The Motor City Machine Guns are almost free to begin the next chapter of their legendary careers, and Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley appear to have already decided where that chapter will take place.
Sabin released a new video through the Motor City Machine Guns’ official social media accounts on Thursday, July 16, titled “Release.” Instead of issuing a conventional statement about their departure from WWE, Sabin and Shelley turned the situation into a dry, self-aware comedy sketch built around the five stages of grief.
The two longtime partners work their way through denial, anger, bargaining and depression before a box containing several wrestling contracts suddenly arrives. Sabin and Shelley sift through the offers, dismissing several ridiculous possibilities before discovering one that changes the tone of the video.
They reach the final stage: acceptance.
The destination is never shown, no company is named and no logo appears on screen. However, the closing scene leaves little doubt that the Motor City Machine Guns have either accepted their next deal or are close enough to an agreement that they are comfortable publicly teasing it.
The timing was not accidental. Sabin and Shelley were released by WWE on April 24 following WrestleMania 42, and their reported 90-day non-compete period is set to expire on July 23. One week before they can officially return to the ring elsewhere, one of the most influential tag teams of the modern era is already starting the engine again.
Two Careers That Were Always Destined to Intersect
Before the Motor City Machine Guns became one of the defining tag teams of their generation, Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley were already helping reshape the independent wrestling scene and TNA’s revolutionary X Division.
Sabin arrived in TNA in 2003 as one of the company’s brightest young prospects. His combination of speed, timing, technical precision and explosive offense made him an immediate fit for an X Division that was being built around wrestlers such as AJ Styles, Jerry Lynn, Amazing Red, Low Ki, Christopher Daniels and Michael Shane.
Sabin won his first X Division Championship only weeks after joining the company, defeating Amazing Red and Jerry Lynn in May 2003. Later that year, he competed in the first Ultimate X match and won the Super X Cup, quickly establishing himself as more than another talented cruiserweight. Sabin became one of the division’s foundational wrestlers and eventually set the record with 10 X Division Championship reigns.
Shelley took a different path into TNA. He built his reputation through promotions such as Ring of Honor, Combat Zone Wrestling and IWA Mid-South, developing an innovative style that mixed technical wrestling, submission work and a sharp understanding of character presentation.
Shelley first entered TNA in 2004 before returning in 2005 and becoming a regular part of the X Division. His early run included matches with Samoa Joe, Christopher Daniels, AJ Styles, Shocker and Sabin, but his personality truly began to emerge through his partnership with Kevin Nash in Paparazzi Productions.
The Paparazzi Championship Series became one of TNA’s most memorable comedy storylines. Shelley’s natural timing, facial expressions and ability to make even the most ridiculous material work showed that he was more than an outstanding wrestler. He could carry character-driven television without sacrificing his credibility in the ring.
Ironically, that storyline also placed Shelley opposite Sabin. Shelley aligned himself with Nash while Nash targeted the X Division and repeatedly attempted to humiliate Sabin. The two future partners spent part of 2006 fighting each other before discovering that they were far more dangerous together.
How the Motor City Machine Guns Were Formed
Sabin and Shelley began teaming outside TNA in 2006, including appearances in Japan and on the independent circuit. Initially known as the Murder City Machine Guns before adopting the Motor City name, the team was built around their shared Michigan roots and the unmistakable chemistry between two wrestlers who understood movement, timing and positioning at an elite level.
They were not simply two fast wrestlers performing moves beside each other. Their offense was designed around constant cooperation.
Sabin and Shelley used rapid tags, blind tags, synchronized kicks, creative submissions and combination attacks that required both men to be in exactly the right place. Their matches moved quickly, but there was structure underneath the speed. One wrestler would create an opening, the other would exploit it and both would immediately transition into the next sequence.
The team officially took shape in TNA in 2007. One of their first major programs came against Team 3D after Brother Ray and Brother Devon declared war on the X Division. The feud immediately gave Sabin and Shelley a larger purpose. They were not just attempting to climb the tag team rankings; they were defending the style of wrestling they had helped build.
