10 wrestling moves that are more painful than they actually look
In professional wrestling, wrestlers use a variety of moves at their disposal to attack their opponents. These moves could range from throws, slams, aerial attacks, and strikes to even submission maneuvers. The special ones are called finishing moves or finishers which allow a wrestler to pick up a win over his/her opponent. In most cases, we see the victim of a wrestler's move contort their face in agony as we are led to believe that the person on the receiving end is having a painful experience.
However, as we know, that is not the case as these are all pre-determined and if a wrestler was to apply a move for real on his/her opponent, it could leave them with serious injuries and then the injury rate in pro-wrestling would be off the charts.
There are some moves in wrestling, though, that may appear to be harmless and safe but can legitimately injure the person on the receiving end. Here, we take a look at 10 such wrestling moves that are more painful than they actually look.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article belong to the writer and don't necessarily represent Sportskeeda's stand.
#10 Backhand chops
A chop is a form of striking attack that a wrestler performs by striking an opponent's chest, neck, shoulders, or their backside with the edge of their hand. There are several variations in which a wrestler can deal out chops to their opponents, but here we will be talking about the simple backhand chop that is a common move in many a wrestler's arsenal.
Although it may look simple, a backhand chop can be as lethal depending on the wrestler. If struck with enough force, these chops can leave an opponent's chest a bloody mess.
The live crowd often responds with a loud "Woo!" noise in unison whenever a wrestler dishes out those backhand chops across an opponent's chest, in honor of two-time WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair, who made the move popular. The move is also often used by Ric's daughter, WWE Superstar Charlotte Flair.
In recent years, two WWE Superstars have gained notoriety for dishing out the most lethal knife-edge chops. One of them is NXT Superstar Roderick Strong and the other one is NXT UK Superstar and current NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER.
In this video below, you can watch Daniel Bryan giving a first-hand account of how devastating Strong's chops were as they left bloody welts on Bryan's chest when they faced-off against each other at the WWE Greatest Royal Rumble which was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 2018.
Also, you can see just how brutal WALTER's chops can be when you take a close look at how he struck Jordan Devlin on his chest in a May 2019 episode of NXT UK in the video below near the 2:49 minute mark.
#9 Superplex
A suplex is a common move that is used by both professional and amateur wrestlers alike. It involves grabbing one's opponent and lifting them up, then falling on the backside to slam their opponent's back on the mat or the floor. There are multiple variants of suplexes but here we'll be talking about the superplex.
The superplex is the same as any other suplex but involves delivering it from the second or the top rope. The move does involve a lot of co-ordination between both wrestlers while performing it but it does tend to hurt both the wrestlers, the one who is performing it and the one who is getting hit, as both of them have to fall flat on their backs which could end up damaging their spine.
If performed without much caution, it can even damage the neck or the head. WWE Hall of Famer 'Cowboy' Bob Orton is often credited as being the one who popularized the move and it is now often used by his son and WWE Superstar Randy Orton.