Christian's Coalition
Encyclopedia
Christian's Coalition / Team Cage was a villainous
professional wrestling
faction in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
(TNA) led by Christian Cage. Shortly after the disbanding of the stable, the Team Cage name was reinstated to a new temporary team of crowd favorites
also led by Christian.
The Christian Coalition name was recycled from Christian and Tomko
's first run as partners, from 2004-2005 in World Wrestling Entertainment
; one of the names the two then referred to Christian's fan base as was the Christian Coalition.
, Christian Cage originally brought Tomko
in to TNA as a personal enforcer in late-2006 to help him regain the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
. It proved a smart move on his part when Tomko helped him defeat reigning champion Abyss
and Sting in a Triple Threat Elimination match at the January 2007 Final Resolution pay-per-view
event.
During the same event, Kurt Angle
became the number one contender to the NWA World Heavyweight title and moved into a feud
with Cage. To prepare for his match with Angle, Cage brought Scott Steiner
in as a "trainer", citing an intense dislike Steiner had for Angle at the time (which Steiner later explained as all contract negotiations involving himself having been put on indefinite hold by Angle's coming to TNA). This also proved to be good strategy when the "Christian Coalition", as the three men now referred to themselves, helped Cage retain his title at February's Against All Odds.
Although all three men were working together on Cage's behalf, from the start there was dissension evident. Tomko frequently commented on his distrust and dislike of Steiner, and after he won a match over new number one contender Samoa Joe
on an episode of TNA Impact!
, Tomko began demanding a shot at Cage's title. Later he took a (kayfabe) sudden trip to Japan (which had actually been set up well in advance, to compete for the IWGP Tag Team Championship along with Giant Bernard) that coincided with the Destination X pay-per-view. During the event Steiner also abandoned Cage prior to his main event match, forcing him to seek out a replacement enforcer for the event. He would be unsuccessful in that venture, yet still manage to defeat Samoa Joe
to retain his World Heavyweight title.
were informed by TNA management director Jim Cornette that they would each be captaining five-man teams to compete in a Lethal Lockdown cage match at the upcoming PPV Lockdown
. In the upcoming weeks, the Coalition got back together as part of a bigger unit under the name "Team Cage" (also including Abyss and A.J. Styles
), while Team Angle went on to comprise of Angle, Joe, Sting (to counter Abyss), Rhino (to counter Styles), and Jeff Jarrett
. At the match itself, Team Angle won when Jarrett hit Abyss with a thumbtack-loaded guitar and let Sting make the pin to become number one contender to Cage's title.
The following Impact!, after Cage and Abyss failed to take the NWA World Tag Team Championship
from Team 3D
, Abyss was kicked off the team with a beating involving steel chairs and a barbed wire baseball bat. Soon after Tomko and Steiner began chasing the NWA World Tag Team Championship
culminating in a 3 Way tag team match at TNA Sacrifice
with The Latin American Exchange (LAX) which they lost. Shortly afterwards, Tomko and Steiner had communication problems which caused Rick Steiner
to help his brother attack Tomko. Claiming trust issues prior to the event, Scott Steiner turned to family
and left Team Cage, following which they began to be referred to once again as "Christian's Coalition". On May 31, 2007 A.J. Styles
defeated Tomko
in a King of the Mountain qualifying match thanks to a distraction from Christian Cage.
, while the Coalition continued feuding with Sting and Abyss. At Victory Road, Cage defeated Harris, but Styles and Tomko lost to Sting and Abyss.
Robert Roode had a match with Christian's Coalition on the last Impact! before Victory Road, and was seen trying to help them on the first Impact after. On July 26, Mike Tenay cited Roode as a member of Christian's Coalition. Acting as such in helping them lay out Sting and Abyss, Roode seemed to be competing with A.J. Styles for Christian's right hand status. However, he appeared apart from the group in all the immediate weeks after, with no mention of Roode and manager Ms. Brooks
being in the Coalition. This suggests they were more of allies than members of the Coalition.