Their victory over Team 3D at Genesis 2007 was an early defining moment. The younger, faster team defeated one of the most accomplished tag teams in wrestling history and proved that the X Division’s approach could succeed against traditional heavyweight tag-team wrestling.
The program also created a connection between the Machine Guns and Team 3D that would become even more meaningful three years later.
Beer Money, Generation Me and the Greatest Run of Their TNA Careers
Although Sabin and Shelley were already one of TNA’s most popular teams, the company waited several years before giving them a sustained championship run.
They challenged teams such as Beer Money, Team 3D, LAX and the British Invasion while representing TNA internationally. In January 2009, the Machine Guns defeated No Limit—Tetsuya Naito and Yujiro Takahashi—at Wrestle Kingdom III inside the Tokyo Dome to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.
Their reign brought the championships back to TNA television and included a memorable rivalry with Apollo 55, the team of Prince Devitt and Ryusuke Taguchi. Long before Devitt became Finn Bálor in WWE, he and Taguchi were testing themselves against Sabin and Shelley in matches that helped define New Japan’s junior tag division.
The Machine Guns finally reached the top of TNA’s tag division in 2010.
After defeating Beer Money at Victory Road to win the vacant TNA World Tag Team Championship, the two teams entered a Best-of-Five Series that became one of the strongest tag-team programs in company history.
Beer Money won the opening ladder match and street fight, placing the Machine Guns in a 2-0 hole. Sabin and Shelley then fought back by winning a steel cage match and an Ultimate X match, forcing a deciding two-out-of-three falls match.
Each stipulation allowed the teams to display a different part of their chemistry. Beer Money brought power, timing and old-school tag-team psychology. The Machine Guns brought speed, creativity and an ability to turn any environment into an extension of their offense.
Sabin and Shelley won the final match and retained the championships, completing the comeback while confirming that TNA’s tag division could produce main-event-level wrestling when given enough time and direction.
Their championship reign continued through another major rivalry with Generation Me, the team now known worldwide as the Young Bucks.
Generation Me was younger, equally athletic and determined to prove it could outperform the team that had helped create the blueprint for its style. Their matches felt like a generational challenge, with Matt and Nick Jackson trying to beat the Machine Guns by using the same speed and tandem offense that Sabin and Shelley had helped popularize.
The rivalry produced memorable matches at No Surrender and Bound for Glory before culminating in a violent Full Metal Mayhem match at Final Resolution.
During the same reign, Team 3D selected the Machine Guns as the opponents for what was advertised as Team 3D’s final match. Sabin and Shelley defeated Ray and Devon at Turning Point, completing the story that had helped establish them three years earlier.
Their first TNA tag title reign lasted approximately six months before Beer Money regained the championships at Genesis 2011. By that point, however, the Motor City Machine Guns had already produced the run that permanently secured their place in TNA history.
Injuries, Departures and Separate Paths
The first extended Machine Guns run eventually ended because of injuries and changing career directions.
Sabin suffered serious knee injuries that cost him significant time, including torn ACLs in both knees during a relatively short period. Shelley left TNA in 2012 and expanded his work in Japan, where he formed the Time Splitters with KUSHIDA and continued influencing another generation of junior heavyweight tag-team wrestling.
Sabin remained connected to TNA and eventually completed one of the company’s best comeback stories.
After returning from his knee injuries, Sabin won the X Division Championship and exercised Option C, surrendering the title for an opportunity at the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. He defeated Bully Ray at Destination X in 2013 to become world champion.
The reign was brief, but the victory carried enormous weight. Sabin had survived multiple major knee surgeries and climbed from the X Division to the top championship in the company where he had spent most of his career.
Shelley later returned to Ring of Honor, where he and Sabin officially reunited the Motor City Machine Guns in 2016. They eventually defeated the Young Bucks at Death Before Dishonor in September 2017 to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship.
