10 WWE Tag-Teams That United A Face And Heel
7. Pete Dunne And Roderick Strong
A heart-warming team that ended in heartache.
The third instalment of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic in NXT once again gave us some phenomenal tag team wrestling and some brilliantly unique teams. One of these teams was the combination of Roderick Strong and the UK Champion, Pete Dunne.
The face Strong and heel Dunne had previously fought over the UK title (don’t ask me why Strong, who was born in Wisconsin, was allowed to challenge for the United Kingdom Championship), but teamed up to defeat Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch and then Sanity to advance to the final.
After the first final between Strong and Dunne and The Authors of Pain was interrupted by The Undisputed Era, all three teams fought at NXT TakeOver: New Orleans for both the NXT Tag Team Championships and Tag Team Classic trophy.
The match ended in stunning fashion, when Roddy betrayed Pete to align himself with The Era, turning heel on his now-face partner. The ultimate poetic end and one of the best-told stories in NXT in recent years.
This heel turn rejuvenated Strong’s career and pushed him into a prominent position on the card as part of NXT’s hottest faction. As for Dunne, his character was also in need of an overhaul and now the UK Champ is one of WWE’s most popular babyfaces, whilst retaining his badass heel tendencies.