The faction was created to feud with wrestlers who had been a part of the original Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) promotion in the 1990s.

The New Breed continued to feud with the Originals and Punk, and also with The Major Brothers, a new tag team who had defeated Striker and Cor Von in their debut match.

In May 2006 WWE announced the launch of ECW as a stand-alone brand, congruous to Raw and SmackDown!, with its own show on the Sci Fi channel.

As a result, Tommy Dreamer, Balls Mahoney, Sabu, and The Sandman interrupted and attacked Burke, provoking a feud.

[5] The next week, McMahon appeared on ECW again, insulting Dreamer, Mahoney, Sabu, The Sandman, and Rob Van Dam, before informing them that they would be fired if they interfered in each other's matches that night.

Matt Striker and Kevin Thorn, along with his valet Ariel, joined forces with Burke and Cor Von as the New Breed.

[11] In the final weeks leading up to WrestleMania, the stables continued to clash, with Van Dam defeating Burke on the March 27 episode of ECW.

[16] The next week, his presence immediately created tension within the group, as he berated Cor Von and Thorn for losing and undermined Burke's position as the leader of the New Breed.

[17] The following week, Punk apologized again, but was forced by Burke to miss an eight-man elimination tag team match between the Originals and the New Breed.

In retaliation, Punk attacked Burke, causing him to lose the match, and left the New Breed, before defecting to the side of the ECW Originals.

That same night, Striker and Cor Von lost to the debuting tag team of The Major Brothers (Brian and Brett).

[22] After this, Van Dam was moved into a feud with Randy Orton and Punk joined forces with Dreamer and The Sandman to replace Sabu, who had left WWE in mid-May.

[23][24] At the One Night Stand pay-per-view in June, Burke, Cor Von, and Striker lost to Punk, Dreamer, and The Sandman in a tables match.