Tag Teams Where The Breakout Wrestler Wasn't Who Everybody Thought

Tag Teams Where The Breakout Wrestler Wasn't Who Everybody Thought

April 2, 2018
By Ryan Porzl

Wrestling is like everything else in life in that not everything goes as you expect. After the rise of Bret Hart & Shawn Michaels in the early 90s, people have usually speculated on which member of a team would be the breakout star and which would fade to obscurity. While many cases, promotions and fans have been right on which would go farther, they're not right all the time as there have been teams where one was expected to go the farthest but the partner would end up doing better. We'll take a look at teams where the breakout star wasn't who people thought it would be.

Buff Bagwell and Scott Norton

Vicious & Delicious- Vicious & Delicious consisted of nWo members Buff Bagwell & Scott Norton who both joined the nWo around the same time in late 1996 after both accepted Eric Bischoff's ultimatum of convert their WCW contracts into nWo contracts or be enemies. Though the team was mostly a WCW team, they did team up in New Japan Pro Wrestling in 1997 as both were members of nWo Japan as Norton was the only nWo member to be a full time member of both while Bagwell made trips. Unfortunately, the team never went far as they were mostly in the midcard as were many of the teams due to the World Tag Team Title scene being dominated by The Outsiders & The Steiner Brothers. Out of the two, it appeared as though Bagwell would be the breakout star. Both Bagwell & Norton were both good wrestlers but Bagwell had the better personality (though Norton was great in the badass role), was the more charismatic, and much younger as he is nine years younger than Norton which possibly meant a longer shelf life. By the end of 1997, it seemed like things were going better with Bagwell who main evented Fall Brawl 1997 teaming with Kevin Nash, Syxx, & Konnan as part of Team nWo against The Four Horsemen while then getting a feud with Lex Luger that saw him get a few wins including one at Starrcade 1997 (ironically with assistance from Norton). As for Norton, he did get some opportunities including a match with The Giant at Fall Brawl 1997 but it was clear WCW didn't think he would go far. In addition to that, Norton was the top foreigner of New Japan Pro Wrestling while being a former two time IWGP Tag Team Champion and Super Grade Tag League winner in 1996 with top star Shinya Hashimoto but he hadn't held a title in years by 1998 and seemed like he would be a bridesmaid and never a bride as he got shots of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship but didn't seem like he ever win it.

The team came to end while the fate of both men's career's came to an end on the April 22, 1998 edition of WCW Thunder when they took on Rick Steiner & Lex Luger. During the match, Bagwell would suffer a severe neck injury due to a botched Steiner bulldog which would see him miss over ten months. Not only did Bagwell miss a significant amount of time but he lost a lot of momentum and upon his return, he never made it beyond the midcard. In addition to the injury and lost momentum, Bagwell was also notorious for having a bad attitude backstage which also likely hindered his career. Despite working for WCW for their last two years, Bagwell would only get one WCW Tag Title with Shane Douglas (his fifth overall) and that ended quickly after getting suspended. Despite getting a second chance when he joined the WWF upon WCW being purchased, Bagwell's run quickly crashed and burned thanks to a disastrous match with Booker T on RAW & supposed attitude problems saw him fired after two matches. From there, Bagwell worked a few shows for TNA including their first show where he took part in the Gauntlet for the Gold for the vacant NWA World Heavyweight Championship but it never led to a full time job while also competing for WWA and XWF but neither lasted that long. During this time, Bagwell also suffered from a drug addiction that furthered derailed his career. While Bagwell has since cleaned up and still wrestles as of 2018, he's now a washed up journeyman which seemed unlikely twenty years ago.

As for Norton, he achieved huge success in New Japan Pro Wrestling as won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship two times from 1998-2001 which made him one of the few foreigners to win it. Norton also won a second tag tournament when he teamed with Keiji "The Great Muta" Mutoh to win the 1999 G1 Tag League and also main evented New Japan's January 4th Tokyo Dome show in 1999. He also was runner up in the foreign only 2001 G1 World Tournament. While Norton wasn't pushed after 2002, he still easily achieved more than Bagwell during the three year period of 1998-2001 including winning a World Heavyweight Championship more than once and main evented one of the biggest shows of the year.

