Some Superstars have incredible finishers. Ones that will stand the test of time and never be forgotten, maybe even recycled by other wrestlers. Stone Cold’s Stunner, Triple H’s Pedigree, Brock Lesnar’s F5. Just a few incredible finishers that you associate with one person in particular.
However, not everyone is lucky enough to have that luxury. In all fairness, there are only a finite amount of things you can do to another human being inside of a wrestling ring. Thanks to that, we have been left with some pretty terrible finishing moves over the years.
#10 Rikishi
Before slating Rikishi’s finishing move it’s only fair to point out that one of them wasn’t that bad. The Rikishi driver that the Samoan would use actually looked like a pretty devastating move. However, with the ban on piledrivers in WWE in the present day, he wouldn’t be able to even use it nowadays.
Okay now on to why we’re here. Despite Rikishi undergoing a few transformations during his WWE career, most fans will remember him for the period that he basically wore a giant thong to the ring. During that time, most of his move set involved his derriere.
The Banzai Drop. The Stink Face. Rikishi’s unique method of putting his opponents away was to somehow incorporate his ample behind in any way that he could. It’s hard not to feel sorry for the countless Superstars that fell victim to the Hall of Famer’s infamous Stink Face.
#9 Scotty 2 Hotty
Hanging around with Rikishi must have had a negative effect on Superstar’s finishers. Fellow Too Cool member Scotty 2 Hotty also had a less than devastating move that he would end matches with, but thankfully he didn’t use his backside.
No, Scotty instead opted for a move he christened ‘The Worm’. The former Tag Team Champion would hop around the ring, then perform the worm dance move towards his opponent before delivering a simple chop to their neck.
The Worm truly is one of the most ridiculous finishers in pro wrestling history. It felt like Scotty and the powers that be simply wanted to show off the fact that he could do the worm and did all that they could to base a move around it.
#8 Naomi
Not to harp on about Rikishi too much, but the Samoan Hall of Famer isn’t the only WWE Superstar to have used his backside to finish off opponents. Current SmackDown Live star and former Women’s Champion Naomi also uses her caboose to her advantage.
What’s even stranger about that is Naomi and Rikishi are actually related. The former Funkadactyl is the daughter-in-law of Rikishi since she is married to his son and fellow SmackDown Live Superstar, Jimmy Uso.
On to Naomi’s finishing move though, the Rear View. For those of you not familiar with the move, Naomi runs against the ropes and when she’s hurtling back towards her opponent, she jumps and turns, aiming to hit them in the face with her behind.
#7 Santino Marella
Some Superstars have decided to incorporate costume into their terrible finishers. FYI, this entry won’t be the only time this rundown focuses on that. Now retired wrestler Santino Marella is one of those men.
Santino arrived on the scene in WWE when he was a part of an angle that saw him plucked from the crowd to compete in a match during an episode of Raw filmed in Milan. He subsequently went on to win the Intercontinental Championship in his debut match and was thus dubbed the Milan Miracle.
On to his finisher though, the Cobra. Santino would conjure up a sock that looked like a snake, place it over his hand, and proceed to jab his opponent in the chest or throat with it. Hardly a Stone Cold Stunner, but there you go.
#6 Great Khali
On to another Superstar who uses his hand to execute his finisher now, but a man who is almost the polar opposite of Santino Marella. The Great Khali and his not so great chop to the chest.
Great Khali is one of India’s greatest exports when it comes to professional wrestling. The behemoth of a man shot straight to the top of the pile in WWE due to his size but what the company didn’t take into account was his lack of wrestling ability.
Nothing exemplified that lack of ability quite like Khali’s finisher. The former World Champion would simply lift his plate-sized hand above his head and bring it crashing down onto his opponent. Not exactly the most innovative move in the world.
#5 John Cena
John Cena is one of the greatest Superstars in WWE history; there really is no arguing that. The Franchise player has won an incredible 16 World Championships and beaten just about everyone there was to beat along the way.
What makes Cena’s incredible run atop the WWE pyramid even more impressive is that he has managed to maintain it with one of the most unremarkable finishers ever. The AA, or the FU as it was once called, is effectively a glorified fireman’s carry.
We’re even at a point where WWE don’t even treat Cena’s AA with any respect. None of John’s opponents is out for the count after just one of them, and Roman Reigns fought on to win after four of Cena’s finishers at No Mercy 2017.
#4 Big Show
Sticking with veterans of the business, on to the Big Show. Despite having made his pro wrestling debut over 20 years ago, The World’s Largest Athlete is still wowing crowds. His great matches with Braun Strowman this year have seen the former WWE Champion roll back the years.
For the majority of his career, Big Show used a normal and respectable finisher, the chokeslam. Then the big man must have told the wrong people that he was a big boxing fan and actually fancied himself a boxer at one time.
Following that revelation, a new finisher was added to Show’s repertoire, the KO Punch. It’s exactly what it sounds like. Big Show has a punch as his finisher. What’s worse is that after years of use, neither he nor the powers that be seem to realise what a terrible idea that is as he still uses it to this day.
#3 The Rock
Is there a bigger movie star in the world right now than The Rock? Probably not, and it’s pretty crazy to think that before he dominated Hollywood, he was one of professional wrestling’s favourite sons. Plus, there’s talk of The Great One running for President of the United States in 2020.
Like many Superstars throughout wrestling history, The Rock didn’t just have the one move for finishing off his opponents. Rock would use the devastating Rock Bottom and the not so devastating People’s Elbow.
The People’s Elbow was simply an elbow drop without Rocky’s elbow pad on. If you thought it was ridiculous, then you’re not alone. Triple H recently revealed that the move was created by The Rock in order to make the guys backstage laugh, and it wound up catching on with the fans.
#2 Mankind
Harking back to an earlier entry in this article now Santino Marella, and the faux Italian isn’t the only man in WWE’s history who incorporated a sock into his finishing manoeuvre. No, it was Mankind who was the innovator of that particular brand of finisher.
Long before Santino ever stepped foot in a WWE ring, Mick Foley was plunging his hand into his tights and pulling out the infamous Mr Socko. A white sock with a face that Foley would put on his hand before applying his finisher, the Mandible Claw.
As finishers go, it’s not only one of the worst but also one of the foulest. Once the mangy sock was on Mankind’s hand, he would stick it as far into his opponent’s mouth as he could. Pretty grim and not exactly groundbreaking.
#1 Hulk Hogan
The biggest name in professional wrestling history is Hulk Hogan. Despite what he’s done since his in-ring career came to an end, there is no disputing that. The Hulkster defined a generation and has transcended the business in a major way.
John Cena and The Rock are currently dead set on trying to change that fact, and being bigger than wrestling isn’t the only thing these three men have in common. They also all have terrible finishing moves and have all made this list.
Hogan’s may be the very worst though, the leg drop. Much like Rock, The Immortal One would rally the crowd while his opponent was prone before finally dropping that famous leg. Despite it being a lacklustre finish, you knew when that leg dropped that the match was over.
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