In addition, Sting and Abyss secured a contract for an Abyss vs. Christian match at Hard Justice 2007 with the help of the TNA debut of "The Punisher" Andrew Martin to counteract Tomko's role in the Coalition as an enforcer. At the Impact! prior to Hard Justice, Jim Cornette announced that Christian's Coalition would take on Abyss, Sting and Andrew Martin in a Doomsday Chamber of Blood match at Hard Justice in which the wrestler who scores the pinfall for his team in the match would receive the next title shot at the TNA World Heavyweight Championship
. This was a barbed wire six sides of steel cage match that could only be won by pinning an opponent after they've been busted open. At Hard Justice, Christian's Coalition was defeated, as Abyss pinned A.J. Styles for the win. After this, Christian and his Coalition would move into a feud with Samoa Joe
over who the "real World Heavyweight Champion" is, having both been screwed out of the title to Angle's benefit in recent weeks. On the September 6 episode of Impact!, the forgotten alliance with Robert Roode was decisively ended, as he and Tomko got into a momentary heated confrontation over his treatment of Ms. Brooks. At No Surrender, Styles and Tomko would win the a 10 Team Gauntlet Match to become the number one contenders for the TNA World Tag Team Championship
at Bound for Glory
against the team of Adam "Pacman" Jones
and Ron "the Truth" Killings
. Cage would defeat Joe by disqualification at the same event. Bound For Glory was bittersweet for the Coalition, as A.J. Styles and Tomko
defeated Killings and Rasheed Lucius "Consequences" Creed (substituting for Jones, who would instead manage his team
that night) for the TNA Tag Team Titles, but Samoa Joe (with Matt Morgan as the special enforcer) would defeat Cage via submission with the Coquina Clutch, ending Christian's TNA-record 23 month streak of not being pinned or forced to submit since arriving in TNA.
at Genesis, Styles and Tomko came out during Christian's number one contendership ladder match with Kaz
right as Cage was about to win, despite his specific instructions not to. This distracted Cage, costing him the match. Immediately after, they would assist Kurt Angle in retaining his TNA World Heavyweight Championship
, officially joining Kurt and his wife Karen in the Angle Alliance. From there, Styles and a very skeptical Tomko would attempt, despite the clashing egos and animosity between Christian and the Angles, to be part of both the Angle Alliance and the Christian Coalition. Meanwhile, Cage momentarily found an ally in Robert Roode, goading Roode into a feud with Booker T
, before that quickly broke down at the Turning Point PPV.
The next Impact! Roode and Cage joined Angle's group, though Christian's membership came on the condition that he became leader of all five of them. Surprisingly, Angle accepted with only momentary hesitation. The newly united stable first worked together for the main event later that evening, but after miscommunication cost them the match, Christian argued with and was attacked by Roode and Angle as Styles tried to hold them back and Tomko just walked away. Christian was clearly out of the Angle Alliance, but status was unknown for Styles and Tomko as far as either the Alliance or the Coalition. On Impact the week after Cage was again attacked by Angle and Roode but this time an upset looking Styles just watched from the ring apron.
In the weeks since, Tomko made it clear to Styles that they needed to choose sides, and while Styles had been indecisive to no end, Tomko firmly established his own foothold in the situation by leaving both the Coalition and the Alliance on the January 3, 2008 edition of Impact. At Final Resolution, after being seduced in a bathroom stall by Kurt's wife Karen Angle
, Styles helped Kurt Angle
defeat Cage, making his decision to leave the Coalition. Tomko put the final nail in the Coalition's coffin when he helped Angle defeat Cage at Against All Odds 2008 and announced on the following edition of Impact! that he was officially joining the Angle Alliance. Christian would attempt to enact revenge by banding together with new number one contender Samoa Joe and Joe's new adviser Kevin Nash
in a group he called the "Unlikely Alliance".
