Former NXT ace Johnny Gargano recently shared his thoughts on two of AEW’s biggest tag teams.
FTR have arguably become AEW’s most popular double act since they turned face earlier this year. Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler have won over crowds with their hard-grafting wrestling style and no-nonsense promos.
The only team that consistently give them a run for their money are AEW founding fathers The Young Bucks. For Johnny Gargano, both teams represent the pinnacle of tag team wrestling in the modern era.
In NXT and on the WWE main roster, FTR were known as The Revival. Their feud with Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa, collectively known as DIY, is considered one of the greatest in NXT history and was a key part of the show throughout the second half of 2016 and early 2017.
During a recent interview on Good Karma Wrestling, Johnny Gargano discussed both his on-screen feud with FTR and his high opinion of both them and the Bucks as teams:
“It’s awesome to see, man, and it’s something that I could’ve told you a long, long time ago. FTR, Revival, whatever you want to call them, they’ve been one of the best tag teams for a very, very, very, very, very long time, and me and Tommaso were lucky enough to have that series with them where we did Takeover: Brooklyn and Takeover: Toronto and have those tag team matches with those two guys because, for my money, they are the best tag team in the world currently.
And I always, I said for a very, very, long time and I still do believe this, FTR and Young Bucks are just once in a generation tag teams.” [h/t Wrestling Inc.]
While Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa infamously split in 2017, Harwood and Wheeler endured to remain a dominant force in the wrestling world.
After leaving the promotion in 2020, FTR found their way to AEW. Following years of anticipation, fans finally got the FTR vs. The Young Bucks feud both teams had been hinting at online for years.
As babyfaces in 2022, FTR have their hands on every bit of tag team gold AEW has to offer except for the AEW Tag Team Championships themselves.
While many assumed a rubber match with The Young Bucks was on the cards, the Cucamonga duo shockingly lost AEW’s premier tag straps to Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland this week on Dynamite.
Johnny Gargano, meanwhile, has been MIA since December 2021 when he let his WWE contract expire so he could spend time with his wife Candice LeRae and their newborn son.
H/t to Wrestling Inc for the transcription.