Albert, Trish Stratus, and Test

T & A- T & A consisted of Test and Albert who were put together in early 2000 by Trish Stratus who was beginning her legendary hall of fame career. The team was mostly a midcard team who got a few WWF Tag Team Championship shots including in a fatal four way at King of the Ring 2000 but never made it beyond the midcard or ever won the belts. The team lasted less than a year with Albert & Stratus eventually turning on Test in November 2000. Test was clearly looked at as the future breakout star having already had a brief run with the WWF Hardcore Title, was a member of Vince McMahon's Corporation stable, & had a big feud with Shane McMahon including a very good match at Summerslam 1999. On the other hand, Albert had a very successful run in the then WWF developmental territory Power Pro Wrestling as the inaugural Heavyweight Champion and former Young Guns Champion under the name Baldo but struggled in the WWF as he came in and formed a team with Darren Drozdov while briefly being joined by Vic Grimes as Key but it eventually fell apart when Drozdov became a quadriplegic in late 1999 after an in-ring accident and he then had a brief run with the Big Boss Man which didn't work out. Meanwhile, Test had everything over Albert whether it be look, charisma, mic skills, and ring skills with Albert only having a unique look.

Upon the team breaking up, everyone's prediction not only seem to be true but Test would go on to have a great 2001 winning almost every available WWF title as he regained the Hardcore Title a second time while also enjoying reigns with the European & Intercontinental Titles and formed a successful tag team with Booker T as they won both the WWF and WCW Tag Titles. Test also became a member of the WCW/ECW Alliance and had a big match at Survivor Series 2001 defending the Intercontinental Championship against WCW United States Champion Edge in a unification match. However, after a big 2001, Test's stock dropped and he never enjoyed much of a push afterwards as he had failed runs in the Unamericans stable to getting repackaged with a new look and Stacy Kiebler as his manager to feuding and then teaming with Scott Steiner. By 2004, Test became directionless and was then released by the end of the year while out with a neck injury. After recovering, Test spent 2005 working the American independents and in Europe specifically for NWE (Nu Wrestling Evolution) before returning to WWE where he lasted less than a year and competed for the ECW Title at December to Dismember and Royal Rumble 2007 before flunking a wellness test and was released. He then went to TNA in July but was released only a month later after one match and then closed his career in Europe and Japan before passing away from a drug overdose in March 2009 at the age of 33.

Albert struggled originally after the team as he was in failed stables and teams like X-Factor with X-Pac & Justin Credible & The Zoo Crew with Scotty Too Hotty while getting the occasional push briefly getting the Intercontinental Title in the summer of 2001 while having feuds with Rey Mysterio & The Undertaker but nothing worked. After getting released in 2004, Albert began wrestling in Japan as Giant Bernard first for All Japan Pro Wrestling and then New Japan Pro Wrestling where he achieved big success. During his run in New Japan from 2006-2012, Albert was the top foreigner in the promotion getting several shots at the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, won the 2006 New Japan Cup while being the first foreigner to win it and was the only one until 2018 when Zack Sabre Jr. won it, and formed two successful tag teams with Travis Tomko & Karl Anderson where he won the IWGP Tag Team Championship with both and the G1 Tag League with both as he won it in 2007 with Tomko and 2009 with Anderson. The Tag Title run with Anderson would be the most successful in history as it is the longest reign in the history of the IWGP Tag Team Championship at 567 days while also holding the record for most successful title defenses with nine. Along the way, Albert and Anderson went to Pro Wrestling NOAH and had a run with the GHC Tag Team Championships. Eventually, he finished his career with another run in the WWE as Lord Tensai/Tensai where he did get a feud with John Cena and has since become the head trainer in the WWE Performance Center.

Mark Jindrak and Sean O'Haire

Mark Jindrak & Sean O'Haire- Mark Jindrak & Sean O'Haire were graduates from the WCW Power Plant training school who turned pro around 1999 & 2000 and were paired up in 2000 during WCW's final year. Despite a lack of experience, the team was pushed quickly, likely due to WCW wanting new talent, and captured the WCW World Tag Team Championships twice during the fall of 2000 while joining Mike Sanders' Natural Born Thrillers. O'Haire was the one who looked to go the farthest. While both men were great athletes and had good looks, O'Haire was by far the more charismatic and a great athlete being able to pull off swanton bombs despite being 6'6, 270 lbs. While Jindrak was a great athlete in his own right with an excellent vertical leap, he lacked charisma and came off bland.