, Christian Cage and Tomko would be assigned to captain opposing teams for the next Lethal Lockdown match at the next pay-per-view, Lockdown
. In response to Tomko acquiring Team 3D to join him and A.J., Christian and Kevin Nash
's new Team Cage was assembled by reconciling Cage's issues with Rhino
(stemming from Christian's pre-Coalition villainous turn in 2006), bringing back the icon Sting from his latest hiatus, and enlisting Matt Morgan to trick Team Tomko by allowing James Storm
to join their ranks a week after attacking Sting, only so Morgan could turn around and join Team Cage himself at the end of that same Impact!. At Lockdown Team Cage won after Rhino hit Storm with the Gore. The group instantly dissolved into separate units soon thereafter, seemingly ending the story of the Christian Coalition/Team Cage once and for all with longtime friends Christian Cage and Rhino, whose initial falling out in 2006 led to Christian turning against the fans and forming the Coalition, now forming a regular tag team.
Later on, due to having common enemies in Kurt Angle, Team 3D, Booker T and Tomko, Christian and Rhino would also reconcile with A.J. Styles, as the three of them became loose allies. Tomko, meanwhile, later left TNA for Japan, but ended up coming back for one last appearance against Samoa Joe when many of his Inoki Genome Federation
bookings were canceled, before he tried out and Christian signed back with their former employer WWE
.
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...
professional wrestling
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...
faction in 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) led by Christian Cage. Shortly after the disbanding of the stable, the Team Cage name was reinstated to a new temporary team of crowd favorites
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...
also led by Christian.
The Christian Coalition name was recycled from Christian and Tomko
Travis Tomko
Travis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko, who most recently worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he previously was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his...
's first run as partners, from 2004-2005 in 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...
; one of the names the two then referred to Christian's fan base as was the Christian Coalition.
Formation
Reprising that shared role between the two started from 2004-2005 in WWEWorld 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...
, Christian Cage originally brought Tomko
Travis Tomko
Travis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko, who most recently worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he previously was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his...
in to TNA as a personal enforcer in late-2006 to help him regain 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...
. It proved a smart move on his part when Tomko helped him defeat reigning champion 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...
and Sting in a Triple Threat Elimination match at the January 2007 Final Resolution pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
event.
During the same event, Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
became the number one contender to the NWA World Heavyweight title and moved into 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...
with Cage. To prepare for his match with Angle, Cage brought Scott Steiner
Scott Steiner
Scott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...
in as a "trainer", citing an intense dislike Steiner had for Angle at the time (which Steiner later explained as all contract negotiations involving himself having been put on indefinite hold by Angle's coming to TNA). This also proved to be good strategy when the "Christian Coalition", as the three men now referred to themselves, helped Cage retain his title at February's Against All Odds.
Although all three men were working together on Cage's behalf, from the start there was dissension evident. Tomko frequently commented on his distrust and dislike of Steiner, and after he won a match over new number one contender Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
on an 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...
, Tomko began demanding a shot at Cage's title. Later he took a (kayfabe) sudden trip to Japan (which had actually been set up well in advance, to compete for the IWGP Tag Team Championship along with Giant Bernard) that coincided with the Destination X pay-per-view. During the event Steiner also abandoned Cage prior to his main event match, forcing him to seek out a replacement enforcer for the event. He would be unsuccessful in that venture, yet still manage to defeat Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
to retain his World Heavyweight title.
Team Cage
Immediately following Destination X, Cage and Kurt AngleKurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
were informed by TNA management director Jim Cornette that they would each be captaining five-man teams to compete in a Lethal Lockdown cage match at the upcoming PPV 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...
. In the upcoming weeks, the Coalition got back together as part of a bigger unit under the name "Team Cage" (also including Abyss and A.J. Styles
A.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
), while Team Angle went on to comprise of Angle, Joe, Sting (to counter Abyss), Rhino (to counter Styles), and 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...
. At the match itself, Team Angle won when Jarrett hit Abyss with a thumbtack-loaded guitar and let Sting make the pin to become number one contender to Cage's title.
The following Impact!, after Cage and Abyss failed to take 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:...
from 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...
