"There’s no scar on my neck" - WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley shares his dislike of a certain pro wrestling move
WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley recently revealed that he doesn't like German suplexes. According to him, the move shortens the careers of wrestlers and leads to a worse quality of life.
Mrs. Foley's Baby Boy might be the authority on how taking certain bumps throughout one's wrestling career might lead to physical problems down the line. Known for taking dangerous bumps in his day, Mick has on many occasions called himself lucky to be able to walk after the career he's had.
On his Foley in Pod podcast, the former WWE Champion discussed the prevalence of German suplexes in today's pro wrestling. He claimed that despite taking hard-to-watch bumps on a regular basis, he did not allow his rivals to "throw him backwards" very often.
“I’ll probably take some criticism for this being the guy who did a lot of risky stuff, but you noticed there’s no scar on my neck. You would think I would have been one of the first guys that would be in line for that surgery. I did not let people throw me backwards very often. There would be a time a guy like Rick Steiner would throw me, whether or not I wanted to go, but I generally had a plan B."
He then revealed his dislike for the suplex most prominently performed by Brock Lesnar.
"I don’t like German suplexes. I think that over time, they shorten careers and they destroy the quality of life, so people can attack me for that. Over time, it’s gonna wear you out,” said Mick Foley. [h/t NoDQ.com]
"I did not let people throw me backwards very often. I just don't like German Suplexes. I think that over time they shorten careers, and they destroy the quality of life." - Mick Foley #wwe #WrestlingCommunity https://t.co/Y2O7m3fVEq
Mick Foley explains how German suplexes are different from taking a chair shot to the head
Mick Foley has jumped off a cage, gone through a burning table, bumped on the exposed floor, and lost part of an ear in the wrestling ring. He also took several chair shots to the head, as it was quite normal at the time.
We now know how those blows can cause concussions and CTE, resulting in the move getting banned from most major wrestling promotions.
During the same podcast, the Hardcore Legend explained that although chair shots to the head are very dangerous, German suplexes might have them beat in terms of danger.
"If I don’t get the four fingers up there in time (to block the chair), I’m going to take a heck of a jolt, it’s gonna cause a concussion, but it’s not going to paralyze me. Whereas this, if you don’t do everything right, I just can’t see those things being good for long term health, and not everybody’s going to make a lot of money,” said Mick Foley. [h/t NoDQ.com]
31 YEARS AGO TODAY...
@RealMickFoley takes this hellacious bump on the concrete floor when facing Mil Mascaras at Clash of the Champions X. https://t.co/mT4cKOXcEZ
The recent match between Daniel Garcia and Wheeler Yuta for the ROH Pure title on AEW Dynamite saw the duo landing dangerously high on their shoulders while thrown.
Such offense looks exciting and might even add to the quality of the match. But if it leads to long-term issues for the wrestlers, is it really worth it?