As is usually the case, people seemed to be right as O'Haire and Jindrak broke up in early 2001 with O'Haire forming another successful team with Natural Born Thrillers member Chuck Palumbo and won a third WCW Tag Title while scoring big Pay-Per-View wins over The Insiders (Kevin Nash & Diamond Dallas Page) and Totally Buffed (Buff Bagwell & Lex Luger). O'Haire would be one half of the last WCW World Tag Team Champions before WWF bought the promotion. O'Haire would also win the 2000 Rookie of the Year award in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter year end awards. Upon going to the WWF, O'Haire's stock would drop as he & Palumbo quickly lost the WCW Tag Titles to The Brothers of Destruction (The Undertaker & Kane) before being sent down to developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling as a member of Kenny Bolin's Bolin Services and in Heartland Wrestling Association where he challenged for the HWA Heavyweight Championship. After working live events during 2002, O'Haire reemerged at the end of the year with a devil's advocate gimmick that had incredible potential and the vignettes hyping him were critically acclaimed while being some of the best in WWE history. Unfortunately, O'Haire did little with the gimmick before being paired with the returning "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and began a feud with Mr. America (Hulk Hogan) & Zach Gowan. Despite being with Piper and getting a count out win over America, it did nothing for O'Haire and upon Piper's firing in June 2003, O'Haire fell down the ladder becoming a tattoo punk while being used as a jobber on B Show Velocity until finally being released in early 2004. After his release, O'Haire made an appearance in New Japan Pro Wrestling losing to Hiroshi Tanahashi and made some appearances in the California based Ultimate Pro Wrestling. In 2006, he lost to Scotty Too Hotty in a dark match but was not picked up and retired from wrestling that year. After retiring, O'Haire attempted a MMA and kickboxing career in PRIDE Fighting Championships & K-1 but didn't find success and later retired in 2008. O'Haire would eventually run a hair salon while battling drug addiction before committing suicide in September 2014 at 43.

Jindrak would struggle for a few years as he wasn't used during WCW's last month in March 2001 and after signing with the WWF, he worked a few shows before being sent down to developmental for Ohio Valley Wrestling and Heartland Wrestling Association where he challenged for the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship with Lance Cade. In the summer of 2003, Jindrak returned to the main roster with plans to replace an injured Batista in Evolution but after a poorly received match with Chris Jericho and Triple H against it, it never happened. Jindrak would then resume teaming with Lance Cade (now Garrison Cade) and got shots at the Tag Team Championship at Armageddon & Wrestlemania XX before the team broke up. After moving to the Smackdown brand, Jindrak would briefly have a Narcissist gimmick before joining Kurt Angle & Luther Reigns in The Honor Society (never actually called that but WWE trademarked it for the stable) but failed to get push and was released by the summer of 2005. After his release, Jindrak went to Japan competing in New Japan and then in HUSTLE where he teamed with Matt Morgan as "Sodom and Gomorrah". By 2006, Jindrak finally hit his stride when he went to Mexico where he's competed as "The Italian Eagle" Marco Corleone and has mostly worked in CMLL (Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre) while having had runs in AAA, IWRG, and Toryumon Mexico. Jindrak has achieved big success as he won Toryumon Mexico's Suzuki Cup two years in a row in 2007 & 2008 with Kensuke Sasaki & Ultimo Dragon in 2007 and Alex Koslov & Ultimo Dragon in 2008 while also winning IWRG's Copa Higher Power in 2006. He achieved his biggest success in CMLL winning the Copa CMLL tournament in 2014 with Rush, the Cuadrangular de Parejas in 2016 with KUSHIDA, the CMLL World Trios Championship with Rush & Maximo, & in 2017, won the vacant CMLL World Heavyweight Championship.

Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards

The American Wolves/The Wolves- The American Wolves consisted of Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards in 2008 as both were members of "Sweet n' Sour" Larry Sweeney's Sweet n' Sour Inc. and began teaming fulltime by late 2008 in Ring of Honor along with other promotions on the side. The Wolves proved successful as they gelled as a team and became popular with the fans while enjoying two reigns with the ROH World Tag Team Titles. In early 2014, they went to TNA competing as "The Wolves" where they quickly became the promotion's top tag team from 2014-2016 as they captured TNA World Tag Team Championship a record five times (a record tied with Beer Money Inc.). Richards was the one people expected to be the breakout star as he seemed to be destined for the main event in ROH following the departures of Bryan Danielson (Daniel Bryan) & Nigel McGuinness in 2009, Danielson giving his seal of approval, and the fans chanting "next world champ". Their ROH runs were somewhat equal as both became World Champion but while Richards had the much longer run, Edwards beat him to it and was also the first ROH World Television Champion which made him the first ROH Triple Crown Winner.

