The Nasty Boys

The Nasty Boys
The Nasty Boys
Tag team
Members	Brian Knobbs; Jerry Sags
Name(s)	The Nasty Boys
Billed heights	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) (Knobbs); 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) (Sags)
Combined; billed weight	546 lb (248 kg; 39.0 st)
Hometown	Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania, United States
Billed from	"Nastyville"
Debut	1986
Disbanded	2000s
Trainer	Verne Gagne; Brad Rheingans

This article is about the wrestling team. For other uses, see Nasty Boys (disambiguation).

The Nasty Boys were a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Brian Knobbs and Jerry Sags, active in the mid to late 1980s and throughout the 1990s. Their gimmick was that of anti-social punks who specialized in hardcore wrestling and brawling.

Former professional wrestler Mick Foley described the Nasty Boys in his autobiography as "sloppy as hell, and more than a little dangerous, but they knew how to brawl."

Career

Unlike most professional wrestling tag teams, Jerry Sags and Brian Knobbs were childhood friends (both hailing from Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania^[1]) who put themselves together (whereas most tag teams were and still are matched together by bookers). They began their careers in the American Wrestling Association in 1985 and began teaming together as The Nasty Boys in 1986. In 1988, they moved to Florida Championship Wrestling, where they won five Tag Team Championship between 1989 and 1990.

In 1990, the Nasty Boys joined the National Wrestling Alliance affiliate Jim Crockett Promotions, soon to be renamed World Championship Wrestling. They initially feuded with Rick and Scott Steiner but were unable to defeat the Steiner Brothers for the United States Tag Team Championships.

The Nasty Boys left WCW in December 1990 and joined the World Wrestling Federation. Along with their manager Jimmy Hart, they announced their intention to "Nastisize the WWF". After becoming the number one contenders by winning a seven team battle royal on the February 16, 1991 airing of Superstars of Wrestling (last eliminating the Legion of Doom), they defeated The Hart Foundation for the WWF World Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania VII, and held the titles until SummerSlam 1991, when they were defeated by the Legion of Doom in a street fight. They turned face in the fall of 1992 to feud with Jimmy Hart's Money Incorporated over the tag team titles, but were unable to recapture the gold.

The Nasty Boys returned to WCW in 1993, where they were managed by Missy Hyatt. Hyatt left the Nasty Boys after their first reign as WCW World Tag Team Champions, and they went on to feud with tag teams such as Harlem Heat and the Blue Bloods. In 1996, the New World Order offered them membership in the nWo, but attacked them as soon as they received their nWo t-shirts. Sags retired later that year, and Knobbs began pursuing the WCW Hardcore Championship.

The Nasty Boys were briefly reunited in the short-lived XWF, but both retired when it closed. Since retirement the boys have both appeared on Hogan Knows Best along with WWE Magazine's Where are they now section.

On November 20, 2007, Brian Knobbs and Jerry Saggs reformed as The Nasty Boys at the SmackDown! tapings from Tampa, Florida to wrestle their first WWE match in years. The crowd loved the hometown team and the Nasty Boys received one of the largest "pops" of the night.^{[citation needed]} They recently wrestled at a NWA Showcase taping.

Reputation

The Nasty Boys have a reputation of being very stiff with their opponents.^[2] They have also been involved in several legitimate fights with other wrestlers also ribbing (pranking backstage) them:

UFC mixed martial artist Ken Shamrock had an argument with the Nasty Boys after they harassed his friend and his friend's fiancée in a nightclub. Later that night, Shamrock went to The Nasty Boys' hotel room to continue the argument, but was hit from behind and beaten. Shamrock confronted Saggs years later in an airport, but decided not to attack him after sufficiently intimidating him.
The Nasty Boys fought with Ric Flair in a Manhattan nightclub, with Flair being thrown out of the club as a result.
In 1994, The Nasty Boys faced Cactus Jack and Maxx Payne in a series of wild brawls,^[2] which Payne later described as "not far away from gladiator days".
In 1997, a match between The Nasty Boys and The Outsiders (Scott Hall and Kevin Nash) degenerated into a shoot. ^[3]
On Nov 20th, 2007, on their return match to Smackdown, they worked stiff with Dave Taylor (who is a seasoned veteran) and newcomer Drew Macintyre.

Wrestling facts

Finishing and signature moves
- Trip to Nastyville (Knobbs would execute a Running powerslam, then Sags would climb to the top rope and perform a Diving elbow drop.)
- Clubberin’ (The Nasty Boys would simultaneously repeatedly punch their opponents) - named by Dusty Rhodes who, while commentating, would announce to his partner Tony Schiavone: "They be clubberin', Tony!"
- Double DDT
- Pit Stop / Pity City (One of the Nasty Boys would raise their arm, exposing their armpit while the other Nasty Boy would seize a victim by the back of the neck and rub his face into the other Nasty Boy's armpit)
- Irish whip-assisted corner splash