The art of wrestling has evolved a tremendous amount over the millennium. It started as the Greco-Roman style infused with Carnie showmanship and thanks to Vince McMahon and several other promoters over the years, has headed into stadiums and arenas to become Sports Entertainment as we fans know and love it.
The evolution has also come from the wrestlers playing a game of innovation and “can you top this?” with their fellow superstars. That continued innovation has created new moves throughout the decades that superstars have continued to adapt into their own arsenals.
10 Ring Post Figure Four - Bret Hart
Despite what happened in Montreal, it can be argued that Bret Hart’s best year in the business was 1997. He went from being the world’s greatest babyface hero into a nasty vile heel in America seemingly overnight.
He also innovated with a gnarly version of the Figure Four, with his opponent tied up in the ring post while Bret drags all of his weight down onto an opponent and pulls for all he’s worth. It’s wasn’t going to win any matches, but the Ring Post Figure Four was going to leave a lot of guys limping.
9 Asai Moonsault - Ultimo Dragon
While he didn’t have a very memorable run in WWE, The Ultimo Dragon should still be remembered as one of the most innovative high flyers in history. His high impact and quick aerial assaults in the ring helped him at one point carry every Cruiserweight / Light Heavyweight title there was to win in the world.
One of the best moves Dragon had in his arsenal was the Asai Moonsault. Named after the Dragon’s real name Yoshihiro Asai, the rope-assisted Moonsault has been adapted by several superstars over the years, most notably Rey Mysterio and Chris Jericho’s version - The Lionsault.
8 Shooting Star Press - Jushin Thunder Liger
Speaking of legendary Japanese wrestlers who traversed the globe to become worldwide household names, Jushin Thunder Liger might be the biggest name of all time. From being a young boy to training in both the Dungeon and in Mexico, Liger was pulling wild moves off during a time when the Macho Man Elbow was the biggest top rope move on the grand stage. Liger’s flashy move set included a move that nearly every superstar from Johnny B. Badd to Evan Bourne to even Brock Lesnar and Shane McMahon have used in their own arsenals - The Shooting Star Press.
7 Van Terminator - Rob Van Dam
If a kick to your face after RVD heaves a steel chair at it wasn’t bad enough, then how about a coast-to-coast leap of faith from across the ring. In a recent episode of The Bump, the high flying Hall Of Famer Rob Van Dam detailed the origins of the Van Terminator, which has also been adopted by Shane McMahon. Essentially Van Dam getting further and further away with his Van Daminator until he realized that he’d be able to clear across the ring.
6 The Mandible Claw - Sam Sheppard
Newer fans might think that The Mandible Claw came from the demented mind of Mick Foley whilst creating Mankind. But he was just twisted enough to adapt it from the former Neurosurgeon-turned-wrestler, Sam Sheppard. During this era, the devastating nerve hold has been used by The Fiend as a set up for Sister Abigail. But it’s used most effectively and aptly by AEW’s Dr. Britt Baker DMB. The real life dentist has dubbed her version Lockjaw and if the hold wasn’t devastating enough, how about being applied while Baker has The Rings Of Saturn locked in.
5 The Sharpshooter - Riki Choshu
As Sting became a household name, so too did his awesome leg lock submission, the Scorpion Deathlock. A few years later, Bret Hart borrowed it and rechristened it The Sharpshooter. The move has been utilized by so many superstars over the years and has become a celebrated move amongst Canadian wrestlers thanks to Bret. But it was Japanese legend, Riki Choshu who popularized the Sasori-Gatame in New Japan.
4 Ace Crusher / Diamond Cutter / RKO - Johnny Ace
Thanks to his easy-to-imitate voice and goofball Authority and Skateboarding characters, it’s easy for fans to write the guy off as Road Warrior Animal’s little brother, but Johnny Ace should be a little more respected than that.
Thanks to his time in Japan, he had a much better career than he had stateside. Ace patented a move called The Ace Crusher, which has been adapted into all kinds of cutters and used by everyone from DDP to HHH to Stone Cold to Ember Moon and Kevin Owens.
3 The Doomsday Device - The Road Warriors
When two walking meathead maniacs toss you around the ring and smash you at their will, you might just be in the ring with The Road Warriors. As one of the greatest tag teams in history, they were mostly known for their look, their in ring roughshod style and one of the craziest finishers ever - The Doomsday Device. Animal would hoist a hapless opponent up on his huge shoulders. Hawk would clothesline the guy’s head off farther than Goldberg kicked Bret’s. Plenty of tag teams that have come afterwards have utilized the move at least in tribute to the team.
2 The DDT - Black Gordman
Despite most of wrestling fandom acknowledging and understanding that Jake The Snake Roberts invented the DDT, it was actually a Luchador, Black Gordman during the 1970’s.
But it was Jake got popularized the move on a national level, now emulated so much by so many superstars that somehow getting forcefully dropped on your head and neck is now just a transition move during a match. However when once questioned as to what DDT stands for, Jake famously answered “The End.”
1 The Top Rope Wrist Lock - The Spoiler Don Jardine
Hakushi/ Jinsei Shinzaki would walk across the entirety of the top rope while twisting his opponent’s arm before dropping a chop. Now Elias will sometimes walk along the ropes for his Walk With Elias. Of course, it was The Deadman, The Undertaker who popularized the move as “Old School,” which to many fans looked amazing for a man of Taker’s size to pull off. But even he wasn’t the first. A masked superstar, The Spoiler, Don Jardine was the first to do the top rope wrist lock. He was the also the one who gifted the move to The Phenom when the two worked in World Class.