, Abyss was kicked off the team with a beating involving steel chairs and a barbed wire baseball bat. Soon after Tomko and Steiner began chasing 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:...
culminating in a 3 Way tag team match at TNA Sacrifice
TNA Sacrifice
Sacrifice is an annual professional wrestling pay-per-view event held by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling in the month of May. The first one was held in August 2005. When event names were shuffled by TNA for 2006, the event was moved to May. Sacrifice has had a tradition of being the final round of...
with The Latin American Exchange (LAX) which they lost. Shortly afterwards, Tomko and Steiner had communication problems which caused Rick Steiner
Rick Steiner
Robert Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler, better known under his ring name Rick Steiner.Steiner is best known for his tenure with World Championship Wrestling, where he was an eight time World Tag Team Champion...
to help his brother attack Tomko. Claiming trust issues prior to the event, Scott Steiner turned to family
The Steiner Brothers
The Steiner Brothers are the professional wrestling tag team of American brothers Robert "Rick Steiner" Rechsteiner and Scott "Scott Steiner" Rechsteiner...
and left Team Cage, following which they began to be referred to once again as "Christian's Coalition". On May 31, 2007 A.J. Styles
A.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
defeated Tomko
Travis Tomko
Travis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko, who most recently worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he previously was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his...
in a King of the Mountain qualifying match thanks to a distraction from Christian Cage.
The Coalition with A.J. Styles and Tomko
On June 14, Cage's qualifying opponent was Abyss, who had laid out Tomko and stopped him from coming out for an earlier match on which Styles would be on the opposite side. With Styles and Tomko's help, Cage won by disqualification after Abyss hit him with a steel chair and managed to escape the monster. At Slammiversary, Tomko lost to Abyss in a no DQ match after taking a Black Hole Slam through broken glass, and both Styles and Christian lost the King of the Mountain match. Christian would then enter into a feud with "the Wildcat" Chris HarrisChris Harris (wrestler)
Christopher Eric "Chris" Harris is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he was formerly one-half of the tag team America's Most Wanted along with partner & Former TNA World Heavyweight Champion James Storm.-World Championship...
, while the Coalition continued feuding with Sting and Abyss. At Victory Road, Cage defeated Harris, but Styles and Tomko lost to Sting and Abyss.
Robert Roode had a match with Christian's Coalition on the last Impact! before Victory Road, and was seen trying to help them on the first Impact after. On July 26, Mike Tenay cited Roode as a member of Christian's Coalition. Acting as such in helping them lay out Sting and Abyss, Roode seemed to be competing with A.J. Styles for Christian's right hand status. However, he appeared apart from the group in all the immediate weeks after, with no mention of Roode and manager Ms. Brooks
Tracy Brookshaw
Tracy Brookshaw is a Canadian professional wrestler, professional wrestling valet and professional wrestling referee, better known by her ring name Traci Brooks. She is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she has spent most of her career.-Early life:Brookshaw grew up on a...
being in the Coalition. This suggests they were more of allies than members of the Coalition.
In addition, Sting and Abyss secured a contract for an Abyss vs. Christian match at Hard Justice 2007 with the help of the TNA debut of "The Punisher" Andrew Martin to counteract Tomko's role in the Coalition as an enforcer. At the Impact! prior to Hard Justice, Jim Cornette announced that Christian's Coalition would take on Abyss, Sting and Andrew Martin in a Doomsday Chamber of Blood match at Hard Justice in which the wrestler who scores the pinfall for his team in the match would receive the next title shot at the TNA World Heavyweight Championship
TNA World Heavyweight Championship
The TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division...
. This was a barbed wire six sides of steel cage match that could only be won by pinning an opponent after they've been busted open. At Hard Justice, Christian's Coalition was defeated, as Abyss pinned A.J. Styles for the win. After this, Christian and his Coalition would move into a feud with Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
over who the "real World Heavyweight Champion" is, having both been screwed out of the title to Angle's benefit in recent weeks. On the September 6 episode of Impact!, the forgotten alliance with Robert Roode was decisively ended, as he and Tomko got into a momentary heated confrontation over his treatment of Ms. Brooks. At No Surrender, Styles and Tomko would win the a 10 Team Gauntlet Match to become the number one contenders for the TNA World Tag Team Championship
TNA World Tag Team Championship
The TNA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested within TNA's tag team division. It was created and debuted on May 14, 2007 at the taping of TNA's primary television program,...
at Bound for Glory
Bound for Glory (2007)
Bound for Glory was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on October 14, 2007 at the Gwinnett Center in the Atlanta suburb of Duluth, Georgia. It was the third event under the Bound for Glory chronology...
against the team of Adam "Pacman" Jones
Adam Jones (American football)
Adam "Pac-Man" Bernard Jones is an American cornerback and return specialist who is currently playing for the Cincinnati Bengals. He was drafted in the first round with the sixth-overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans. He played college football at West Virginia.Jones has also...
