There was a time when Imperium, the tag team, not the faction, was one of the most dominant duos in the entire WWE Universe. Two-time NXT Tag Team Champions with 263 combined days with the straps, Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci, then known as Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner, successfully defended their belts on four occasions while running court on the Orlando-based promotion alongside their boss GUNTHER, who was then known as WALTER.

While the team hasn't found as much success on SmackDown as they had in NXT, without so much as one title reign to their names, that could change in the not-too-distant future, as the duo defeated their long-time rivals The Brawling Brutes – the tag team, not the faction – to advance to the second round of the SmackDown Interim Tag Team Championship Tournament. With a match against Legado del Fantasma now on the books to decide on a spot in the finals, Kaiser and Vinci had a conversation with Cathy Kelley at the end of SmackDown to boldly state why they are the rightful next challengers for The Usos' straps.

“What did we say last week Ludwig?” Vicci asked Kaiser. “We said we would defeat whoever our first opponent in the SmackDown Tag Team Tournament would be, and that’s exactly what we did tonight. Next week is going to be no different. We advance to the semi-finals of the tournament and we’re going to beat Legado Del Fantasma and go on to become the next SmackDown Tag Team Champions.”

“Do you know what? Kaiser asked. Do you know the difference between them and us? Do you know the difference between all of those other team in the tournament and us? They’re in there for their own success, they’re in there to win the tag team championships, that’s not our reason. We are here to restore the honor of this great sport, of our beloved sport. And we do that because there is no one else who can. You know, we are Imperium, we are going to become the next tag team champions, and we are going to save the tag team division. Because to us, the mat is sacred.”

Will Imperium join GUNTHER in the Championship picture? Will a different faction reign supreme on Friday night in place of The Bloodline? Only time will tell, but after a strong showing in the opening rounds, they certainly have to be a favorite on the right side.