Chris Sabin has made the Motor City Machine Guns’ ambition in AEW clear: he and Alex Shelley want the AEW World Tag Team Championship.
Sabin and Shelley returned to AEW in July 2026, four years after their previous appearance for the promotion. Their return has immediately placed one of wrestling’s most accomplished long-term pairings back among a loaded collection of established AEW teams, with potential matchups against the Young Bucks, FTR, and the alliance of Christian Cage and Adam Copeland all carrying major significance.
For Sabin, however, the pursuit is about more than simply adding another championship to an already decorated résumé. Winning AEW’s tag titles would give the Motor City Machine Guns a distinction no other team has achieved: tag team championship success in WWE, AEW, TNA, and New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
“For sure, absolutely. That’s 100% the goal,” Sabin said when asked about winning the tag titles in AEW. “And you know, if we do win that championship, we’ll be the first team to win titles in AEW, New Japan Pro Wrestling, TNA, and WWE. That’s a pretty cool accomplishment.”
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A Historic Prize in Sight
The appeal of the AEW World Tag Team Championship is evident on its own. AEW’s tag division has been a major part of the company’s identity, and holding its titles would be a defining achievement for any team. In the Motor City Machine Guns’ case, though, the stakes are elevated by everything Sabin and Shelley have done together across the industry.
The possibility identified by Sabin is especially notable because it would connect four major stages of their careers. They have competed under the banners of TNA, NJPW, WWE, and now AEW, with each promotion representing a different environment, different opponents, and a different chapter in the team’s lengthy story. A title win in AEW would not merely be another line on a list of accomplishments. It would complete a rare promotion-spanning collection.
Sabin did not present the potential landmark as a guarantee. He was direct about it being the destination the team is working toward. That distinction matters in an AEW division where established contenders are plentiful and championship opportunities must be earned through victories over elite opposition.
The Guns’ current program with FTR is a clear example of that challenge. Sabin specifically named FTR as a team he would like to face, and the two sides are now competing in a best-of-five series. The series is tied at one victory apiece, leaving neither duo with a meaningful advantage as the rivalry moves forward.
A best-of-five format makes every remaining match consequential. It provides the Motor City Machine Guns an opportunity to demonstrate that their goals are supported by results, while also forcing them to overcome another veteran team with a major reputation in tag team wrestling. For FTR, the series offers an equally important chance to halt the momentum of Sabin and Shelley’s AEW return.
The Young Bucks Remain the Key Rivalry
While the FTR series is unfolding in the present, Sabin made no secret of the opponents he most wants across the ring in AEW: the Young Bucks.
The connection between the Motor City Machine Guns and the Young Bucks is rooted in a history that extends well beyond AEW. Sabin pointed to meetings between the teams in TNA, on the independent scene, in PWG, and elsewhere. That extensive shared background is the reason he views the rivalry as a natural priority now that the Guns are back in AEW.
“If anyone knows the history of the Motor City Machine Guns, we’re tied with the Young Bucks,” Sabin said. “We’ve wrestled them so many times in TNA, independent, PWG, everywhere.”
Sabin’s description of the teams as “tied” speaks to how closely their paths have been linked. Both pairings are associated with a fast-paced, highly coordinated tag team style, and both have spent years facing a range of opponents while establishing their own identities as duos. Their past encounters give an eventual AEW meeting a ready-made level of familiarity and competitive intensity.
More importantly, Sabin believes the chemistry remains central to what a renewed program could offer.
“We just had the best chemistry, and we just want to reignite that feud again,” Sabin said. “We want to make sure we still have that chemistry. We think we will and you know that’s who we want to wrestle the most in AEW is the Young Bucks.”
That is a significant declaration with the Young Bucks holding the AEW World Tag Team Championship. Sabin and Shelley’s stated title objective and their preferred rivalry are therefore aligned. The path to the championship, at least in the ideal scenario envisioned by Sabin, could bring the Motor City Machine Guns directly into a feud that carries years of history behind it.
All In Put AEW’s Tag Division in Focus
Sabin also reflected on an All In moment that brought several of AEW’s top tag team names face-to-face. The Motor City Machine Guns, the Young Bucks, FTR, and Christian Cage and Adam Copeland were all involved in that confrontation.
It was a snapshot of the competitive landscape Sabin and Shelley entered upon their return. There is no shortage of accomplished teams, familiar rivals, or potential challengers surrounding the AEW titles. The scene also underlined that the Guns’ stated pursuit will not be isolated to one opponent. FTR are already standing across the ring from them, the Young Bucks are at the center of Sabin’s desired rivalry, and Cage and Copeland represent another prominent tandem in the mix.
For AEW, that depth creates a clear framework for the Motor City Machine Guns’ return. Their name value and history make them an immediate attraction, but their place in the division will be determined by how they fare against the teams currently occupying the spotlight. The best-of-five series with FTR is an important early test, particularly with the score even at 1-1.
It also gives the Guns a chance to make a broader statement. Sabin’s comments show that the team is not looking at AEW as a brief return or a nostalgia exercise. He is speaking about a concrete championship goal, a potential industry milestone, and a long-running rivalry he believes can be revived at the highest level.
A Return Built Around Purpose
The Motor City Machine Guns have returned to AEW with a specific target and several major obstacles between them and it. Sabin’s focus is firmly on the AEW World Tag Team Championship, but the title chase is intertwined with the team’s wider legacy.
Capturing the championship would establish the four-promotion achievement Sabin described, adding AEW to a title record that already spans WWE, TNA, and NJPW. It would also give their existing history with the Young Bucks an especially compelling next chapter, should the Guns earn the opportunity to challenge the current champions.
Before that possibility can fully take shape, Sabin and Shelley must continue their series with FTR. With the score level at 1-1, the remaining matches will help establish which team can claim momentum in one of AEW’s most notable current tag team rivalries.
Sabin has laid out the destination. The Motor City Machine Guns want AEW gold, and they want the chance to test themselves once more against the Young Bucks. If both objectives come together, the team could find itself competing not only for a championship, but for a place in tag team wrestling history that no duo has previously claimed.
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Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.