Team Taz, alternately called Team FTW, was an American professional wrestling stable signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). They were named after Taz, the leader and manager of the group.
| Team Taz | |
|---|---|
 Team Taz logo | |
| Stable | |
| Members | See below |
| Name(s) | Team Taz Team FTW |
| Debut | July 23, 2020 |
| Disbanded | August 3, 2022 |
| Years active | 2020–2022 |
History
editOn the July 21, 2020 episode of AEW Dark, Ricky Starks aligned himself with Brian Cage, who was accompanied by Taz, by attacking Darby Allin.[1] They officially formed a team which was known as "Team Taz". Team Taz started to feud with Allin and Cody Rhodes. On the November 18 episode of Dynamite, Allin and Rhodes were being attacked by Team Taz, when Will Hobbs came to the ring with a chair and it looked like Hobbs was about to attack Team Taz. However, Hobbs attacked Rhodes and aligned himself with Team Taz.[2] On the November 26 episode of Dynamite, Will Hobbs' name was changed to Powerhouse Hobbs.[3] On the December 16 episode of Dynamite, Hook (Taz's real life son Tyler Senerchia) was introduced as the newest member of Team Taz after it had been revealed Hook had been training to be a wrestler with Rhodes. On the same episode, Team Taz also started to feud with Sting, who came out to aid Rhodes and Allin. On the December 24 episode of Dynamite, Team Taz confronted Sting and were about to attack him, then the lights went off and Allin appeared in the ring along with Sting. On the Brodie Lee Celebration of Life episode of Dynamite on December 30, Starks, Hobbs, and Cage lost their match to Rhodes, Orange Cassidy and Preston "10" Vance. When the match was over, Team Taz attacked Cody, Cassidy, and Vance. Then lights went off and Allin looked at Team Taz, the lights again went off for the second time but this time Sting appeared with Allin.
A month later on the January 21, 2021 episode of Dynamite, it was announced that Ricky Starks and Brian Cage would face Darby Allin and Sting in a street fight at Revolution.[4] At the event, Team Taz lost to Sting and Darby.[5] 10 days later at St. Patrick's Day Slam, Team Taz came out and confronted Sting and Allin, only for Cage to take a microphone from Taz. He teased a face turn by saying that he respected Sting and that Sting was still "The Icon", much to the dismay of Team Taz. Over the next few months, tension was teased in the group between Ricky Starks and Brian Cage. During this, Powerhouse Hobbs also started a feud with the debuting Christian Cage after the group attempted to recruit Cage. On the April 21 episode of Dynamite, Starks failed to beat the number one ranked wrestler in AEW, "Hangman" Adam Page. During the match, Starks suffered a neck fracture after a botched reversal to a German suplex.[6] Afterwards, the rest of Team Taz attacked Page. Also in the same night, Hobbs lost to Christian Cage. The following week, Brian Cage defeated Adam Page. On July 14 at Night 1 of Fyter Fest, Cage lost the FTW World Championship to Ricky Starks after being hit in the head with the title by Hobbs, effectively being kicked out of Team Taz.[7]
On November 24, Dante Martin joined the group after Taz offered him a spot. However, on December 8, Martin eliminated Ricky Starks from the Dynamite Diamond Dozen Battle Royal which effectively removed Martin from the group. It was revealed that Dante joined the group as part of a scheme he created with Lio Rush, his tag team partner at the time.[8][9]
Throughout the first half of 2022, Starks and Hobbs would continue to team together and chase the AEW World Tag Team Championship, while Hook would break out as a singles wrestler and eventually turn face. On the July 20 episode of Dynamite, Starks issued an open challenger for the FTW Championship, which was answered by Danhausen. At Fight for the Fallen on July 27, Starks issued an open challenge immediately after defeating Danhausen, which was answered by Hook, who defeated Starks for the title. After a post-match promo by Starks, Powerhouse Hobbs attacked him, turning Starks face, and leaving the future of the group in doubt. The following week on the August 3 episode of Dynamite, Taz announced that he was officially disbanding Team Taz.
Members
edit| Member | Joined | Left | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taz | L* | July 23, 2020 | August 3, 2022 |
| Brian Cage | * | July 23, 2020 | July 14, 2021 |
| Ricky Starks | * | July 23, 2020 | August 3, 2022 |
| Powerhouse Hobbs | November 19, 2020 | July 27, 2022 | |
| Hook | December 16, 2020 | August 3, 2022 | |
| Dante Martin | November 24, 2021 | December 8, 2021 | |
Timeline
editChampionships and accomplishments
edit- All Elite Wrestling
- FTW Championship (3 times) – Cage (1),[10] Starks (1),[11] Hook (1)
- Casino Ladder Match (2020) – Cage[12]
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Best Non-Wrestler (2020) – Taz[13]
References
edit- ^ Gallagher, Marilee (July 22, 2020). "Ricky Starks Aligns with Brian Cage and Taz on AEW DARK". Last Word on Pro Wrestling. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
- ^ "Will Hobbs Turns Heel, Joins Team Taz". Wrestling Inc. November 18, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
- ^ "WATCH: Taz Chokes Out Cody Rhodes After a Heated Segment on AEW Dynamite". EssentiallySports. November 26, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
- ^ "Sting Set To Compete At AEW Revolution, Teams With Darby Allin Against Team Taz | Fightful News". www.fightful.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "411MANIA". Sting & Darby Allin Beat Team Taz at AEW Revolution (Highlights). Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "AEW: Ricky Starks suffers neck injury". Daily DDT. May 11, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ Colin Tessier (July 14, 2021). "Team Taz Betrays Brian Cage, Ricky Starks Wins FTW Championship At AEW Dynamite: Fyter Fest Night 1". WrestleZone.com. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
- ^ Wilkins, Rob (November 24, 2021). "AEW Dynamite Results For 11/24/21 Bryan Danielson vs. Colt Cabana, CM Punk vs. QT Marshall, and more". Fightful. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
- ^ Wilkins, Rob (December 8, 2021). "AEW Dynamite Results For 12/8/21 The Young Bucks vs. Orange Cassidy and Rocky Romero and much more". Fightful. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
- ^ Defelice, Robert (July 8, 2020). "AEW Fyter Fest 2020 Night 2 (7/8/20) Results". Mandatory.com. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
- ^ Barnett, Jake (July 14, 2021). "7/14 AEW Dynamite results: Barnett's live review of Fyter Fest Night One with Ethan Page vs. Darby Allin in a Coffin Match, Jon Moxley vs. Karl Anderson for the IWGP U.S. Title, Brian Cage vs. Ricky Starks for the FTW Title, Matt Hardy vs. Christian". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "AEW Double or Nothing 2020". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
- ^ Meltzer, Dave (February 26, 2021). "March 1, 2021, Wrestling Observer Newsletter 2020 awards issue, Elimination Chamber". Figure Four Online. Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
External links
edit- Team Taz's profile at Cagematch.net