As a team, grapplers' careers revving up

By Alex Marvez, Special to the Rocky

Friday, March 14, 2008

Individually, Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley had become stagnant in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.

But when paired as the Motor City Machine Guns, their career tracks began shooting skyward once again.

"Everything just kind of came together," Sabin said last week during a TNA media conference call. "We just click so well as a tag team. It's been real cool."

Sabin and Shelley were X Division rivals who began teaming in 2006 while working for a Japanese promotion (Zero1-Max).

After the duo shined there and for U.S. independent promotions, TNA began using Sabin and Shelley as a tandem last April.

With their fast-paced style, Sabin and Shelley stood out on TNA's Impact telecasts (7 p.m. Thursdays, Spike TV). The Motor City Machine Guns - a nickname that stems from their Detroit-area upbringing - also appeal to younger fans. Shelley (real name Patrick Martin) is only 24; Sabin (Josh Harter) is 26.

"We have the advantage of being younger than almost any of the other wrestlers on the roster," Shelley said. "I think a lot of fans can relate to our sense of humor during our (interviews), our sense of style and our characters because they're the same age as us. We're appealing to that sort of demographic."

The MCMG are coming off their biggest feud to date against one of pro wrestling's most storied tandems in Team 3-D (the former Dudley Boys).

Sabin - a four-time X Division champion - and Shelley wouldn't have received that kind of opportunity had they stayed as singles performers.

Composed primarily of light-heavyweight wrestlers, the X Division is no longer pushed as heavily as it was by TNA after the promotion's 2002 debut.

"The X Division has a lot to offer and is something different than what any other wrestling company has," said Shelley, who made his TNA debut in 2004.

"But there's just so much on TNA's slate right now with the women's and tag-team division. I think a lot of the characters have transcended the X Division."

Shelley and Sabin are two of them.

SUSPENDED: In retrospect, World Wrestling Entertainment made the right decision by not making Jeff Hardy a world champion.

WWE announced Tuesday that Hardy had received a 60-day suspension for a second violation of the promotion's drug policy. The ban cost Hardy his spot in a "Money in the Bank" match at Wrestlemania 23 - as well as the large payoff that would come with being on such a high-profile pay-per-view show.

Suspended for 30 days by WWE for a failed test last August, Hardy returned to the largest push of his 14-year grappling career.

Hardy had generated so much momentum following a December pay-per-view victory over Paul "Triple H" Levesque that there was reportedly some internal debate about having him defeat Randy Orton for the WWE title at January's Royal Rumble.

Ultimately, it was decided that Orton should keep the strap rather than give Hardy what probably would have been a short pre-Mania title reign. Hardy, though, kept his prominent spot on WWE cards. Those days might be over.

Before the suspension was announced, Hardy lost his Intercontinental title to Chris Jericho on this week's Monday Night Raw episode (7 p.m., USA Network). Hardy, who was fired by WWE in 2003 because of drug problems, will have his contract terminated if he tests positive again on his return.

In related news, Jake "The Snake" Roberts is one of the wrestlers who has taken advantage of WWE's offer to pay the costs of rehabilitation programs for any former or present WWE grapplers.

"I think it was very big on (WWE owner) Vince McMahon's part to put this out there," Roberts said in an interview at cyinterview.com. "It shows me a lot of heart in the man I am sure a lot of people didn't believe he had."

McMahon, though, didn't curry any favor with the U.S. government when declining to appear at a congressional hearing last month related to steroids and professional sports.

Alex Marvez writes a syndicated pro wrestling column for Scripps Howard News Service.