The Prime Time Players

The Prime Time Players

Young (left) and O'Neil (right) during the “Tribute to the Troops” tour in December 2013
Tag team
Members Darren Young
Titus O'Neil
Name(s) Darren Young and Titus O'Neil
The Prime Time Players[1]
Heights O'Neil: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Young: 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Combined
weight		 509 lb (231 kg)
Former
member(s)		 A.W. (agent)
Debut January 18, 2012
Years active 2012-2014; 2015–present
Promotions WWE

The Prime Time Players[2] are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of "The Real Deal"[3] Titus O'Neil and "Mr. No Days Off"[4] Darren Young who currently perform for WWE. The duo, who initially opposed each other in several matches, managed to become the number one contenders for the Tag Team Championship. As the team name suggests, their gimmick portrays them as brash and cocky athletes.

History

Various storylines (2012-2013)

Initially, O'Neil (who was then a face) and Young were rivals on WWE NXT during its fifth season, named NXT Redemption. Early on, O'Neil was paired with then-friend Percy Watson against Young and his NXT pro, Chavo Guerrero. The feud was put on hold when Guerrero was released and Young was suspended. On the November 16, 2011 episode of NXT, O'Neil was assaulted by a returning Young.[5] Young was then able to get the better of O'Neil twice in tag team matches.[6][7] The conclusion to O'Neil's feud with Young came when O'Neil defeated Young in a no disqualification match on the January 18 episode of NXT. O'Neil then turned heel after the match, verbally ripping on the audience, his former pro Hornswoggle, and NXT itself.[8]

The Prime Time Players in November 2013

O'Neil urged Watson to also turn his back on the fans on the January 25, 2012 episode of NXT Redemption. When Watson refused, O'Neil shoved him and a match between the two was booked, leading to O'Neil defeating Watson. O'Neil continued to attack Watson after the match, leading to Alex Riley saving Watson.[9] O'Neil then formed an alliance with former enemy Young, and the duo teamed up to defeat Watson and Riley on the February 1 and February 29 episodes of NXT Redemption.[10][11] O'Neil also faced and defeated Riley on the February 22 episode.[12] On the March 7 episode, Watson received his rematch against O'Neil and defeated O'Neil.[13] O'Neil and Young then moved on to feud with The Usos.[14]

On the April 18 episode of NXT Redemption, it was announced that O'Neil and Young had been moved to the main roster. The team made their debut for the brand on the April 20 episode of SmackDown with a victory over The Usos.[15] They started on a winning streak defeating the likes Ezekiel Jackson and Yoshi Tatsu and Santino Marella and Zack Ryder.[16][17] However, on the May 18 edition of SmackDown, their winning streak ended when they were defeated by the Tag Team Champions Kofi Kingston and R-Truth.[18] On the June 1 edition of SmackDown, O'Neil and Young named themselves the Prime Time Players. At No Way Out, they won a Fatal-4-Way tag team match to become the number one contenders for the WWE Tag Team Championship following assistance from A. W. who had turned on his clients, Primo and Epico in favor of the Prime Time Players, prompting a feud between the two tag teams.[19] On the July 16 episode of Raw, the Prime Time Players unsuccessfully challenged Kofi Kingston and R-Truth for the WWE Tag Team Championship.[20]

O'Neil and Young bounced back with two singles victories over Kingston and R-Truth.[21][22] On the August 10 episode of SmackDown, they defeated Primo and Epico in a number one contenders match via disqualification when A. W. provoked Kofi and R-Truth (who were doing guest commentary) into interfering in the match.[23] That same day, A. W. was released from his contract.[24] On the August 13 edition of Raw, it was announced that the Prime Time Players would receive their championship match at SummerSlam. That same night, after R-Truth defeated Heath Slater, O'Neil and Young ambushed R-Truth and left him laying in the ring (Kingston was away on an international tour).[25] At SummerSlam, O'Neil & Young were defeated by Kingston and R-Truth.[26] On the September 7 edition of SmackDown, O'Neil and Young defeated Primo and Epico and The Usos in a triple threat tag match to once again become the number one contenders to the Tag Team Championship. The following week of Raw, they were defeated by Daniel Bryan and Kane, who became the new number one contenders. At Survivor Series, the Prime Time Players took part in a losing effort in a ten-man elimination tag team match.[27]

