New Age Outlaws
Encyclopedia
The New Age Outlaws, later known as the James Gang and the Voodoo Kin Mafia, were a professional wrestling
tag team
in World Wrestling Federation
, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
(TNA), Jersey All Pro Wrestling
, and Maryland Championship Wrestling
consisting of B.G. James
and Kip James
.
Originally known as the New Age Outlaws in the World Wrestling Federation
(WWF, now WWE), and wrestling under the ring name
s "Road Dogg" Jesse James and "Bad Ass" Billy Gunn, the duo achieved high levels of success and became extremely popular in the late 1990s as members of the second incarnation of the professional wrestling stable D-Generation X
. In the same time period, the New Age Outlaws had the third highest merchandise
sales in the WWF after Stone Cold Steve Austin
and The Rock. Since parting ways with the WWF/E, the team have reformed in several promotions, mostly notably in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling where, under the ringnames B.G. James and Kip James, they have been known as both the James Gang and the Voodoo Kin Mafia.
when struggling superstars Billy Gunn and "Road Dogg" Jesse James, then known as Rock-a-Billy and "The Real Double J" Jesse James respectively, ended a feud
between them and teamed up.
On a later edition of Monday Night Raw
, Jesse James walked out to the ring following a loss by Rock-A-Billy and asked him to turn on his manager
The Honky Tonk Man
and team with him. Rock-A-Billy answered by smashing a guitar on Honky Tonk Man's head and telling James he was in. Rock-A-Billy re-dubbed himself "Bad Ass" Billy Gunn and Jesse James rechristened himself The Road Dogg. The team made an immediate impact on the WWF tag team scene with blatant attacks against other tag teams and, not having an entrance theme, walking out to the ring with only Road Dogg making a rant against their opponents over the PA system. The team became known for pulling wins out of nowhere via cheating and use of weapons. Through their attitude, charisma and antics, they began to get over with the crowd as heels.
for the Tag Team Championship in November 1997. This marked Gunn's fourth Tag Team Title Reign and Road Dogg's first. Not only did the team win the titles that night, but they also got their "Outlaws" nickname when they "stole" the win and then ran to a waiting car, prompting Raw announcer Jim Ross
to liken them to outlaws leaving a robbery. The name stuck and the New Age Outlaws quickly became one of the most hated teams in the WWF. During their feud with LOD, the Outlaws joined Triple H
and Shawn Michaels
, collectively known as D-Generation X
, in assaulting the team on an episode of Monday Night Raw, including shaving off one of Road Warrior Hawk
's mohawks and throwing Road Warrior Animal
through the announce table.
Shortly before the Royal Rumble
in 1998, the New Age Outlaws began a feud with Mick Foley
, first fighting him as Dude Love, then as Mankind and finally Cactus Jack. When it became apparent that he needed help dealing with the Outlaws, Foley brought in Chainsaw Charlie
. Following a disqualification against The Legion of Doom at the Royal Rumble, the team were confronted by DX who told them they needed to start making waves by acting more controversially. In response to this, the Outlaws locked Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie in a dumpster and threw it off the entrance ramp on to the concrete floor. The Outlaws initially looked concerned, but ultimately attacked their injured rivals in what Foley would describe as "one of the funnier examples of bad sportsmanship" At WrestleMania XIV
, the New Age Outlaws lost the titles to Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie in a Dumpster match. The next night on Raw, however, with the aid of Triple H and X-Pac
, the Outlaws regained the title in a steel cage match and officially joined DX.
During this period, the pair developed a popular and familiar entrance routine, with Road Dogg announcing:
Gunn would then declare:
The growing popularity of the "new" DX quickly turned the group from heels
to tweeners, and they feuded with many different tag teams over the course of 1998. Their immense popularity was part of what helped the WWF challenge World Championship Wrestling
for ratings supremacy during the Monday Night Wars
. They lost the tag title to Kane and Mankind in the summer of 1998, only to regain the titles from that same team at SummerSlam
in a handicap match after Kane no-showed. In late 1998 Vince McMahon
's Corporation
tried to tempt the Outlaws away from DX and failed, which led to the Outlaws losing the title to Corporation members Ken Shamrock
and Big Boss Man
.
, while Billy Gunn began to challenge for the Intercontinental Championship
(during the course of these challenges, Road Dogg won the IC title and Gunn won the Hardcore title). As 1999 continued and the team was officially no more, Gunn won the King of the Ring tournament and eventually turned heel.
