The Contentious Ten 04.23.12: Top 10 Breaking/Dislocating Submission Holds

I am in the middle of the busiest two weeks of my life, so I apologize if I’m short here. Here is my criteria for a breaking/dislocating submission hold so that we’re all on the same page:

-The hold is applied with the most pressure going to a bone or joint (as opposed to a muscle or a choke)
-The hold does NOT have to be a finishing move (present or past).

(Moves/Wrestlers/Teams/etc.) that just missed the cut: The Double Chickenwing, Gutwrench Backbreaker.

X color=red>size=8>
Fujiwara Armbarsize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Yoshiaki Fujiwara
-La Mistica (Sin Cara)

We start this list off with one of the most painful moves in wrestling, and one of the most simple. This hold simply requires a solid figure-four grip on the arm and proper leverage. A great equalizer that can be used on opponents of any size, equally effective against Rey Mysterio and Big Show. I remember an issue of Smackdown Magazine (remember those?) where Eddie Guerrero called this the most painful submission hold he’d ever been put in. Considering the legendary rivalry Latino Heat had with “The Man of 1,000 Holds” Dean Malenko, that covers a lot of ground. Unfortunately, as effective as the move is in reality, the hold is little more than a colorful wear down hold in the Unites States. Still, that’s good enough to earn the #10 spot on this list.

IX color=red>size=8>
Full Nelsonsize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Chris Masters
-Hercules Hernandez
-Billy Jack Haynes

It really kind of irks me when people say that this hold is boring. The move is one of the most dangerous and painful moves in all of wrestling, and unless one has an extremely wiry frame, it’s very difficult to get out of it. Putting incredible pressure on the neck and pushing the jawbone against the collarbone, the move can cause permanent spine damage and even kill a man. So it’s not hard to see why the move is banned from amateur wrestling. Professional wrestling of course has no such taboo, and throughout history several wrestlers have made use of this lethal move. In my opinion, no man made better use of it than “The Masterpiece” Chris Masters, who added a considerable amount of flash to it by swinging his victims around like a rag doll while applying it. During the bulk of 2005 and well into 2006, there was no move in WWE that was better built up than “The Masterlock”, and the psychology of the hold played a pivotal role in his match against Shawn Michaels at Unforgiven ’05, one of the more underrated contests of the last decade. Personally, I’d like to rate this a little higher, but I can’t ignore the fact that it’s only been used my upper mid-carders at best, while the holds above it are some of he most successful in wrestling history.

VIII color=red>size=8>
The Indian Deathlocksize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Harley Race
-Triple H
-Bryan Danielson
-Owen Hart

This is a move that can look really silly or really sick depending on who applies it. When it’s locked in correctly, it’s one of the most debilitating holds one can apply, and also one of the most versatile. The nearly total control the hold gives its user allows for a wide variety of modified versions of the hold. Just watch Bryan Danielson tie Roderick Strong in knots during their matches from 2005 and 2006 to see what I mean. Probably the best known user of the hold today is Triple H, who has occasionally busted it out for his big matches, notably in title matches at Wrestlemania XIX and XXIV. It shouldn’t be a surprise that The Game is fond of this hold; Harley Race, one of the biggest influences on Triple H, once captured the NWA Heavyweight Championship by applying the hold to Terry Funk.

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Spinning Toeholdsize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Terry Funk
-Dory Funk, Jr.
-Ted DiBiase

And speaking of Terry Funk, we move onto the signature move of both he and his brother, the Spinning Toehold. This rather unique submission puts an incredible amount of torque on several joints in the foot and the knee, and opponents like Jack Brisco, Harley Race and Ric Flair always sold the hold like it was about to cripple them. Historically speaking, this is one of the most effective and important holds in wrestling history, as not one, but two highly successful NWA Champions successfully defended their championships by using this move. Unique, visually pleasing and absolutely vicious, I’d like to see a younger star bring it back to prominence. In particular, I think Cody Rhodes could get a lot out of the hold if he brought it into his repertoire.

