Tony D’Angelo just pulled back the curtain on a scrapped WWE NXT plan — and it would’ve paired him with Bron Breakker as a modern-day version of the Steiner Brothers.
Speaking on the No-Contest Wrestling podcast, D’Angelo revealed that the idea wasn’t just talk — it was already being developed behind the scenes before WWE NXT hit its major reset with NXT 2.0.
“When we first got in, me and Bron were in a tag together. So we were doing that for a minute. Not on TV, but they were priming us. This is what you’re gonna do, kind of like the new age Steiner Brothers type of deal. I was wearing a singlet, but I was wearing a singlet before that anyway, so that wasn’t foreign.”
The plan never made it anywhere near television — and the shift came fast. According to D’Angelo, Road Dogg personally delivered the update right as NXT transitioned into its 2.0 era.
“I just remember one day, Road Dogg came up and he was like, hey man, we’re not doing this. This is right when 2.0 first kicked off. They kind of just said, clean slate, everybody, we kind of have a lane for you, and I had to figure out quick what I was gonna do.”
From there, everything changed. D’Angelo pivoted into his “Don of NXT” role and built his own faction alongside Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo, while Breakker was pushed straight into the singles spotlight — eventually becoming a multi-time NXT Champion and moving up the ladder.
And here’s the twist — the tag team idea didn’t completely disappear from Breakker’s career. Years later, Breakker teamed with Baron Corbin in NXT and captured the Tag Team Championships by defeating D’Angelo and Lorenzo. The exact kind of pairing originally pitched — just with a completely different partner and outcome.
It’s a rare look at how quickly plans can shift behind the scenes — and how one creative decision can completely change multiple careers overnight.
Do you think WWE should’ve followed through with the D’Angelo–Breakker tag team idea, or did things work out better with both men going their separate ways? Drop your thoughts and feedback below.