During the fall of 1999 the Outlaws reunited, first as faces
, but then as heels when they rejoined the reformed (and now solidly heel) DX. No Way Out 2000
saw the final end of the Outlaws when Billy Gunn received a serious arm injury during a match with the Dudley Boyz
. Gunn exited DX after "losing his cool" and getting into a fight with all DX members. Road Dogg was released from his WWF contract in early 2001, while Billy Gunn was released from his contract in 2004 after ten years with the company.
on September 18, 2002 under his birth name, B.G. James. In July 2003, he formed a stable with Konnan
and Ron "The Truth" Killings
known as the 3Live Kru
(3LK). The trio went on to become fan favorites and eventually won the NWA World Tag Team Championship
on two occasions. Billy Gunn debuted in TNA at Against All Odds on February 13, 2005, interfering in the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
bout between Jeff Jarrett
and the challenging Kevin Nash
. Gunn struck Nash with a chair, but he was able to kick out of Jarrett's subsequent pin attempt. After Gunn seized the NWA World Heavyweight Championship belt in order to strike Nash with it, B.G. James ran to the ring and wrestled it away from him.
B.G. James and Gunn, now renamed The New Age Outlaw (later shortened to just The Outlaw), came into conflict once more on April 24, at Lockdown
, when Jarrett, The Outlaw and Monty Brown
faced Diamond Dallas Page
, Sean Waltman
and B.G. James (who was replacing an injured Kevin Nash
) in a Lethal Lockdown match. Page, Waltman and James were victorious, although during the match James and The Outlaw refrained from fighting one another. Through October and November 2005, "The Outlaw" (now using the name Kip James, due to threats from the WWE that "The Outlaw" sounded too similar to their trademarked New Age Outlaws name) helped 3LK numerous times during their feud
with Team Canada
. Although he was obviously helping the Kru at every turn, Konnan refused to trust Kip.
On the November 26 episode of TNA Impact!
, and even though Konnan had his doubts, 3LK inducted Kip into the group and renamed themselves the 4Live Kru. At Turning Point, however, Konnan turned on the group, eventually forming his own group, The Latin American Xchange (LAX). Killings also went out on his own afterward, leaving only Kip and B.G. together.
. Their official in-ring reunion took place the next night at Final Resolution, where they defeated the Diamonds in the Rough
. Their feud with LAX continued and included several more appearances by "Bullet" Bob Armstrong, including an Arm Wrestling match between Konnan and the 67-year-old Armstrong.
In May 2006, The James Gang began a feud with Team 3D
over which of them was the greatest tag team. The James Gang picked up a victory over Team 3D at Sacrifice after Kip used a pipe on Brother Devon. They met again at Slammiversary, with Team 3D picking up the win this time. With the teams standing at 1-1 (and Brother Runt
returning to in-ring action), Team 3D challenged The James Gang to find themselves a partner and face them (Brother Runt included) in a 6-man tag match at Victory Road. Whereas Team 3D expected them to get someone from their family (such as "Bullet" Bob Armstrong), the James Gang "made a deal with the devil" and paid James Mitchell to have Abyss
team up with them instead. The James Gang and Abyss won the no-disqualification 6-man tag match after Abyss Black Hole Slammed Brother Runt onto a table and got the pin.
promo announcing they were quitting the company out of frustration. During the promo B.G. claimed that TNA had mismanaged him during his run there, and as Kip attempted to speak into the microphone it was cut off. Attempts to use an announcers microphone and scream directly to the crowd were met with another microphone cutting and then the show abruptly going to commercial.
After a November 11 house show
in Connecticut (where World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE) is based) was canceled, TNA filmed a vignette at WWE headquarters featuring the James Gang discussing the show cancellation, posting it on their website two days later. This vignette was followed with a promo on the November 16 Impact!, during which they announced that they had been given "creative control", and were changing their name to the Voodoo Kin Mafia (VKM for short, a play on Vincent Kennedy McMahon
's initials) and declaring "war" on WWE. During the "war" they called out the revived D-Generation X (DX), calling it a "failure" and stated that the original run was saved by their insertion as The New Age Outlaws in 1998. During their matches and promos on TNA television they continually included references to DX, including use of their signature taunts and maneuvers. Soon a series of vignettes began airing on Impact! with B.G. and Kip in and around Stamford, Connecticut
, calling out Paul Levesque
, Michael Hickenbottom
, and Vince McMahon. During the vignettes they said they were trying to get a cease and desist
letter signed and get WWE to stop using the DX name. The vignettes were notable for using the same style of humor as the original DX while running down the revived DX for doing the same thing.
