 & Backlash 2001
Steve Austin was the biggest star in the Attitude Era, but occasionally the Texas Rattlesnake was involved in tag team competition. Austin held the WWE Championship and he was set to defend the title against The Undertaker at SummerSlam 1998. However, the pair challenged Kane and Mankind for the WWE World Tag Team Championship at Fully Loaded: In Your House.
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Austin and Undertaker won the titles and held the gold for a couple of weeks. Three years later, Austin and Triple H were the WWE and Intercontinental Champions respectively, and they challenged Kane and The Undertaker for the WWE Tag Team Championship with their singles championship at stake at Backlash 2001. Austin and Triple H triumphed with Triple H becoming a Grand Slam Champion in the process.
3 Bayley - Backlash 2020 & Payback 2020
Bayley is the longest-reigning SmackDown Women's Champion in WWE history but she was a double champion in 2020 as she became a two-time WWE Women's Tag Team Champion with Sasha Banks. At Backlash, Bayley and Banks successfully retained their titles against former champions Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross and the Ilconics.
The partnership between Bayley and the Boss reached its breaking point at Payback as Bayley and Banks dropped the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship to Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. Bayley attacked Banks on the following episode of SmackDown signaling the end of their partnership.
2 Diesel - In Your House: Triple Header 1995
The stakes were high in the main event at In Your House: Triple Header with all of the male major championships up for grabs. The WWE Champion Diesel and the Intercontinental Champion Shawn Michaels faced off with Yokozuna and The Britsh Bulldog, who was stepping in for his brother-in-law Owen Hart for the WWE Tag Team Championship.
Diesel and Michaels got the job done to become two-time WWE World Tag Team Champions with Owen Hart returning in the later stages of the match. However, their joy was short-lived as they were stripped of the titles, one night later on Raw.
1 Roman Reigns - Night Of Champions 2023
Roman Reigns celebrated 1,000 days as Universal Champion at Night of Champions 2023. However, the Tribal Chief didn't defend the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, he teamed up with his cousin Solo Sikoa and they challenged Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship in a bid to bring the titles back to the Bloodline.
It was a slight surprise that Reigns wasn't going to be in an Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match but it allowed him to finish off his feud with Owens and Zayn. In a shocking turn of events, the Bloodline finally imploded with the Usos betraying Reigns which allowed Owens and Zayn to retain their titles.