Their ROH run gave them another significant championship and another chance to work against teams such as the Bucks, The Addiction and the Briscoes. It also reinforced their ability to disappear for years, reunite and immediately regain the chemistry that had always separated them from most teams.
Returning Home and Reaching the Top Again
The Machine Guns made one of the biggest surprise returns in modern TNA history at Slammiversary 2020.
Answering an open challenge from The Rascalz, Sabin and Shelley returned to the company together for the first time in years and defeated Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz. Days later, they defeated The North to win the Impact World Tag Team Championship, ending Ethan Page and Josh Alexander’s record-setting 383-day reign.
The victory was more than nostalgia. Sabin and Shelley could still perform at the level that had made them influential, but they had become smarter and more controlled. They no longer needed to wrestle at maximum speed for an entire match. Their timing, positioning and ability to manipulate momentum had become even sharper.
Their second championship reign ended at Bound for Glory after Shelley was attacked before a four-way title match, forcing Sabin to defend the championships alone.
After another period apart, the Machine Guns reunited again in 2022 and entered one of the most successful stretches of their careers.
They defeated Aussie Open to win the NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship and later defeated Heath and Rhino to begin their third Impact World Tag Team Championship reign. For part of that period, the Machine Guns held championships in Impact and New Japan at the same time.
Their team success eventually transitioned into individual history.
At Against All Odds in June 2023, Shelley defeated Steve Maclin to win the Impact World Championship for the first time while Sabin defeated Trey Miguel to begin his ninth X Division Championship reign. Sabin later won the title for a record-extending 10th time.
After spending years being recognized primarily as one of wrestling’s greatest teams, Sabin and Shelley simultaneously stood near the top of TNA as singles champions. Shelley had finally reached the world championship, while Sabin had further separated himself from everyone else in the history of the X Division.
Their final TNA match took place in March 2024 against The System before their contracts expired in April. The departure ended another important run, but it also opened the door to the one major company the Machine Guns had never joined together.
The WWE Dream Started Fast
The Motor City Machine Guns officially signed with WWE in September 2024 after months of speculation surrounding their future.
Their signing was significant because WWE had once appeared to be the one destination Sabin and Shelley might never reach as a team. They had built their reputation in nearly every major environment outside WWE, becoming champions in TNA, New Japan and Ring of Honor while influencing countless wrestlers who eventually passed through WWE’s developmental system.
They debuted on SmackDown on October 18, winning a triple-threat match against Los Garza and A-Town Down Under.
One week later, WWE immediately pushed them to the top of the division.
The Machine Guns defeated DIY to earn a championship opportunity and then defeated Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa later that night to win the WWE Tag Team Championship. Less than two weeks after their debut, Sabin and Shelley had completed the final major championship accomplishment missing from their résumé.
They had now won tag-team championships in TNA, WWE, Ring of Honor and New Japan.
The moment should have launched a major final chapter for the team. Instead, it became the peak of a WWE run that never received the sustained creative investment its beginning appeared to promise.
Why the WWE Run Became Such a Disappointment
WWE placed the championships on the Machine Guns almost immediately, but it did so before properly introducing them to a large portion of the audience.
Their victory over the Bloodline was tied more closely to interference from Roman Reigns, Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso than to the Machine Guns’ own story. The closing image of the show centered on the Bloodline rather than the new champions.
WWE gave Sabin and Shelley the accomplishment without fully giving them the journey.
There was history available everywhere. Shelley had deep personal and professional connections with Johnny Gargano. Both teams had helped advance the same modern tag-team style through different promotions. WWE could have built an entire division around the Machine Guns, DIY and the Street Profits while gradually introducing other teams.
Instead, the Machine Guns lost the championships to DIY after only 42 days when Gargano turned heel and struck Sabin with a low blow.