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...
. Cage would defeat Joe by disqualification at the same event. Bound For Glory was bittersweet for the Coalition, as 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....
defeated Killings and Rasheed Lucius "Consequences" Creed (substituting for Jones, who would instead manage his team
Team Pacman
Team Pacman was a heel professional wrestling tag team in the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. The team, originally consisting of National Football League player Adam "Pacman" Jones and his partner Ron "The Truth" Killings, held the TNA World Tag Team Championship once, but when Jones'...
that night) for the TNA Tag Team Titles, but Samoa Joe (with Matt Morgan as the special enforcer) would defeat Cage via submission with the Coquina Clutch, ending Christian's TNA-record 23 month streak of not being pinned or forced to submit since arriving in TNA.
Split via defections (Angle Alliance)
After retaining the tag titles against The Steiner BrothersThe Steiner Brothers
The Steiner Brothers are the professional wrestling tag team of American brothers Robert "Rick Steiner" Rechsteiner and Scott "Scott Steiner" Rechsteiner...
at Genesis, Styles and Tomko came out during Christian's number one contendership ladder match with Kaz
Frankie Kazarian
Frank B. Gerdelman is an Armenian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Frankie Kazarian or simply Kazarian. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
right as Cage was about to win, despite his specific instructions not to. This distracted Cage, costing him the match. Immediately after, they would assist Kurt Angle in retaining his TNA World Heavyweight Championship
TNA World Heavyweight Championship
The TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division...
, officially joining Kurt and his wife Karen in the Angle Alliance. From there, Styles and a very skeptical Tomko would attempt, despite the clashing egos and animosity between Christian and the Angles, to be part of both the Angle Alliance and the Christian Coalition. Meanwhile, Cage momentarily found an ally in Robert Roode, goading Roode into a feud with Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
, before that quickly broke down at the Turning Point PPV.
The next Impact! Roode and Cage joined Angle's group, though Christian's membership came on the condition that he became leader of all five of them. Surprisingly, Angle accepted with only momentary hesitation. The newly united stable first worked together for the main event later that evening, but after miscommunication cost them the match, Christian argued with and was attacked by Roode and Angle as Styles tried to hold them back and Tomko just walked away. Christian was clearly out of the Angle Alliance, but status was unknown for Styles and Tomko as far as either the Alliance or the Coalition. On Impact the week after Cage was again attacked by Angle and Roode but this time an upset looking Styles just watched from the ring apron.
In the weeks since, Tomko made it clear to Styles that they needed to choose sides, and while Styles had been indecisive to no end, Tomko firmly established his own foothold in the situation by leaving both the Coalition and the Alliance on the January 3, 2008 edition of Impact. At Final Resolution, after being seduced in a bathroom stall by Kurt's wife Karen Angle
Karen Angle
Karen Jarrett is an American professional wrestling valet and personality, currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, Styles helped Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
defeat Cage, making his decision to leave the Coalition. Tomko put the final nail in the Coalition's coffin when he helped Angle defeat Cage at Against All Odds 2008 and announced on the following edition of Impact! that he was officially joining the Angle Alliance. Christian would attempt to enact revenge by banding together with new number one contender Samoa Joe and Joe's new adviser 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 group he called the "Unlikely Alliance".
The New Team Cage (Lockdown 2008)
Following the Unlikely Alliance's win over the Angle Alliance in a six-man tag team match at Destination X 2008Destination X (2008)
Destination X was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion, which took place on March 9, 2008 at the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, Virginia. It was the fourth event under the Destination X chronology and the third event in the 2008 TNA PPV...