The split with The Wolves occurred when Richards suffered a torn ACL in early 2016 and missed most of the year. Upon returning, Richards turned on Edwards and it eventually led to a couples feud between Richards & Angelina Love vs. Edwards & Alicia Edwards which ended at Slammiversary 2017 in a Full Metal Mayhem (TLC) match. After that, Richards left Impact due to his aspirations to be a doctor and trying to focus on his studies while taking indy bookings on the side. However, Richards hasn't competed much since then as he suffered a knee injury in August 2017 and was out for the rest of the year. Richards has since announced he plans to focus on his studies for 2018 and will not wrestle.

As for Edwards, he shined as a singles wrestler enjoying two runs with the Impact X Division Championship during the summer of 2016 and eventually moved up to the main event where he upset Bobby Lashley to win the Impact World Heavyweight Championship in October. After the feud with Richards ended, Edwards returned to Pro Wrestling NOAH in Japan which started a relationship with Impact and in August 2017, made history by defeating Katsuhiko Nakajima to win the GHC Heavyweight Championship thus becoming the first foreigner to accomplish this feat. He held the title for four months defending it against legend Naomichi Marufuji and El Hijo del Fantasma with the latter being in Impact and the first time the belt was defending in the country of Canada.

Justin Credible and Lance Storm

The Impact Players- Consisting of Justin Credible and Lance Storm, The Impact Players were one of ECW's top teams from 1999-2000. The team originally formed to feud with the face of ECW "The Franchise" Shane Douglas after Douglas wouldn't pass the torch or The Franchise moniker to either guy after teasing retirement and wanted to give it to Tommy Dreamer. The team feuded with the likes of Douglas, Dreamer, Raven, Mike Awesome, Masato Tanaka, and The Sandman upon his return in late 1999 while holding the ECW World Tag Team Titles twice. From the get-go, it seemed obvious that Credible would become the breakout star who would achieve more success. While Storm was the better wrestler, Credible was good in the ring while being more charismatic and a better talker. Credible had also been a pet project of ECW owner and booker Paul Heyman who clearly saw potential in him and was determined to push him as a top star with Credible scoring multiple wins over The Great Sasuke while feuding with ECW Legends like Mikey Whipwreck, Tommy Dreamer, The Sandman, & Shane Douglas and was credited with running Sandman & Douglas out of ECW and took both The Sandman's signature singapore cane & "Hardcore Icon" nickname for his own. Storm was a talented wrestler who got a run with the World Tag Team Championship with Chris Candido and was briefly a member of top stable The Triple Threat while occasionally getting title shots at the World Heavyweight & World Television Titles but that was it. By April 2000, the prediction appeared to be true as Credible won the ECW World Title in an impromptu match against Tommy Dreamer while Storm left for WCW shortly there after.

Ultimately, Credible enjoyed a five month run with the ECW World Title and frequently main evented pay-per-views until ECW went under in early 2001. Upon ECW's closure, Credible worked for the WWF/E from 2001-2003 but never caught on as he appeared in the failed X-Factor stable and the WCW/ECW Alliance. Though he got eight reigns with the Hardcore Title, the belt meant nothing thanks to the 24/7 rule seeing rapid fire title switches and Credible served as a jobber. After his WWE release, he never came close to his past ECW success outside of appearances in XPW where he got a few title shots, competed in the independent 3PW where he held the 3PW Heavyweight Title, and briefly competed in All Japan Pro Wrestling where he teamed with Jamal (Umaga) and made it to the finals of the 2003 World's Strongest Tag Determination League. Other than that, Credible was a directionless journeyman as he appeared on and off for TNA where he renewed his ECW feud with Jerry Lynn and in ROH as a member of The Carnage Crew but wasn't pushed or got full time employment. He eventually returned to the WWE when they relaunched ECW only to get released after a couple of matches. Since then, Credible continues to work the indies where he's won many titles but is a far cry from the guy who was a former ECW World Champion. Credible's shortcomings could also be blamed on drug addictions as he struggled with drugs for years which likely is the biggest reason he never found full time employment in a national promotion or a big push and by his mid 30s, he came off washed up.