When The Hardys
reunited for December to Dismember and issued an open challenge the TNA website quickly posted a message from VKM accepting, though it had already been accepted by MNM
. On December 1, VKM showed up at a WWE house show
at the Knoxville Civic Center with Vince Russo
, Jeremy Borash
, and a camera crew. They interviewed fans outside, filmed themselves purchasing tickets and eventually entered the building, watching the main event match - featuring DX - from an upper level seat. At December's Turning Point, they performed a parody of DX, then, in response to Jim Ross
commenting on his website that Vince McMahon probably would not respond to the "war", and in response to their still receiving of legal warnings from WWE, they issued a "Million Dollar Challenge" to Vince McMahon and DX, offering to put up $1 million for a big fight between the DX members and themselves. Hermie Sadler
of the UWF promotion later offered to host the "Million Dollar Challenge" at a UWF show during the weekend of WWE's Armageddon
pay-per-view event (scheduled for December 17) citing that his event was close to Richmond, Virginia
, the site of Armageddon. After the challenge was ignored, they narrowed it on the January 4 Impact!, challenging just Hickenbottom to meet them at the Alamo
in his hometown of San Antonio the following Wednesday. VKM declared themselves victorious in their "war" during a promo at Final Resolution citing WWE's refusal to acknowledge their presence while fans loudly chanted both "TNA" and "VKM" during the January 8 episode of WWE Raw
.
In the same promo, they entered an angle with Christy Hemme
, who declared that women deserve respect in wrestling and found herself heavily disagreed with and mocked by Kip James, while B.G. attempted to agree with her. To shut VKM up, Hemme brought in The Heartbreakers
(Antonio Thomas
and Romeo Roselli
) in to TNA as mystery opponents at Destination X, but VKM made short work of them. Around this time, Lance Hoyt
began hanging around with VKM, keeping Christy Hemme out of VKM's matches. In April, at Lockdown
, Hemme had Serotonin face VKM on the pre-show, but again VKM came out victorious. At Sacrifice 2007, VKM lost to Hemme's new team Damaja and Basham
formerly known as The Basham Brothers in World Wrestling Entertainment, though not fairly, as Basham and Damaja injured (kayfabe) BG James before the match, making it a handicap match. VKM finally defeated Basham and Damaja at Slammiversary after Kip pinned Basham, but Lance Hoyt turned on VKM after the match. Weeks later, at the Victory Road pay-per-view, VKM debuted a new valet/accomplice, the so-called "Voodoo Queen" Roxxi Laveaux
. She attacked Hemme after VKM's match.
On February 21, 2008, Kip turned on his partner by hitting him and his father with a crutch in a tag title match against A.J. Styles and Tomko
, thus ending the team.
TNA creative writer Vince Russo stated that the Voodoo Kin Mafia gimmick was cut short out of respect to Triple H
, who got injured at the time.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
in World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
(TNA), Jersey All Pro Wrestling
Jersey All Pro Wrestling
Jersey All Pro Wrestling is an independent wrestling promotion based in New Jersey.-1997:Jersey All Pro Wrestling is an independent wrestling promotion that was founded by "Fat" Frank Iadeavia on April 19, 1997. This promotion was born out of a dream of "Fat" Frank. He wanted to take the promotion...
, and Maryland Championship Wrestling
Maryland Championship Wrestling
Maryland Championship Wrestling is a regional independent wrestling promotion based in Dundalk, Maryland, and has regularly run events in the Mid-Atlantic region since the late 1990s as well as participating in numerous fundraising events throughout the state.Rivaling other east coast independent...
consisting of B.G. James
Brian Gerard James
Brian Gerard James is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE as an agent and producer. He is best known for his tenure with the World Wrestling Federation as "The Road Dogg" Jesse James or simply Road Dogg...
and Kip James
Monty Sopp
Monty Kip Sopp is an American professional wrestler, best known as Billy Gunn during his tenure for World Wrestling Entertainment. He is probably best known as one of the members of the New Age Outlaws. He also worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Kip James...
.
Originally known as the New Age Outlaws in the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWF, now WWE), and wrestling under the ring name
Ring name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
s "Road Dogg" Jesse James and "Bad Ass" Billy Gunn, the duo achieved high levels of success and became extremely popular in the late 1990s as members of the second incarnation of the professional wrestling stable D-Generation X
D-Generation X
D-Generation X was a professional wrestling stable in WWE . The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" from 1997 to 2000...
. In the same time period, the New Age Outlaws had the third highest merchandise
Product (business)
In general, the product is defined as a "thing produced by labor or effort" or the "result of an act or a process", and stems from the verb produce, from the Latin prōdūce ' lead or bring forth'. Since 1575, the word "product" has referred to anything produced...
sales in the WWF after Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
and The Rock. Since parting ways with the WWF/E, the team have reformed in several promotions, mostly notably in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling where, under the ringnames B.G. James and Kip James, they have been known as both the James Gang and the Voodoo Kin Mafia.
Formation (1997)
The Outlaws first formed on a 1997 episode of Shotgun Saturday NightWWF Shotgun Saturday Night
WWF Shotgun Saturday Night is a professional wrestling television program produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It aired from January 4, 1997 through August 21, 1999 as a syndicated broadcast...
when struggling superstars Billy Gunn and "Road Dogg" Jesse James, then known as Rock-a-Billy and "The Real Double J" Jesse James respectively, ended a feud
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
between them and teamed up.