The rivalry continued into the 2025 Royal Rumble, where DIY defeated the Machine Guns in a two-out-of-three falls match after interference from the Street Profits. That match demonstrated the potential of a longer program, but WWE never developed Sabin and Shelley into central characters beyond the championship chase.
Their best WWE match came on the April 25, 2025 edition of SmackDown, when the Machine Guns faced DIY and the Street Profits in a brutal TLC match. The three teams delivered a performance worthy of WrestleMania, only for the match to take place on television days after WrestleMania 41.
It became the perfect representation of their WWE run: excellent wrestling without the platform, promotion or long-term story it deserved.
After the TLC match, the Machine Guns gradually fell down the card. They lost to the Wyatt Sicks, the MFTs, the Street Profits and the short-lived pairing of Carmelo Hayes and The Miz. By August 2025, they were openly acknowledging a seven-match losing streak through social media.
They remained valuable whenever WWE needed an established team to elevate someone else, but they were no longer presented as serious championship threats. They were placed in crowded multi-team matches, used to establish newer acts and moved between SmackDown, Main Event, dark matches and WWE-affiliated AAA appearances.
There were brief attempts to create tension between Sabin and Shelley, but nothing substantial came from them. Their final televised WWE victory arrived over Fraxiom on the March 20, 2026 edition of SmackDown after interference from Candice LeRae. Even that result appeared to be the beginning of a storyline that never had time to develop.
The Machine Guns also wrestled during WrestleMania 42 week before being released on April 24 as part of WWE’s post-WrestleMania roster cuts.
For a team WWE once crowned almost immediately, the ending felt needlessly abrupt. Sabin and Shelley never stopped delivering in the ring. WWE simply stopped presenting them as important.
Acceptance—and Whatever Comes Next
The “Release” video works because Sabin and Shelley understand exactly how wrestling fans view their WWE run.
There was excitement when they arrived, satisfaction when they finally won WWE gold and disappointment when that momentum disappeared almost as quickly as it began. Rather than issuing an angry statement or pretending the experience ended differently, the Machine Guns turned the entire situation into their style of understated comedy.
Most importantly, they made the release feel like a transition instead of a defeat.
AEW will naturally remain the most discussed possibility. The Machine Guns have history with several teams on its roster, including the Young Bucks, FTR, the Hardys and the current generation of wrestlers directly influenced by their work. An AEW run would give Sabin and Shelley access to fresh matches while also allowing them to revisit rivalries that helped shape their legacy.
TNA can never be ruled out. It remains their wrestling home, the company where the team was formed and where both men became world champions. A final TNA run could include the long-awaited match against the Hardys, another championship chase and the opportunity to eventually finish their careers in the promotion most closely connected to their names.
New Japan, Ring of Honor and the independent scene are also possibilities, particularly if Sabin and Shelley have negotiated a flexible deal that allows them to work in multiple places.
The only thing the video confirms is that the Motor City Machine Guns are not finished.
For nearly two decades, promotions have separated them, injuries have stopped them and changing circumstances have repeatedly pulled them in different directions. Every time they have reunited, however, Sabin and Shelley have immediately reminded the wrestling world why their team has survived.
WWE may have treated the Motor City Machine Guns like another expendable tag team by the end of their run, but their legacy was never created by WWE and cannot be erased by one disappointing chapter.
The contracts are on the table. The non-compete period is almost over.
Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley have reached acceptance—and the Motor City Machine Guns are preparing to fire up one more time.
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I’m the quiet one until the bell rings then I’ve got takes. I live for WWE NXT and TNA, I want every promotion to succeed, and I will absolutely roast the bad decisions on sight (because someone has to). Anime taught me to respect long-term storytelling; wrestling taught me that sometimes the plan is “we panicked” and called it “unpredictable.” The Miz got me into all of this, so yeah I appreciate confidence, commitment, and the art of talking like you’re already the main event. Now I bring that same energy to the page as the main writer for Late Night Crew Wrestling because if you’re not here to be must-see and tell the truth, why are you here?!