As for Storm, he found huge success in WCW becoming one of their top stars during it's final year becoming a three time United States Champion, a Hardcore Champion, and a Cruiserweight Champion while holding all three belts at the same time. Storm was also an occasional challenger for the WCW World Title against Booker T, was the leader of Team Canada, and formed a solid team with Mike Awesome that probably could've been a top team had it not been for WCW getting bought. Once WCW was bought by WWF, Storm found good success as he made history becoming the first WCW wrestler to invade the WWF in May 2001 and later got a run with the WWF Intercontinental Title. After the WCW/ECW invasion ended, Storm found success as a tag team wrestler forming successful teams with Christian, William Regal, and Val Venis which earned him four Tag Team Championships. Despite retiring in 2005, Storm has come out of retirement many times during which he earned several shots at the ROH World Title and has become a successful trainer having trained or co-trained the likes of Tyler Breeze, Laurel Van Ness, & Taya Valkyrie.

James Storm and Chris Harris

America's Most Wanted- Consisting of up and comers "Wildcat" Chris Harris & "Tennessee Cowboy" James Storm, AMW was put together during the first shows of Impact Wrestling (then NWA-TNA) and would become the promotions top tag team from 2002-2006 where they held the NWA World Tag Team Championship six times and won the TNA Anarchy Asylum Tag Team Tournament in 2003 while holding other titles in other promotions including NWA Shockwave and World Wrestling Council. The team also had some of Impact's biggest tag team rivalries with the likes of The Disciples of the New Church, Team Canada, & The Naturals while having a legendary feud with Triple X which was one of wrestling's greatest tag team rivalries. Once the team broke up in 2006, Harris seemed to be the one most thought would be the breakout star. Both were great talents but Harris seemed to have the most potential.

After the team broke up, Harris seemed destined for the main event was groomed for it during the spring and summer of 2007 as he competed in the King of the Mountain match for the vacant TNA World Heavyweight Championship at Slammiversary 2007 and feuded with Christian Cage. However, a feud with Black Reign failed to catch on and during this period, Harris began to lose steam. It was also during this period where TNA seemed to realize that while Harris was a very good wrestler with a good look, he lacked charisma, mic skills, and struggled to connect with the fans. By the end of 2007, Harris' push ended and he would be released by January 2008. Harris' career continued to get worse as he quickly signed with the WWE and debuted that summer as Branden Walker but the run was a disaster as Harris came in overweight & after a few poor performances, he was quickly released less than a month after he debuted. Worst of all, Harris' run was such a joke that it became well known thanks to memes mocking his brief run and him using a "knock knock" joke against Armando Alejandro Estrada. Since then, Harris' national exposure ended and he's largely been stuck working indy promotions over the decade. In 2011, Harris briefly returned to TNA for two matches against Beer Money Inc. with one being on the May 2011 Pay-Per-View Sacrifice. Rumors said TNA were considering an AMW reunion since Bobby Roode was being planned for a singles push but after failing to catch on at Sacrifice and not putting on an excellent performance, TNA cancelled the plans and Harris wouldn't be used after that.

Storm would originally be used as a midcarder during 2006-2008 after the feud with Harris where he had solid feuds with Eric Young over his joke Beer Drinking Championship belt & with Rhino. During this time period, it became clear that Storm, not Harris, was the break out star as he displayed the charisma and mic skills that Harris lacked. He also incorporated beer drinking into his act becoming the latest to adapt a beer drinking blue collar asskicker after The Crusher, The Sandman, & "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and fans dug his beer drinking southern good ol' boy persona. From 2008-2011, Storm formed another legendary tag team with Bobby Roode called Beer Money Inc. Despite largely forming due to TNA not doing much with either guy as singles wrestlers, the two almost immediately gelled both in the ring and the mic becoming the next top TNA tag team during which time they held the TNA World Tag Team Championships four times while engaging in great feuds with Team 3D, LAX, & The Motor City Machine Guns and then won a record fifth (tying with The Wolves who they ironically beat for the titles) in 2016. Storm would also surprise many by briefly winning the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in October 2011 from Kurt Angle in a squash match. The move was even more surprising since Roode was the one considered the breakout of Beer Money but came up short before Storm's win in the main event of Bound For Glory 2011. Since then, Storm has enjoyed two more runs with the World Tag Team Championships with Gunner & Abyss while also holding the King of the Mountain Championship and The Joker's Wild event in 2013. Storm also main evented the promotion's biggest event of the year Bound for Glory in 2014. Since leaving Impact in 2017, Storm has worked the indies and internationally including for the Scottish based ICW (Insane Championship Wrestling) where he challenged for the promotion's world heavyweight championship.