On a later edition of Monday Night Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
, Jesse James walked out to the ring following a loss by Rock-A-Billy and asked him to turn on his manager
Manager (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
The Honky Tonk Man
The Honky Tonk Man
Roy Wayne Farris , better known by his ring name The Honky Tonk Man, is an American professional wrestler. A 1975 graduate from University of Memphis with a B.S. degree in Education. Coached high school football 2 seasons at Munford High School in Munford, Tennessee...
and team with him. Rock-A-Billy answered by smashing a guitar on Honky Tonk Man's head and telling James he was in. Rock-A-Billy re-dubbed himself "Bad Ass" Billy Gunn and Jesse James rechristened himself The Road Dogg. The team made an immediate impact on the WWF tag team scene with blatant attacks against other tag teams and, not having an entrance theme, walking out to the ring with only Road Dogg making a rant against their opponents over the PA system. The team became known for pulling wins out of nowhere via cheating and use of weapons. Through their attitude, charisma and antics, they began to get over with the crowd as heels.
Tag Team Champions and D-Generation X (1997–1998)
James and Gunn defeated the Legion of DoomRoad Warriors
The Road Warriors were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Michael "Hawk" Hegstrand and Joseph "Animal" Laurinaitis. They performed under the name "Road Warriors" in the American Wrestling Association, the National Wrestling Alliance, and World Championship Wrestling, and the name Legion...
for the Tag Team Championship in November 1997. This marked Gunn's fourth Tag Team Title Reign and Road Dogg's first. Not only did the team win the titles that night, but they also got their "Outlaws" nickname when they "stole" the win and then ran to a waiting car, prompting Raw announcer Jim Ross
Jim Ross
James William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand...
to liken them to outlaws leaving a robbery. The name stuck and the New Age Outlaws quickly became one of the most hated teams in the WWF. During their feud with LOD, the Outlaws joined Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
and Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
, collectively known as D-Generation X
D-Generation X
D-Generation X was a professional wrestling stable in WWE . The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" from 1997 to 2000...
, in assaulting the team on an episode of Monday Night Raw, including shaving off one of Road Warrior Hawk
Road Warrior Hawk
Michael James Hegstrand was an American professional wrestler. He is best remembered as Road Warrior Hawk, one half of the tag team known as the Road Warriors or The Legion of Doom , with Road Warrior Animal.-Early life:While living in Chicago, Hegstrand met Joe Lauranaitis, who would be later...
's mohawks and throwing Road Warrior Animal
Road Warrior Animal
Joseph Aaron "Joe" Laurinaitis is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring names, Road Warrior Animal and Road Warrior...
through the announce table.
Shortly before the Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (1998)
Royal Rumble was the eleventh annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on January 18, 1998 at the San Jose Arena in San Jose, California....
in 1998, the New Age Outlaws began a feud with Mick Foley
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
, first fighting him as Dude Love, then as Mankind and finally Cactus Jack. When it became apparent that he needed help dealing with the Outlaws, Foley brought in Chainsaw Charlie
Terry Funk
Terrence "Terry" Funk is an American professional wrestler and actor known chiefly for the hardcore wrestling style he adopted in the latter part of his career that inspired many younger wrestlers, including Mick Foley...
. Following a disqualification against The Legion of Doom at the Royal Rumble, the team were confronted by DX who told them they needed to start making waves by acting more controversially. In response to this, the Outlaws locked Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie in a dumpster and threw it off the entrance ramp on to the concrete floor. The Outlaws initially looked concerned, but ultimately attacked their injured rivals in what Foley would describe as "one of the funnier examples of bad sportsmanship" At WrestleMania XIV
WrestleMania XIV
WrestleMania XIV was the fourteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on March 29, 1998 at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts....
, the New Age Outlaws lost the titles to Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie in a Dumpster match. The next night on Raw, however, with the aid of Triple H and X-Pac
Sean Waltman
Sean Michael Waltman is an American professional wrestler currently signed with WWE in their developmental program. He wrestled there under the ring names 1–2–3 Kid and X-Pac off and on from 1993–2002, World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Syxx, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ...
, the Outlaws regained the title in a steel cage match and officially joined DX.
During this period, the pair developed a popular and familiar entrance routine, with Road Dogg announcing:
Gunn would then declare:
The growing popularity of the "new" DX quickly turned the group from heels
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
to tweeners, and they feuded with many different tag teams over the course of 1998. Their immense popularity was part of what helped the WWF challenge World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
for ratings supremacy during the Monday Night Wars
Monday Night Wars
Monday Night Wars is the common term describing the period of mainstream televised American professional wrestling from September 4, 1995, to March 26, 2001. During this time, the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw went head-to-head with World Championship Wrestling's Monday Nitro in a...
