Badd Company
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| Badd Company | |
|---|---|
| Tag team | |
| Members | Paul Diamond Pat Tanaka |
| Name(s) | Badd Company The Orient Express |
| Heights | 6 ft 1 in (183 cm) – [Paul Diamond] 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) – [Pat Tanaka] |
| Combined weight | 455 lb (206 kg) |
| Debuted | 1988 |
| Disbanded | 1996 |
| Promotions | AWA WWF |
Badd Company was a professional wrestling tag team in the American Wrestling Association in the late 1980s, which later went by the name the Orient Express. It is rumored that the team name was derived from the rock band Bad Company. In fact, the band's song "Bad Company" was used as Badd Company's theme song.
Contents |
[edit] AWA
Badd Company was formed when Pat Tanaka and Paul Diamond started teaming in 1986 in the Continental Wrestling Association, where they held the federation's tag-team titles four times. They then moved on to the American Wrestling Association. They wore identical ring gear, and were accompanied by flamboyant manager Diamond Dallas Page, who always had some valets, known as the Diamond Dolls, with him.
The team's first feud was against The Midnight Rockers, whom they defeated for the AWA World Tag Team Championship. They held the titles for a year, and feuded heavily with Chavo and Mando Guerrero before losing their titles in 1989 to Brad Rheingans and Ken Patera.
Shortly after losing their titles they split from Page, and had a short feud against each other before wrestling in singles competition until early 1990.
[edit] WWF
Pat Tanaka later signed with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), where he formed another tag team called The Orient Express with Akio Sato, managed by Mr. Fuji. Ironically, Pat Tanaka was Hawaiian. Paul Diamond was soon signed with the WWF as well, as a singles competitor.
When Sato decided leave the American wrestling scene, Diamond donned a mask and wrestled as "Kato" with Tanaka throughout 1991 and early 1992. During this time the team had a very well received match with their old enemies the Rockers at the 1991 Royal Rumble and another good match against the New Foundation at the 1992 Royal Rumble. These which were the only two pay-per-view appearances for the New Orient Express.
Sato briefly rejoined the team during the end of their run in the WWF, and they wrestled in six-man tag team competition for a short while until both Tanaka and Sato left the company. Diamond went on to wrestle as a singles competitor in the WWF, first as Kato, then later on he was chosen to take over the Max Moon costume after Konnan left the WWF, neither gimmick meeting with very much success.
[edit] After the WWF
Pat Tanaka resurfaced in WCW a couple of years later, and Paul Diamond showed up with the Kato mask on using the name “Haito”. The two men even wrestled a couple of matches together, but they never achieved any notoriety in WCW and finally spilt up for good in 1995-96.
[edit] In wrestling
- Finishing moves
-
- Superkick-Plex (Superkick into Bridged dragon suplex)
- Slingshot DDT (Diamond would perform a slingshot catapult; Tanaka would catch the opponent by the head in the air and execute a Jumping DDT)
[edit] Championships and accomplishments
-
- AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (1 time)
- AWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time)