Yuji Nagata and Manabu Nakanishi

Manabu Nakanishi & Yuji Nagata- Manabu Nakanishi & Yuji Nagata were decorated and successful amateur wrestlers before training in the New Japan Dojo and both turning pro in 1992. They largely teamed on and off over the last two decades but their most successful run was from 1999-2000 where they held the IWGP Tag Team Championship for nearly a full year while also being in stables such as Fighting Club G-EGGS with Yutaka Yoshie, former UFC fighter Brian Johnston, & Masakazu Fukuda & in Team JAPAN with Kendo Kashin & Kazuyuki Fujita. The team also reteamed in 2015 as Maybach Don (Nakanishi) and Maybach Blue Justice (Nagata) to win Pro Wrestling NOAH's Arukas Cup Six Man Tag Team Tournament with Maybach Taniguchi. Even before the team formed, it looked as though Nakanishi would be the more successful of the two. Prior to the team, Nakanishi experienced success as he won the Young Lions Cup in 1995 with New Japan picking him over Nagata in the finals while Nagata also came up short in 1996. Nakanishi also held a championship as he held the IWGP Tag Team Championship in 1997 with Satoshi Kojima as The Bull Powers. A month after the team formed, Nakanishi then won the 1999 G1 Climax defeating IWGP Heavyweight Champion Keiji "The Great Muta" Mutoh in the finals which led to a title match that October at The Tokyo Dome.

Despite Nakanishi's success and potential, New Japan ultimately lost interest in him after the losing the tag team titles in July 2000. Over the next few years, Nakanishi would not only be shut out of the IWGP Title picture but he largely spent years wasted in the midcard with no direction. Nakanishi did win tournaments during this time winning the Triathlon Survivor Tournament in 2002 with Yoshie & Osamu Nishimura and Naeba Cup Tag Team Tournament in 2003 with Heat but that would be it for years and teams with Yoshie & Nishimura would also not wield success. By 2006, Nakanishi started to get some momentum as he formed the team "Wild Child" where he got runs with the NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship from Zero1, the IWGP Tag Team Championship, and the IWGP Interim Tag Team Championship. After a few more years in the midcard, Nakanishi finally got his long deserved IWGP Heavyweight Championship in May 2009 but the reign was brief with Nakanishi dropping it back to Hiroshi Tanahashi with the title reign coming off as one of those "thank you for everything you've done" type reigns. Since 2011, Nakanishi suffered a neck injury and fell down the ladder ever since with his only title reign in recent years being a run with the NEVER Six Man Tag Team Titles with Tanahashi & Ryusuke Taguchi all the while not having received many title shots since 2011.

After the title loss, Nagata would quickly shoot up the ladder as he formed another team with Takashi Iizuka to win the 2000 G1 Tag League and then the 2001 G1 Climax (also defeating Mutoh in the finals). In 2002, Nagata main evented a January 4th Tokyo Dome show taking on Jun Akiyama for the GHC Heavyweight Championship at Wrestling World 2002 and then won his first IWGP Heavyweight Championship that April. Nagata would hold the title for 392 days and make a then record of 10 successful title defenses. After the title loss, Nagata went to the midcard for a couple of years but eventually bounced back in 2007 winning his first New Japan Cup and his second IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Nagata continued enjoying success going into the 2010s as he formed the stable Blue Justice with Wataru Inoue, Super Strong Machine, & Mitsuhide Hirasawa (Captain New Japan/BONE SOLDIER) where he won the the 2010 G1 Tag League and a second IWGP Tag Title both with Inoue. Nagata was also win a second New Japan Cup in 2011 and the NEVER Openweight Championship in 2016. Outside of New Japan, Nagata has achieved huge success in All Japan Pro Wrestling, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and Pro Wrestling ZERO1. In ZERO1, Nagata held the World Heavyweight Championship. In NOAH, Nagata held the GHC Heavyweight Championship, the GHC Tag Team Championship with Tanahashi, and the Global League in 2013. In All Japan, he's held the All Asia Tag Team Championship with Akiyama, the World Tag Team Championship with Kashin, and the Champion Carnival in 2011. As of 2018, Nagata is the only wrestler to have won the three top singles tournaments in Japan in the G1 Climax, the Champion Carnival, & the Global League.