. They lost the tag title to Kane and Mankind in the summer of 1998, only to regain the titles from that same team at SummerSlam
SummerSlam (1998)
SummerSlam was the eleventh annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on August 30, 1998 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York....
in a handicap match after Kane no-showed. In late 1998 Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
's Corporation
The Corporation (professional wrestling)
The Corporation was a heel stable in the late 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation .-History:The group was put together and led by WWF Chairman Vince McMahon in an attempt to secure control of the WWF and "crush the rebels" that were popping up on the WWF landscape...
tried to tempt the Outlaws away from DX and failed, which led to the Outlaws losing the title to Corporation members Ken Shamrock
Ken Shamrock
Kenneth Wayne Shamrock is an American mixed martial arts fighter, UFC Hall of Famer and professional wrestler...
and Big Boss Man
Ray Traylor
Ray Walter Traylor, Jr. was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Big Boss Man and World Championship Wrestling under various ring names, most notably Big Bubba Rogers.-Early years:Traylor, a prison guard in...
.
Reunion and Break up (1999–2000)
As 1999 started, the Outlaws slowly began to drift apart, with each man striving for singles gold. Road Dogg began to move towards the Hardcore TitleWWE Hardcore Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Hardcore Championship is a hardcore wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and is contested under "hardcore" rules, meaning there is no disqualifications, no countouts, and pin falls could be counted anywhere...
, while Billy Gunn began to challenge for the Intercontinental Championship
WWE Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
(during the course of these challenges, Road Dogg won the IC title and Gunn won the Hardcore title). As 1999 continued and the team was officially no more, Gunn won the King of the Ring tournament and eventually turned heel.
During the fall of 1999 the Outlaws reunited, first as faces
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
, but then as heels when they rejoined the reformed (and now solidly heel) DX. No Way Out 2000
No Way Out (2000)
No Way Out was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on February 27, 2000 at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut...
saw the final end of the Outlaws when Billy Gunn received a serious arm injury during a match with the Dudley Boyz
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
. Gunn exited DX after "losing his cool" and getting into a fight with all DX members. Road Dogg was released from his WWF contract in early 2001, while Billy Gunn was released from his contract in 2004 after ten years with the company.
4Live Kru (2002–2005)
"Road Dogg" Jesse James debuted in Total Nonstop Action WrestlingTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
on September 18, 2002 under his birth name, B.G. James. In July 2003, he formed a stable with Konnan
Konnan
Carlos Santiago Espada Moises , also known as Charles Ashenoff and better known by his ring name, Konnan, is a Cuban professional wrestler and rapper of Puerto Rican descent...
and Ron "The Truth" Killings
Ron Killings
Ronald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik...
known as the 3Live Kru
3Live Kru
The 3Live Kru was a professional wrestling stable in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . The 3Live Kru debuted in July 2003, and was initially a trio of wrestlers, consisting of Ron Killings, Konnan and B.G. James. The gimmick of the 3Live Kru was that each member of the group exemplified a racial...
(3LK). The trio went on to become fan favorites and eventually won the NWA World Tag Team Championship
NWA World Tag Team Championship
The National Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Championship is the professional wrestling world tag team championship within the NWA framework.-History:...
on two occasions. Billy Gunn debuted in TNA at Against All Odds on February 13, 2005, interfering in the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
NWA World Heavyweight Championship
The National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first World Heavyweight Championship, which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title and...
bout between Jeff Jarrett
Jeff Jarrett
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and wrestling promoter. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , an organization he co-founded along with his father and in which he holds some stock but not total control...
and the challenging Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash
Kevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. As of 2011, Nash is signed to a five year contract with WWE under their WWE Legends program and appears as part of their Raw brand roster...
. Gunn struck Nash with a chair, but he was able to kick out of Jarrett's subsequent pin attempt. After Gunn seized the NWA World Heavyweight Championship belt in order to strike Nash with it, B.G. James ran to the ring and wrestled it away from him.
B.G. James and Gunn, now renamed The New Age Outlaw (later shortened to just The Outlaw), came into conflict once more on April 24, at Lockdown
Lockdown (2005)
Lockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion, which took place on April 24, 2005 at the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida. It was the first event under the Lockdown chronology and the fourth event in the 2005 TNA PPV schedule...
, when Jarrett, The Outlaw and Monty Brown
Monty Brown
Monty Brown is an American professional wrestler and former National Football League linebacker, also known as Marcus Cor Von. He is best known for his time with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled on its ECW brand under the ring name Marcus Cor Von...
faced Diamond Dallas Page
Diamond Dallas Page
Dallas Page , better known by his ring name "Diamond" Dallas Page , is an American retired professional wrestler, fitness instructor and actor...