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The “YES!” Locksize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Daniel Bryan
-Gene LeBell
-Roderick Strong

Innovated by Gene LeBell, the move faded into obscurity until Bryan Danielson brought it with him to WWE in 2010. A combination of an omoplata (a sick modification of the hammerlock and one of the best defensive moves in MMA) and the crossface, the move is both beautiful and brutal. Watching Bryan get this hold on anybody who tries to use mounted punches, an Ankle Lock or a schoolboy on him is always a mark-out move for me. The move puts tons of pressure on the elbow and shoulder joints, and the crossface adds pressure to the neck, shoulders and nose. Depending on how much you pull back, damage can also be done to the collarbone, making this one of the most debilitating moves in all of wrestling. Personally, I’ve got to give the move extra credit as I’ve used it to beat my older and larger brother in wrestling matches before. Pretty good payback for him putting me in the Torture Rack when I was kid.

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The Cross Armbreakersize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Alberto Del Rio
-Davey Richards
-Minoru Suzuki
-Diablo Armbar (Rocky Romero)

Much like the Fujiwara Armbar, the Cross Armbreaker is a legitimate hold that was used simply as a colorful wear down hold in the States for the bulk of the 90’s and early 2000’s. Thankfully, with mixed martial arts rising to become a true part of the pop culture of today [much like wrestling in the late ’80’s and again in the early ’90’s], knowledge of which moves do and do not hurt has allowed this move to gain prominence. I also think that the flying variation of the move added some flash that helped get the move over in the larger than life world of pro wrestling, and the fact that the wrestlers who use the flying variation have had the most success with it helps my argument. The move looks simple but actually requires a bit of training to know just where to apply the pressure, and obviously requires greats arm strength and leverage to apply successfully. When it is locked on correctly, it can take only a few seconds to snap the arm out of its socket, making a tap out pretty much the only option for one’s long term health.

While several Japanese, Mexican and independent American wrestlers adapted the hold into their repertoires in the early 2000’s, it wasn’t until the fall of 2010 that WWE was introduced to the potential of this hold. Alberto Del Rio uses a particularly impressive version of the move, and immediately made an impact with it by beating Rey Mysterio in his first televised WWE match, and then putting Christian on the shelf for several months. Much like the Masterlock, this move was built very well by the WWE by consistently being put over as injury causing and almost impossible to escape, and by the time Del Rio was challenging for the World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania, it was believable that Edge could tap out to the move. Also, fans of actual wrestling have to appreciate how Del Rio builds his matches around this hold, as he almost singlehandedly brought the art of working a body part back to the WWE.

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Crossface Chickenwingsize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Bob Backlund
-Bryan Danielson
-Kurt Angle

We move from the signature move of two of the greatest NWA Champions to the signature move of one of the greatest (and most criminally underrated) WWE Champions. Bob Backlund may have won the title with the Atomic Drop, but constant use of the move started to take its toll on his knee, so he developed this brutal submission hold. Combining two of the most painful and effective leverage moves from amateur wrestling, Backlund’s Crossface Chickenwing became the bane of every challenger to his title for the bulk of six years. (You can read about that run right here [http//:www.411wrestling.com/wrestling/columns/231726] in this excellent column by William Renken.)

The move would gain even more infamy during Mr. Backlund’s comeback tour, where a more psychotic and evil Backlund added a body scissors to the hold that made escape virtually impossible. Then WWE Champion Bret “The Hitman” Hart found this out first hand at Survivor Series where he was locked in the punishing hold for over ten minutes while a personal drama unfolded between his brother Owen and his parents at ringside, which led to Backlund becoming the WWE Champion for the third time. Six years later, Bob would pass the hold onto his protege Kurt Angle, which ended up biting him in the ass when Angle applied the hold to him for persuading management to put both Kurt’s Intercontinental and European Champions on the line in his Wrestlemania Match. Perhaps the most notable use of the hold was in 2005 when Bryan Danielson used it against Jamie Noble to capture the ROH Championship, the true checkmate to one of the most brilliant human chess games in the last decade. For a man who is often called the modern day Backlund, no hold could have been more fitting.

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The Bearhugsize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Bruno Sammartino
-Billy Graham
-Andre the Giant
-Brock Lesnar

It does not get any more basic than the Bearhug, a move that is very simply a tight grip on the lower spine. The damage is two fold; it squeezes the air out of the unfortunate victim, and more importantly for this list, targets the spinal column. Don’t try this at home kids, especially on smaller siblings. It’s very likely that the move was the first ever used in a wrestling match whenever the original sport was created, and depending on some researchers that goes back to our caveman does. It’s really no surprise given how basic and how effective it is, especially in the hands of a true powerhouse. Some will shun the move’s inclusion and placement on this list, but if you look at wrestling history you can see how effective this move has been. Bruno Sammartino was the WWWF Champion for the bulk of twelve years between his two runs, selling out Madison Square Garden constantly and beating countless opponents relying largely on this move. Billy Graham also found success with the move, and with his impressive physique few have looked more convincing using it.

