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10 Best Submissions in Wrestling History

Posted: May 13th 2012 By: mikeiles

Most wrestling fans love a good, high-impact finishing move that undoubtedly puts their opponent away. Some, like myself, enjoy a good submission hold that earns victory.


Being an MMA fan, watching a good submission hold is as good as watching a Tombstone Piledriver or an Arn Anderson spinebuster.

Here is a look at the 10 best submissions in wrestling history.

No. 10: Mandible Claw

Call him Cactus Jack, Mankind, Dude Love or just plain old Mick Foley. Either way, one of Foley's most recognizable moves is the Mandible Claw, which is used with the aid of Mr. Socko.

What makes the Mandible Claw so great is that the audience can see it coming. There is great buildup from when Foley pulls the sock out of his tights until the time it is put into his opponent's mouth.

It is a fun move, but it is a devastating move. It's a disgusting version of an inverted fish hook, pushing down below the tongue and putting big pressure on an opponents jaw.

It is a legitimately painful hold in real life, but in wrestling terms, it comes in at No. 10.

No. 9: LeBell Lock

I refuse to call Daniel Bryan's LeBell Lock the "Yes Lock." I have never been on the "yes" bandwagon and never will be. I don't understand it and I think it is stupid.

Anyways, Daniel Bryan's version of the move is an extremely painful hold. It's technical name is an omoplata crossface, which puts pressure on multiple parts of the body.

The omoplata hold, which is a leg scissors placed around the opponent's arm, puts devastating pressure on the shoulder. The crossface part of the move puts great amount of stress on the neck, causing double the pain for whoever gets caught in the hold.

Believe me, I have let my friend do this to me and it's not fun at all.

No. 8: Anaconda Vice

The Anaconda Vice, as used by CM Punk, comes in at No. 8. It is a compression hold and a chokehold, making it a diverse, effective submission maneuver.

Not only does the hold use the applicants bicep to choke his opponent, but it compresses two other parts of the recipient's body. The forearm is placed at the back of an opponent's head, with the applicants hands locking to create pressure on the neck.

Meanwhile, the opponent's arm is also locked in a position which puts pressure on the elbow, making this a very dangerous hold. What makes it somewhat easy to defend is the opponent's free arm, which could be used to punch, eye gouge and other maneuvers which could lead to the breaking of the hold.

No. 7: Kimura

Brock Lesnar's return to the WWE has brought a devastating submission hold with him known as the Kimura. He has already used this destructive maneuver twice, hurting John Cena's arm and "breaking" HHH's arm.

The Kimura lock is a legitimate MMA hold which has injured many fighters who have faced the pressure. The Kimura is one of the most destructive locks in submission grappling, due to the damage it causes to the shoulder of an opponent.

The applicant of the hold must gain access to an arm, where he can lock together his hand to the wrist of his other hand which is holding the opponent's arm. From there, Lesnar, for example, cranks the arm upward until the opponent taps.

In HHH's case, he didn't tap and his arm "snapped."

No. 6: Ankle Lock

Simple, yet effective. Kurt Angle made the Ankle Lock one of the most feared moves in wrestling. Many, such as Ken Shamrock and Jack Swagger, have used the hold, but Angle's version of the Ankle Lock was the best.

The Ankle Lock is a simple move. The way Angle did it, he used his wrapped arm for leverage and applied a toe hold with the other to create pressure on the ankle.

Once it is locked in, an opponent must tap or face the snap. Angle's intensity when applying the Ankle Lock made it the best, which earned him No. 6 on this list.

No. 5: Crippler Crossface

I know I already technically used this move on the list, but Chris Benoit's version of the omoplata crossface?known as the Crippler Crossface?looked so much more painful than Daniel Bryan's version.

Not much to explain here, as I already broke down the move earlier in the article.

No. 4: Walls of Jericho

Chris Jericho's version of an elevated Boston Crab is and was one of the most recognizable and dangerous submission holds in professional wrestling.

Jericho uses two versions of it. They are basically the same except one version involves Jericho digging his knee into the back of his opponent's head or back.

The Walls of Jericho puts extreme amounts of pressure on the back, as well as some pressure on the knees. It is basically like being "scorpianed," for any extreme-sports fans.

Even more than that, it is a very difficult hold to break, as the counter to it requires extraordinary amounts of energy.

No. 3: Hell's Gate

The Undertaker has adapted in many different ways over his career, but as he has progressed, he has adopted new moves. One of his most devastating moves is the Hell's Gate.

In MMA, the Hell's Gate is called a gogoplata, a rarely used move which is extremely effective if applied.

The Undertaker lies on his back holding his opponent's arm. He then slides his shin across the throat of the opponent, making it a chokehold. The executor can even use the free leg to apply more pressure on the throat.

In the storyline which the move was introduced, it caused opponents to spit blood. That just goes to show how dangerous the move is.

No. 2: Sharpshooter

Bret Hart made the Sharpshooter cool. I know this, as when I was growing up, it was the most popular submission hold my friends would use.

Upon further review, the Sharpshooter is in all actuality a dangerous maneuver. Not only does it apply pressure on the back, but it puts excruciating pain on the knees of an opponent.

When Bret Hart put the move on, I literally thought his opponent was going to blow out his knees. Luckily, that was not the case.

No. 1: Figure-Four Leg Lock

The most devastating submission in wrestling was made popular by Ric Flair. This hold was known, and still is today, as the Figure-Four Leg Lock.

This submission hold is comparable to the MMA hold known as a heel hook, which is possibly the most devastating joint lock that can be applied. The hold is so dangerous due to the amount of pressure placed on the ankle and knee.

The move could be reversed, but it took a lot of will on the part of the recipient of the hold. Either way, whenever Ric Flair used the Figure Four, the crowd went nuts and his opponent screamed in pain.