, Sean Waltman
Sean Waltman
Sean Michael Waltman is an American professional wrestler currently signed with WWE in their developmental program. He wrestled there under the ring names 1–2–3 Kid and X-Pac off and on from 1993–2002, World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Syxx, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ...
and B.G. James (who was replacing an injured Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash
Kevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. As of 2011, Nash is signed to a five year contract with WWE under their WWE Legends program and appears as part of their Raw brand roster...
) in a Lethal Lockdown match. Page, Waltman and James were victorious, although during the match James and The Outlaw refrained from fighting one another. Through October and November 2005, "The Outlaw" (now using the name Kip James, due to threats from the WWE that "The Outlaw" sounded too similar to their trademarked New Age Outlaws name) helped 3LK numerous times during their feud
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
with Team Canada
Team Canada (TNA)
Team Canada was a heel professional wrestling stable in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, which was active from 2004 to 2006.-2004 X-Cups:In 2004, wrestling promoter and personality "Coach" Scott D'Amore brought together fellow Canadians to form his own incarnation of Team Canada in Total Nonstop...
. Although he was obviously helping the Kru at every turn, Konnan refused to trust Kip.
On the November 26 episode of TNA Impact!
TNA iMPACT!
Impact Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling that currently airs in the United States and Canada on Spike...
, and even though Konnan had his doubts, 3LK inducted Kip into the group and renamed themselves the 4Live Kru. At Turning Point, however, Konnan turned on the group, eventually forming his own group, The Latin American Xchange (LAX). Killings also went out on his own afterward, leaving only Kip and B.G. together.
The James Gang (2006)
On January 14, 2006 Kip James and B.G. James, now calling themselves The James Gang, announced that they had reunited in the face of Konnan and his new group after LAX attacked BG's father "Bullet" Bob ArmstrongBob Armstrong
Joseph Melton James is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Bullet" Bob Armstrong. In the course of his career, which spanned five decades, Armstrong held numerous championships throughout the Southeastern United States...
. Their official in-ring reunion took place the next night at Final Resolution, where they defeated the Diamonds in the Rough
The Diamonds in the Rough
The Diamonds in the Rough was a professional wrestling stable in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, led by the eponymous Simon Diamond and consisting primarily of lower- to mid-card wrestlers...
. Their feud with LAX continued and included several more appearances by "Bullet" Bob Armstrong, including an Arm Wrestling match between Konnan and the 67-year-old Armstrong.
In May 2006, The James Gang began a feud with Team 3D
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
over which of them was the greatest tag team. The James Gang picked up a victory over Team 3D at Sacrifice after Kip used a pipe on Brother Devon. They met again at Slammiversary, with Team 3D picking up the win this time. With the teams standing at 1-1 (and Brother Runt
Matt Hyson
Matthew "Matt" Hyson is a retired American professional wrestler, best known for his performances in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Spike Dudley and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Brother Runt.In ECW, he was a two-time...
returning to in-ring action), Team 3D challenged The James Gang to find themselves a partner and face them (Brother Runt included) in a 6-man tag match at Victory Road. Whereas Team 3D expected them to get someone from their family (such as "Bullet" Bob Armstrong), the James Gang "made a deal with the devil" and paid James Mitchell to have Abyss
Chris Parks
Christopher J. "Chris" Parks , better known by his ring name "The Monster" Abyss, is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
team up with them instead. The James Gang and Abyss won the no-disqualification 6-man tag match after Abyss Black Hole Slammed Brother Runt onto a table and got the pin.
Voodoo Kin Mafia (2006–2008)
On the November 2 edition of Impact!, Kip and B.G. James cut a worked-shootShoot (professional wrestling)
A shoot in professional wrestling is a term that refers to any unplanned, unscripted or real-life occurrence within a wrestling event. Contrary to popular belief, the name does not originate from "shooting in" for a takedown, as in amateur wrestling - rather it is a carny term shortened from...
promo announcing they were quitting the company out of frustration. During the promo B.G. claimed that TNA had mismanaged him during his run there, and as Kip attempted to speak into the microphone it was cut off. Attempts to use an announcers microphone and scream directly to the crowd were met with another microphone cutting and then the show abruptly going to commercial.
After a November 11 house show
House show
A house show is a professional wrestling show run by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive during televised events, as well as test reactions to matches, wrestlers, and...
in Connecticut (where World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWE) is based) was canceled, TNA filmed a vignette at WWE headquarters featuring the James Gang discussing the show cancellation, posting it on their website two days later. This vignette was followed with a promo on the November 16 Impact!, during which they announced that they had been given "creative control", and were changing their name to the Voodoo Kin Mafia (VKM for short, a play on Vincent Kennedy McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
's initials) and declaring "war" on WWE. During the "war" they called out the revived D-Generation X (DX), calling it a "failure" and stated that the original run was saved by their insertion as The New Age Outlaws in 1998. During their matches and promos on TNA television they continually included references to DX, including use of their signature taunts and maneuvers. Soon a series of vignettes began airing on Impact! with B.G. and Kip in and around Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
, calling out Paul Levesque
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, Michael Hickenbottom
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
, and Vince McMahon. During the vignettes they said they were trying to get a cease and desist
Cease and desist
A cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....
letter signed and get WWE to stop using the DX name. The vignettes were notable for using the same style of humor as the original DX while running down the revived DX for doing the same thing.