, Christian Cage and Tomko would be assigned to captain opposing teams for the next Lethal Lockdown match at the next pay-per-view, Lockdown
Lockdown (2008)
Lockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on April 13, 2008 at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts. It was the fourth annual event under the Lockdown chronology. Eight professional wrestling matches were featured...
. In response to Tomko acquiring Team 3D to join him and A.J., Christian and 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...
's new Team Cage was assembled by reconciling Cage's issues with Rhino
Terry Gerin
Terrance "Terry" Gerin is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by the ring name Rhino . He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
(stemming from Christian's pre-Coalition villainous turn in 2006), bringing back the icon Sting from his latest hiatus, and enlisting Matt Morgan to trick Team Tomko by allowing James Storm
James Storm
James Allen Cox is an American professional wrestler who competes under the ring name "The Cowboy" James Storm. Since 2002, Storm has been employed by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he, along with A.J...
to join their ranks a week after attacking Sting, only so Morgan could turn around and join Team Cage himself at the end of that same Impact!. At Lockdown Team Cage won after Rhino hit Storm with the Gore. The group instantly dissolved into separate units soon thereafter, seemingly ending the story of the Christian Coalition/Team Cage once and for all with longtime friends Christian Cage and Rhino, whose initial falling out in 2006 led to Christian turning against the fans and forming the Coalition, now forming a regular tag team.
Later on, due to having common enemies in Kurt Angle, Team 3D, Booker T and Tomko, Christian and Rhino would also reconcile with A.J. Styles, as the three of them became loose allies. Tomko, meanwhile, later left TNA for Japan, but ended up coming back for one last appearance against Samoa Joe when many of his Inoki Genome Federation
Inoki Genome Federation
Inoki Genome Federation is a professional wrestling promotion in Japan founded by Antonio Inoki in 2007.The IGF is now also the official National Wrestling Alliance territory of Japan, since Antonio Inoki is the person who holds those rights and transferred them to IGF from New Japan Pro...
bookings were canceled, before he tried out and Christian signed back with their former employer WWE
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...
.
Former Group Members (Heel) (Christian's Coalition)
- A.J. StylesA.J. StylesAllen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
(who reconciled with Christian and Rhino after the Team Cage/Tomko wars) - TomkoTravis TomkoTravis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko, who most recently worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he previously was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his...
- Robert Roode (with Ms. BrooksTracy BrookshawTracy Brookshaw is a Canadian professional wrestler, professional wrestling valet and professional wrestling referee, better known by her ring name Traci Brooks. She is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she has spent most of her career.-Early life:Brookshaw grew up on a...
) - Scott SteinerScott SteinerScott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...
- AbyssChris ParksChristopher J. "Chris" Parks , better known by his ring name "The Monster" Abyss, is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
(with Father James Mitchell) - James StormJames BlackJames Black was the creator of the original Bowie knife designed by Jim Bowie.-Early life:James Black was born in Hackensack, New Jersey on 1 May 1800. James' mother died when he was very young and he had difficulty getting along with his stepmother. Black ran away from home to Philadelphia,...
Former Group Members (Face) (Team Cage)
- Kevin NashKevin NashKevin 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...
- RhinoTerry GerinTerrance "Terry" Gerin is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by the ring name Rhino . He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
(who stayed friend and partner to Christian after the end of Team Cage) - Sting
- Matt Morgan
In wrestling
- Double team finishing moves
- A.J. Styles and TomkoA.J. Styles and TomkoA.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....
- Tornado-Plex (Aided whiplash)
- A.J. Styles and Tomko
Championships and accomplishments
- Total Nonstop Action WrestlingTotal Nonstop Action WrestlingTotal 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...
- NWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe 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...
(1 time) - Christian Cage - TNA World Tag Team ChampionshipTNA World Tag Team ChampionshipThe TNA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested within TNA's tag team division. It was created and debuted on May 14, 2007 at the taping of TNA's primary television program,...
(1 time) - A.J. Styles and TomkoA.J. Styles and TomkoA.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....
- NWA World Heavyweight Championship