When did AOP – Authors of Pain make their WWE debut?

The Authors of Pain had a successful outing in WWE, but when did AOP make their company debut?

The Authors of Pain, aka AOP, were one of the most improved tag team stables of WWE. It consists of Akam and Rezar. They are one-time RAW Tag Team Champions and one-time NXT Tag Team Champions. 

They made their televised debut NXT debut on June 8, 2016, at NXT TakeOver: The End. First, they attacked American Alpha, accompanied by Paul Ellering, and eventually captured the brand’s tag team championship.

In 2018, they made their RAW debut and won the brand’s tag team title with their new manager Drake Maverick when they beat Seth Rollins in a handicap match. However, on March 10, it was reported that Rezar suffered a biceps injury, putting the team on hiatus. Later on September 4, both Akam and Rezar were released from their WWE contracts.

But it has been reported from Fightful that they might be looking at a possible in-ring return soon. Former champions reportedly reached out to other wrestlers about a wrestling event in Dubai that will take place in early June. 

Authors of Pain opened up about their WWE release 

After having a successful campaign, the duo was let go by WWE on September 4, 2020. After some years, they were interviewed by Renee Paquette in The Sessions with Renee Paquette, where Akam opened up about the reason for their release, which was undoubted because they weren’t keen on doing a particular storyline.

“Gzim [Rezar] hadn’t been home in two years at the time. He was worried about his own family because the whole world was getting shut down. People were getting sick left, right, and center. WWE had approached us with something different that they wanted us to do. And we were just like, ‘Hey, man, we just don’t feel comfortable doing it. At the time, that was the best decision for us.”