When The Hardys
Hardy Boyz
The Hardy Boyz are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of real-life brothers Matt and Jeff Hardy...
reunited for December to Dismember and issued an open challenge the TNA website quickly posted a message from VKM accepting, though it had already been accepted by MNM
MNM
MNM was a villainous professional wrestling stable in World Wrestling Entertainment and Ohio Valley Wrestling that consisted of Joey Mercury , Johnny Nitro, and their manager Melina Perez....
. On December 1, VKM showed up at a WWE house show
House show
A house show is a professional wrestling show run by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive during televised events, as well as test reactions to matches, wrestlers, and...
at the Knoxville Civic Center with Vince Russo
Vince Russo
Vincent James "Vince" Russo is an American creative writer and author, well known for his work in the professional wrestling industry. He is notable for his tenure with World Wrestling Federation, World Championship Wrestling and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, Jeremy Borash
Jeremy Borash
Jeremy Borash , is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator, announcer, ring announcer, booker, interviewer, producer and website designer...
, and a camera crew. They interviewed fans outside, filmed themselves purchasing tickets and eventually entered the building, watching the main event match - featuring DX - from an upper level seat. At December's Turning Point, they performed a parody of DX, then, in response to Jim Ross
Jim Ross
James William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand...
commenting on his website that Vince McMahon probably would not respond to the "war", and in response to their still receiving of legal warnings from WWE, they issued a "Million Dollar Challenge" to Vince McMahon and DX, offering to put up $1 million for a big fight between the DX members and themselves. Hermie Sadler
Hermie Sadler
Herman Marion Sadler III is an American race car driver/announcer and professional wrestling promoter from Emporia, Virginia. He is also an advocate for autism research, as his daughter Hailie Dru, was diagnosed with the disorder in 2001...
of the UWF promotion later offered to host the "Million Dollar Challenge" at a UWF show during the weekend of WWE's Armageddon
Armageddon (2006)
Armageddon was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on December 17, 2006 at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Virginia. The event starred wrestlers from the SmackDown! brand.The main event was a tag team match, in which the team...
pay-per-view event (scheduled for December 17) citing that his event was close to Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
, the site of Armageddon. After the challenge was ignored, they narrowed it on the January 4 Impact!, challenging just Hickenbottom to meet them at the Alamo
Alamo Mission in San Antonio
The Alamo, originally known as Mission San Antonio de Valero, is a former Roman Catholic mission and fortress compound, site of the Battle of the Alamo in 1836, and now a museum, in San Antonio, Texas....
in his hometown of San Antonio the following Wednesday. VKM declared themselves victorious in their "war" during a promo at Final Resolution citing WWE's refusal to acknowledge their presence while fans loudly chanted both "TNA" and "VKM" during the January 8 episode of WWE Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
.
In the same promo, they entered an angle with Christy Hemme
Christy Hemme
Christina Lee "Christy" Hemme is an American actress, singer, model, professional wrestling valet and former professional wrestler. Hemme is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, as a backstage interviewer and ring announcer.-Early life:Hemme was born in Poway, California, but she...
, who declared that women deserve respect in wrestling and found herself heavily disagreed with and mocked by Kip James, while B.G. attempted to agree with her. To shut VKM up, Hemme brought in The Heartbreakers
The Heart Throbs
The Heart Throbs is the name of a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Antonio Thomas and Romeo Roselli, currently wrestling on the independent circuit. Thomas and Roselli are billed as being popular "with the ladies", and typically approach the ring while performing pelvic thrusts to the...
(Antonio Thomas
Tom Matera
Thomas "Tom" Matera is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Antonio Thomas. He is best known for his stint with World Wrestling Entertainment on the Raw brand as one half of The Heart Throbs....
and Romeo Roselli
Romeo Roselli
Giovanni Roselli best known as Romeo Roselli is a professional wrestler and actor best known for his stint with World Wrestling Entertainment on the Raw brand as one half of the "Heart Throbs" and is not to be confused with another wrestler by the name of Kid Romeo.-Career:Roselli began wrestling...
) in to TNA as mystery opponents at Destination X, but VKM made short work of them. Around this time, Lance Hoyt
Lance Hoyt
Lance Hoyt is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling as Lance Archer. He is best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time NWA World Tag Team Champion with Kid Kash while the title was under the TNA banner...
began hanging around with VKM, keeping Christy Hemme out of VKM's matches. In April, at Lockdown
Lockdown (2007)
Lockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, which took place on April 15, 2007 at the Family Arena in Saint Charles, Missouri. This was the second monthly pay-per-view, after Bound for Glory , to be held outside Orlando, Florida. It was the...
