As the 1970's were winding down, Ricky Steamboat and Jay Youngblood teamed up to form one of the greatest tag teams in professional wrestling.  While their partnership was short, they went on to win the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) World Tag Team Championship on five separate occasions, an amazing feat (especially at that time).

On October 24, 1979, Steamboat and Youngblood defeated Paul Jones and Baron Von Raschke for their first NWA World Tag Team Championship.  The two defended the belts for nearly six months before dropping the belts to Greg "The Hammer" Valentine and Ray "The Crippler" Stevens on March 29, 1980 in a controversial decision.  When David Crockett, an announcer for Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling produced videotape that would have forced the belts to go back to Steamboat and Youngblood, the new tag team champions grabbed the video footage and destroyed it, preventing the NWA from reviewing the match.  Steamboat and Youngblood chased the self proclaimed People's Champions before regaining the belts on May 10, 1980.  However Stevens bounced back with a new partner Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka and the two captured the belts on June 22, 1980.