The move is also an important part of the biggest match in history, Andre versus Hogan at Wrestlemania III. Hogan struggling and eventually escaping Andre’s bearhug is an iconic moment in ‘Mania history. Hogan himself even made use of this move, notably for bearhugging two smaller opponents at the same time. Hogan would be the victim of perhaps the last great bearhug when Brock Lesnar used it to gain an impressive victory over the Hulk on Smacdown, en route to defeating the Rock to become the youngest WWE Champion. Recently, John Cena brought the move back for his epic confrontations against Shawn Michaels and The Rock, and should Cena ever turn heel (which I don’t see happening) it would be a great move to add to his move set. If Sammartino can use it, then so can Cena.

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Grapevined Ankle Locksize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Kurt Angle
-Shawn Michaels
-Davey Richards
-Bryan Danielson

Has there been a finishing move in recent history more devalued than the standard Ankle Lock? When Ken Shamrock was using it in the ’90’s, it was one of the more feared holds in wrestling. Much like so many other holds on this list, it is simple to apply but vicious in execution, a tight figure-four grip on a vulnerable joint. When Kurt Angle started applying it half a dozen times per match and his opponents started countering it in as many different ways, it became a joke. It looks great, but who can really buy someone tapping out to a move that can be rolled through and kicked away so easily? Fortunately, Angle seemed to notice this and added an extra dimension to the move in late 2002 by grapevining his opponents, adding pressure to the knee and making it very difficult to escape. The move has made the likes of Shawn Michaels, Brock Lesnar, Eddie Guerrero, Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Samoa Joe and AJ Styles all tap out, making it one of the more prolific moves of the last decade. The only time I can ever recall someone escaping the hold is when Brock Lesnar dragged Angle’s bodyweight with him as he crawled to the ropes at Wrestlemania XIX. While the regular version does nothing for me anymore, the grapevined version of this move definitely deserves a place on this list.

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Figure Four Leglocksize=6>

Notable variations/users:
-Ric Flair
-Buddy Rogers
-Greg Valentine
-Shawn Michaels
-Bret Hart
-Jeff Jarrett
-Triple H

There are a handful of wrestling moves that are so truly iconic that even non-fans are familiar with them. The Sleeper Hold. The Piledriver. The Steel Chair Shot to the Head. The Figure Four Leglock is one of those moves, and is it really any surprise? “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair, generally regarded as one of the greatest of all time, won sixteen world championships essentially by using this move. Beyond that, the move has been used by an incredible number of wrestlers since the 1950’s; the above list barely scratches the tip of the iceberg. Virtually anybody who has had more than a handful of matches with Flair has used the move, and almost all of his teammates from the Four Horsemen and Evolution have utilized it at one time or another. As Gordon Solie, Jerry Lawler and Jim Ross have told us over the years, the move puts pressure on seven different parts in the legs, but most of the focus is on the knee and shin that cross over each other in the signature “4”. Essentially, these points are in danger of breaking because they are pushing against each other. Add in the pressure on both ankles, and you have an insanely painful move.

While some have question how much it hurts, probably because of the move falling from respected finisher to transitional leg submission, several of those have paid the price when they’ve had their friends and family apply it. Let’s face it; if you’ve ever wrestled in your backyard or basement, the Figure Four was applied at some point. It has been one of the defining moves of wrestling for half of a century, making countless victims tap out, pass out, or scream out in submission. And I have a feeling that it’s going to be used for another fifty years. All things considered, this was an easy #1 for a difficult list to compile.

There you have it: a list. I apologize for a half-assed attitude here and in the intro, but I hope you enjoyed it. This week’s column definitely had a lot of time put into it, even if it wasn’t entirely my own. If there were any omissions, feel free to make your lists below. These lists are always subjective and I love reading other people’s reasonings for certain entries they feel should be higher or lower. Also, please vote below for the topic you’d like me to do next week. There is no theme for next week, because I want to hear YOUR suggestions!

NEXT WEEK’S TOPIC WILL BE MY FAVORITE SUGGESTION IN THE COMMENTS SECTION!

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