Why WWE legend advised Vince McMahon not to break up his tag team
Bully Ray, formerly known as Bubba Ray Dudley in WWE, once advised Vince McMahon not to separate him from D-Von Dudley.
In March 2002, The Dudley Boyz broke up in the WWE Draft Lottery when Bubba moved to RAW and D-Von became exclusive to SmackDown. As one of the company's top tag teams at the time, Bully Ray raised concerns that his boss had made a mistake.
Speaking on Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions show, the 50-year-old recalled how he told McMahon that nobody wanted to see him and D-Von by themselves:
“When he came up to me and D-Von and said, ‘I’m splitting you guys up in the draft,’ I said, ‘Vince, we don’t think that’s a good idea,'" Bully Ray recalled. "‘Why?’ I said, ‘With all due respect to The Road Warriors, nobody wanted to see Hawk and Animal wrestle by themselves.’”
August 26 1991 Road warriors WWE tag team champs https://t.co/rPi1mOOc4q
As Bully Ray referenced, Hawk and Animal cemented their status as one of the greatest tag teams of all time in the 1980s and 1990s. The two men almost always performed as a duo, especially on television, and rarely featured in singles competition.
Bully Ray thought WWE fans wanted The Dudley Boyz to stay together
"I think what me and @TestifyDVon are most proud of is that we are the FIRST original #ECW act to be inducted into the #WWEHOF! " @bullyray5150
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A long-time fan of The Road Warriors, Bully Ray never seriously thought either member of the iconic tag team would win a World Championship.
Applying that logic to The Dudley Boyz, he knew fans would struggle to view him as a credible singles competitor following his separation from D-Von:
“I knew that if Hawk is wrestling [Ric] Flair, there’s no way Hawk is winning the World Heavyweight Championship," Bully Ray continued. "The Road Warriors were a synonymous team. This is an act, you know what you’re getting. Same thing with The Dudleyz. Road Warriors, greatest tag team of all time. I don’t mean to compare myself to them, but you get the point.”
Vince McMahon decided to reunite The Dudley Boyz in November 2002, eight months after the legendary duo went their separate ways. Bully Ray later teamed and feuded with D-Von in IMPACT Wrestling. They also joined forces again when they returned to WWE in 2015.
Please credit Broken Skull Sessions and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.