How The TNA World Championship Caused The Break-Up Of James Storm & Bobby Roode
Elijah King
Published Mar 28, 2026
Quick Links
Bobby Roode and James Storm are two of the best wrestlers in the history of TNA. While the company, now known as Impact Wrestling, might have become an afterthought in the industry, once upon a time they were considered as a genuine alternative to WWE, and many even believed that they could compete with Vince McMahon's company if they played their cards right. They did not and now find themselves where they do today.
One of the key parts of TNA television during their Golden Era, which most people would say was the second half of the 2000s, was the team of Storm and Roode, together known as Beer Money Inc.
Ultimately, like most great tag teams though, they would end up splitting and at the center of the breakup was the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.
James Storm And Bobby Roode Were Incredible Tag Team Wrestlers
During their early TNA careers, both Storm and Roode had made a name for themselves as tag team wrestlers but interestingly, with different partners. Roode was part of Team Canada with Eric Young, and won the NWA World Tag Team Championship on two occasions.
On the other hand, Storm was a part of America's Most Wanted with Chris Harris, one of the centerpieces of the tag team division in early TNA. They won the NWA World Tag Team Championship on six occasions, which is a record and one more than the legendary Rock 'n' Roll Express. Other than that, Storm also held the title once with Christopher Daniels.
Storm and Roode would start teaming with each other regularly in 2008, forming Beer Money Inc, showing the contrasting characters that both were portraying at that point of time.
Beer Money Inc Dominated The Tag Team Division
Beer Money Inc would go on to dominate the TNA tag team division following their formation and would have some of the best matches in the entire industry at that point in time, against The Motor City Machine Guns, a team comprised of Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin.
Beer Money hold the record for most reigns with the TNA World Tag Team Championships with five, tied with The Wolves. On the other hand, in terms of combined days with the belt, they are second only behind LAX.
By 2010 though, TNA would undergo a massive change, with the arrival of names like Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff, Ric Flair, Jeff Hardy, Rob Van Dam, and several other top names. This resulted in TNA originals like Beer Money being pushed to the side when it came to the focus of storylines and soon, they would find themselves as part of the faction, Fortune, and later Immortal.
RELATED: James Storm & 9 Other Wrestlers You Forgot Wrestled In NXT
Beer Money's Break-Up Over The TNA World Heavyweight Championship
In 2011, the company held the Bound For Glory Series to determine the number one contender for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Roode went on to win it but failed to beat Kurt Angle for the title under controversial circumstances.
On the following episode of Impact, Storm was given a shot at the title though and ended up winning it by beating Angle. Roode would become the number one contender for the belt once again and challenge his Beer Money partner.
It was in this match that Beer Money came to an end when Roode used Storm's beer bottle to beat him for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.
The two would reunite on more than one occasion in the future but they never achieved the same amount of success as a team as they did during the original run.
Bobby Roode Proved To Be The Breakout Star Of The Group
Roode had been rated as one of the best wrestlers in the world for some time before he finally got his singles push at the top of the card. The company got behind him though, and he held onto the TNA World Heavyweight Championship for 256 days during his first reign, which is the record to this day. He would also have a second run with the belt later, which lasted a little under four months.
After leaving TNA, Roode would go on to join the WWE, where he has enjoyed decent success but has never broken out as a true star on the main roster.
RELATED: Every Version Of Bobby Roode, Ranked From Worst To Best
On the other hand, Storm has had some decent success as a singles competitor himself, including a couple of appearances in the WWE, but has never quite flourished to the level of Roode.
Ultimately, both Storm and Roode were brilliant together as Beer Money, but they had a lot to offer as singles competitors as well. Thus, breaking them up, when it did happen, was the right choice on the part of TNA.