Face run and split (2013–2014)

In an interview released on August 15, 2013, Young revealed his homosexual orientation in real-life.[28] On the August 19 episode of Raw, the Prime Time Players started to wrestle as faces, due to management's and the fans' support for Darren Young coming out.[29] At the pre-show of Night of Champions, the Prime Time Players won a "Tag Team Turmoil" match and thus a title shot by last eliminating the Real Americans (Antonio Cesaro and Jack Swagger). Later that night, they lost to defending champions Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns of the Shield.[30] After their face turn they did several comedy segments backstage including selling merchandise and a hotdog eating contest.

On the January 31, 2014 episode of SmackDown after Young was pinned in a tag team match against Ryback and Curtis Axel, O'Neil viciously attacked him after the match, turning heel and officially disbanding the team.[31] They would have a match at Elimination Chamber, with O'Neil getting the victory. A rematch took place on the February 26 episode of Main Event, which was won by Young. In April, Young underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL in his left knee that would take him out of action for several months. Meanwhile, O'Neil formed a dysfunctional tag team with Heath Slater, known as Slater-Gator (a reference to O'Neil being a Florida Gator), to little success.

Reunion (2015–present)

On February 16 episode of Raw, O'Neil made a save for Young who was being attacked by The Ascension, signifying a reunion. On the February 23 episode of Raw, they officially reunited and gave The Ascension their first loss in the WWE. They once again defeated The Ascension on March 14 episode of Main Event. They then participated in the Andre the Giant Memorial Trophy Battle Royal at WrestleMania 31, which was won by The Big Show. After WrestleMania, they began performing comedic skits that poked fun at other tag teams including The New Day,[32] The Ascension,[33] Los Matadores[34] and Tyson Kidd and Cesaro.[35]

