5 pro-wrestling moves that were created by accident
Being a pro wrestler requires a lot of sacrifices and a considerable amount of training. It’s a strange hybrid of live action performance art with carefully-timed cooperative motion sequences that sometimes incorporates legit martial arts moves. To be a pro wrestler, not only do you have to be extremely tough, but you must also possess perfect timing and you must be willing to defy natural instincts for wrestling moves to be done properly.
Remember that time A.J. Styles was about to hit his Styles Clash on James Ellsworth and Ellsworth tucked his chin in (which is a natural reaction when the body anticipates pain; it wants to protect the head and neck) and risked breaking his neck? Thankfully, he pushed his head upward at the last possible second and Styles landed more on his knees, thus saving Ellsworth from injury.
In this instance, Ellsworth and Styles were fortunate that neither of them made too great a mistake, otherwise the consequences could’ve been dire. But there have been some occasions on which this attempt at cooperation backfired for one reason or another, which led to a wrestling move that was completely different from the one intended.
Below we look at five pro-wrestling moves that were created by accident.
#5 The DDT
If WWE’s narrative is to be believed, then the standard DDT was invented entirely by accident. The story goes that Jake "the Snake" Roberts was wrestling a wrestler called "The Grappler" (because wrestlers were really inventive back then), and Roberts had his opponent in a front face lock.
Allegedly, Roberts tripped and fell backwards while still holding the Grappler in the same face lock. In doing so, Roberts landed on his back and the Grappler landed on his head, or at least, that’s what it looked like from the fans’ perspective.
The audience was said to have gone nuts over this move, and thus the DDT was created.
That move has since become arguably the go-to move for basically everyone and is now considered one of the simplest moves that any and every wrestler should be capable of executing.