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There are different ways to win a wrestling match in WWE. But nothing beats the pleasure of seeing your opponent tap out. Tapping out could be seen as a sign of giving up or reaching the limit of endurance. And pushing your opponent to such boundaries is much better than just knocking him out and counting till three.This might be the reason why many superstars in WWE history took up submission moves as finishers. While some of these wrestlers fail to climb the ladder, others reach the top with such finishers. This list is going to take a look at those big names that have or had submission finishers in their arsenal.
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#7 Chris Benoit's Crossface
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It's a shame that WWE completely buried the existence of Chris Benoit. Despite what he did, Benoit was one of the best in-ring workers in wrestling history and delivered some classic matches. All of these are overlooked due to the way in which his life came to an end. The reason for Benoit's inclusion in the list is the Cross face. As a youngster, I was amused by the move and rightfully so.
It was an incredibly painful submission move and there have been some variations over the years. There isn't any exact origin for the move and it could be anyone's invention. But one thing is for sure, it was Benoit who made it famous.
#6 Daniel Bryan - Yes Lock
As mentioned in the earlier slide, the Crippler Cross face had some variations. Daniel Bryan’s Yes Lock was one among them. It was one among the numerous similarities between Chris Benoit and Daniel Bryan. Bryan did not have the typical size of a professional wrestler and needed to make up for the same.
This was probably his motive when he started using the Yes Lock. It is a move that could be locked in on any opponent and Bryan proved this numerous times as well. The Yes lock made Bryan’s matches more believable since the hold was legitimately painful to be in.
#5 Kurt Angle's Ankle Lock
The Ankle lock was first introduced into the WWE by Ken Shamrock. WWE needed a vicious submission hold for the MMA star and they ended up choosing the Anklelock. But it was Kurt Angle who perfected the move. The way in which wrestlers tapped out to the Anklelock showed how painful the hold was. In fact, it is one of the submission holds that we could use in a real fight.
Some of the wrestlers like Eddie Guerrero and Shawn Michaels managed to outsmart Kurt during the locking process and since the lock was excellent, these escapes went on to be memorable as well. Jack Swagger later took it on as the patriot lock, but Angles execution still stands out as the best.
#4 Ric Flair's Figure Four leglock
Although we recognize Figure Four as the finisher of Ric Flair, it was actually created by Buddy Rogers. The move puts some enormous pressure on the knee and looks wonderful on television. Flair has used the move throughout his long career and won some big matches with it.
Miz tried doing something similar and we all know how that ended up being, don’t we? It would be impossible to find a classic Ric Flair match without the figure four lock in it. With Charlotte now in the main roster, we are bound to see the figure four make a return. Charlotte, however, will have to travel a long way to reach the heights that her father conquered.
#3 Chris Jericho's Liontamer / Walls of Jericho
Chris Jericho is one of the most travelled superstars in WWE’s history. And thanks to his trips, Jericho learned a lot of different styles. He learned the Lucha libre style of Mexico, the hard-hitting style of Europe, the intense style of Japan, and the WWE style. His in-ring performance was an amalgamation of all these.
The best part about Jericho’s move set was probably his submission moves. He used Walls of Jericho/ Liontamer as his finisher before the codebreaker came in. Lion Tamer, in particular, was a treat to the eyes and took viciousness to a different level. Also, it is one of the best variations of the Boston crab.
#2 John Cena - STF
Expanded as Stopover Toehold Face lock, the STF has been a major move for John Cena. The Attitude Adjustment is still Cena’s main finisher, but when it comes to special occasions, Cena wins the match with STF. It has turned into a crowd teaser recently, but Cena’s submission still has relevance as a finisher.
A variation of the move was also used by William Regal. Regal called it the ‘Regal Stretch’ and it looked more painful than Cena’s version. Thankfully for Cena, Regal is retired now and the only STF variation left in WWE is his. With Cena adding new moves to his skill set, don’t be surprised if he drops the STF and comes up with a new submission move.
#1 Bret Hart's Sharp Shooter
Bret Hart is iconic and so is his finisher. It would be an insult to explain the hold in words because it is a piece of art. Invented by Japanese Wrestler Riki Choshu, the move made its way to the United States through Sting. However, it was Bret Hart who turned it into a phenomenon. The Hitman-produced the hold in almost all of his matches.
It was later used by various members of the Hart Family, but none of them managed to reach the level of Bret. And above all, Sharp Shooter has a historical significance as well since it was one of the main factors during the Montreal Screwjob.
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