In wrestling

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Parks, Greg. "PARKS' WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 6/1". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  2. ↑ http://www.wwe.com/shows/nowayout/2012/no-way-out-2012-results
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://www.wwe.com/superstars/titusoneil
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 http://www.wwe.com/superstars/darrenyoung
  5. ↑ Bishop, Matt (November 17, 2011). "WWE NXT: Curtis creating a rift between BetaMax". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved December 28, 2011.
  6. ↑ James, Justin. "JAMES'S WWE NXT REPORT 11/23: Percy & Titus vs. Reks & D-Young main event, BetaMaxCurtis love triangle continues, Usos reference heritage". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  7. ↑ Walek, Gregory. "NXT Results - 12/7/11". Wrestleview. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  8. ↑ James, Justin. "JAMES'S WWE NXT REPORT 1/18 - Week 46: Wedding interrupted, Titus turns heel, Elvis, out-of-control, destructive, and unproductive Cole commentary". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  9. ↑ James, Justin. "JAMES'S WWE NXT REPORT 1/25 - Week 47: Titus vs. Showtime, Slater ends The Streak, overall show Reax". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  10. ↑ Walek, Gregory. "Wrestleview.com - NXT Results - 2/1/12". Wrestleview. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  11. ↑ Walek, Gregory. "Wrestleview.com - NXT Results - 2/29/12". Wrestleview. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  12. ↑ James, Justin. "JAMES'S WWE NXT RESULTS 2/22 - Week 51: Two matches, big announcement teased for next week". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  13. ↑ Walek, Gregory. "Wrestleview.com - NXT Results - 3/7/12". Wrestleview. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  14. ↑ Walek, Gregory. "NXT Results - 3/14/12". Wrestleview. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  15. ↑ Michael Burdick (2012-04-20). "Smackdown Results". WWE. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  16. ↑ Michael Burdick (2012-04-27). "Smackdown Results". WWE. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  17. ↑ Michael Burdick (2012-05-11). "Smackdown Results". WWE. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  18. ↑ Alex Giannini (2012-05-18). "Smackdown Results". WWE. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  19. ↑ Kara A. Medalis (2012-06-17). "No Way Out - Fatal-4-Way tag team match results". WWE. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  20. ↑ "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW RESULTS 7/16: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw #998 - MITB PPV fall-out, Cena's announcement".
  21. ↑ Herrera, Tom (2012-07-30). "Raw results: Raw General Manager AJ Lee gets the last laugh on WWE Champion CM Punk". WWE. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
  22. ↑ Burdick, Michael (2012-08-03). "SmackDown results: With Sheamus’ help, Del Rio felt the sting of Orton’s RKO – Can you dig it, sucka!". WWE. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
  23. ↑ Burdick, Michael (2012-08-10). "SmackDown Results: Del Rio ambushed Sheamus, taking the law into his own hands". WWE. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
  24. ↑ "A. W. released from WWE". WWE. 2012-08-10. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
  25. ↑ Herrera, Tom (2012-08-13). "Raw results: Brock Lesnar unleashes a world of pain on Shawn Michaels". WWE. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
  26. ↑ "WWE Tag Team Champions Kofi Kingston & R-Truth def. The Prime Time Players". WWE. 2012-08-19. Retrieved 2012-08-21.
  27. ↑ Caldwell, James. "CALDWELL'S WWE SURVIVOR SERIES PPV REPORT 11/18: Complete "virtual time" coverage of live PPV - Punk-Cena-Ryback". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 19 November 2012.
  28. ↑ "WWE wrestler Darren Young comes out as gay". Telegraph. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  29. ↑ Caldwell, James. "Caldwell's WWE Raw results 8/19 (Hour 2): Shield wrestles two handicap matches, RVD gets a mouthpiece, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 25 January 2014.
  30. ↑ Howell, Nolan. "WWE Night of Champions: Bryan reaches the mountaintop". SLAM! Wrestling. Retrieved 25 January 2014.
  31. ↑ "PARKS'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 1/31: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of Friday show, including The Shield vs. Daniel Bryan & Sheamus & Rey Mysterio".
  32. ↑ "The Prime Time Players poke fun at The New Day: SmackDown, April 2, 2015". WWE. Retrieved 2015-04-03.
  33. ↑ "The Prime Time Players mock The Ascension: Raw, April 6, 2015". WWE. Retrieved 2015-04-07.
  34. ↑ "The Prime Time Players mock Los Matadores: Raw, April 13, 2015". WWE. Retrieved 2015-04-14.
  35. ↑ "The Prime Time Players poke fun at Tyson Kidd & Cesaro: SmackDown, April 23, 2015". WWE. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
  36. ↑ Trionfo, Richard. "WWE RAW 1007 REPORT: BRET HART RETURNS TO MONTREAL; ANGER MANAGEMENT CREATES A NEW NUMBER ONE CONTENDER; IS THE IC TITLE COMING HOME?; CENA AND PUNK HAVE VERBAL CONFRONTATION; JERRY LAWLER SUFFERS MEDICAL EMERGENCY DURING SHOW". PWInsider. Retrieved September 12, 2013.
  37. ↑ Trionfo, Richard. "WWE SUPERSTARS REPORT: TAG TEAMS IN THE MAIN EVENT; MAHAL/MCINTYRE; KIDD/OTUNGA; AND TED DIBIASE RETURNS AGAINST JTG". PWInsider. Retrieved September 24, 2013.
  38. ↑ "Cagematch profile". Cagematch. Retrieved March 4, 2010.
  39. ↑ Clapp, John (2012-07-20). "Meet the hit maker in The Prime Time Players' corner". WWE. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
  40. ↑ "Making Moves". iTunes. Retrieved 2012-12-03.

External links