, Hemme had Serotonin face VKM on the pre-show, but again VKM came out victorious. At Sacrifice 2007, VKM lost to Hemme's new team Damaja and Basham
Doug Basham
This article is about the wrestler, for the talk show host see Doug Basham Lyle Douglas "Doug" Basham, Jr. is an American professional wrestler, He is best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment between 2002 and 2007, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name...
formerly known as The Basham Brothers in World Wrestling Entertainment, though not fairly, as Basham and Damaja injured (kayfabe) BG James before the match, making it a handicap match. VKM finally defeated Basham and Damaja at Slammiversary after Kip pinned Basham, but Lance Hoyt turned on VKM after the match. Weeks later, at the Victory Road pay-per-view, VKM debuted a new valet/accomplice, the so-called "Voodoo Queen" Roxxi Laveaux
Nicole Raczynski
Nicole Raczynski is an American professional wrestler, best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Roxxi...
. She attacked Hemme after VKM's match.
On February 21, 2008, Kip turned on his partner by hitting him and his father with a crutch in a tag title match against A.J. Styles and Tomko
A.J. Styles and Tomko
A.J. Styles and Tomko are former tag team partners in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling who were a part of two factions together, Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance....
, thus ending the team.
TNA creative writer Vince Russo stated that the Voodoo Kin Mafia gimmick was cut short out of respect to Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, who got injured at the time.
In wrestling
- Double team finishing moves
- Double flapjack dropped into a hangman – 1997–1998
- Spike piledriver
- ManagersManager (professional wrestling)In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
- Roxxi Laveaux
- Triple HTriple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
- ChynaJoanie LaurerChyna is a former American professional wrestler, actress, pornographic actress and former bodybuilder. She is best known for her career with the World Wrestling Federation from 1997 to 2001, where she was billed as "Chyna: 'The Ninth Wonder of the World'"...
- Lance HoytLance HoytLance Hoyt is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling as Lance Archer. He is best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time NWA World Tag Team Champion with Kid Kash while the title was under the TNA banner...
- Entrance themesMusic in professional wrestlingMusic in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
- "Oh, You Didn't Know?" by Jim JohnstonJim Johnston (composer)James Alan "Jim" Johnston is an American music composer who has been working for WWE since 1985. His work is often accredited to the names Jim Johnston, James A...
(WWF) (1997–1999,1999–2000) - "Break It Down" by The DX BandChris Warren (musician)Christopher Warren is an American musician who has performed in numerous bands. He is currently the singer in...
(WWF; Used while a part of D-Generation XD-Generation XD-Generation X was a professional wrestling stable in WWE . The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" from 1997 to 2000...
) (1998–1999,1999–2000) - "Nobody Moves" by Dale OliverDale OliverDale Byron Oliver is an American music composer who works for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. Formerly a guitarist in BackHawk , Oliver serves mainly as a composer of theme music used in professional wrestling.-Music composer for TNA:Since 2003, Oliver writes, records, and produces music under...
(TNA) - "In My House" by Dale Oliver (TNA)
- "Oh, You Didn't Know?" by Jim Johnston
Championships and accomplishments
- Maryland Championship WrestlingMaryland Championship WrestlingMaryland Championship Wrestling is a regional independent wrestling promotion based in Dundalk, Maryland, and has regularly run events in the Mid-Atlantic region since the late 1990s as well as participating in numerous fundraising events throughout the state.Rivaling other east coast independent...
- MCW Tag Team ChampionshipMCW Tag Team ChampionshipThe MCW Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling tag team championship owned by the Maryland Championship Wrestling promotion. The title was created and debuted on August 18, 1998 at a MCW live event....
(1 time)
- MCW Tag Team Championship
- Pro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
- PWI ranked them #43 of the 100 best tag teamTag teamTag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
s of the PWI Years in 2003 - PWI Tag Team of the Year (1998)
- PWI ranked them #43 of the 100 best tag team
- TWA Powerhouse
- TWA Tag Team Championship (1 time)
- World Wrestling FederationWorld Wrestling EntertainmentWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
- WWF Hardcore ChampionshipWWE Hardcore ChampionshipThe World Wrestling Entertainment Hardcore Championship is a hardcore wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and is contested under "hardcore" rules, meaning there is no disqualifications, no countouts, and pin falls could be counted anywhere...
(3 times) – Road Dogg (1) and Billy Gunn (2) - WWF Intercontinental ChampionshipWWE Intercontinental ChampionshipThe WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
(2 times) – Road Dogg (1) and Billy Gunn (1) - WWF Tag Team Championship (5 times)
- WWF Hardcore Championship