THE BAR
Cesaro & Sheamus
2016 - 2019
WWE Tag Team Champions
Written by Canadian Bulldog
One of the fun things about Tag Team Appreciation Month is that we look at classic tag teams from as far back as the 1950s to the present era. And yet, we haven't yet had a Tag Team Spotlight on a team that's still very much together and actively teaming today.
Enter The Bar - a throwback to classic heel tag teams from decades past. They're both strong, powerful guys yet they're capable of doing little, nuanced things to get the crowd solidly against them. That's pretty cool, because it's not something you see that often any more.
For those with particularly short memories... Cesaro and Sheamus were once bitter rivals, both frustrated with their roles after WWE had its brand split in the spring of 2016. Recognizing they were both underrated talents, Raw General Manager Mick Foley signed them to a Best of Seven series that began at that year's SummerSlam.
While their matches were technically fine, they didn't set the world on fire. Fans wanted to see which of them would win and, presumably, move on to something else. After tying up the series at three wins apiece, the deciding match was set for Clash of Champions, which ended in a draw.
Instead of having a rematch to determine the ultimate winner of their series, Foley gave them both a title match. Unfortunately for them, they had to team to receive the shot, which was at the Raw Tag Team Championship.
Predictably, the two constantly bickered and argued in and out of the ring, even when they captured the championship by ending the record-setting title reign of The New Day. Their seemed like a team that was destined to implode at every twist and turn, and yet.... they still haven't, almost two years later.
After defeating The New Day, Cesaro and Sheamus turned their attention to teams such as Enzo & Big Cass and Anderson & Gallows, and eventually they ended up on the same page, with the crowd solidly behind them.
But it wasn't until after losing the championship, and then failing to get it back from a returning Matt & Jeff Hardy at WrestleMania XXXIII, that The Bar truly began setting The Bar.
Cesaro and Sheamus lost a rematch to The Hardy Boyz at Payback and then ambushed Matt and Jeff after the match, officially turning heel. This added some much-needed fuel to the fire and the two teams had an epic rivalry that lasted much of the summer.
After they defeated The Hardyz, The Bar turned their attention to a reunited Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose, culminating in a fantastic match at last year's SummerSlam and cementing Cesaro and Sheamus' role on Raw.
After trading the titles with Rollins and Ambrose, The Bar were moved to SmackDown Live and continued what they began, until an injury to Sheamus ended the team for now.
Will history remember The Bar as a staple of this era's tag team division? Quite possibly, as their body of work includes a great origin story and some memorable matches along the way.
They've definitely raised (ahem) the bar.