Wrestling moves are not straight-forward, as if you are not paying close attention, you might believe the moves are real. At the moment I am still a little reluctant to fill you in on the moves, since I am not a wrestling fan, however my son is, and he is going to give us the inside information on wrestling moves to help us see it for what it is, fake.

For example, one of the oldest moves is the ‘banana splits’, although, nowadays, the move is now famous as the ‘leg splits’. This move entails the one wrestler putting both hands on the legs of the other wrestler and pushing the legs apart as far as they will stretch. This move will force the wrestler to put his/her own shoulders to the mat. If the wrestling move were for real and the wrestler failed to submit, his/her legs would rip some muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc.

The ‘Cobra Clutch’ is another of the holds that would in reality cause agony. The cobra move is universally recognizable as the cross chokes or arm locks. The challenging wrestler will come from the back of the other pugilist and using a single arm in the “Nelson Hold”. The opponent will then use his/her arm to tug the wrestler’s arm trying to prevent him from pulling across the neckline and choking him as a result. The back clutch, or bombard is similar but the challenging wrestler is on his back under his opponent extending his arms upward from behind.

The ‘Rock Bottom’ moves entail the adversary drawing his opponents arm over his shoulder. The wrestler then places the opponents arm over his/her shoulder and lifts and dives forward onto the mat. During this attack, the challenger is hitting the mat head first, which if actually executed, would break some bones, or else cause some serious pain.

The ‘Choke Slam’ is the move when the attacking wrestler grips the opponent’s arm and lifts his arm close by his opponent’s side, over his shoulder. Then he lifts the opponent and slams him down onto the mat.

The ‘Big Boot’ is a running attack. The wrestler lifts up his boot, connecting with the face of his opponent. So, a boot in the face, in other words! This would definitely put a person on his/her rear any time, causing the kicked person to feel severe concussion for a while.

What makes wrestling so exciting is the phoney dialogue, the outfits, the characters and the moves. If you think of the Superman movies, and how he dresses, you will notice that without his costume he wouldn’t have any character appeal as Superman. Likewise, the wrestlers wear costumes that make them seem like they are super heroes of the ring, indicting the baddies. Each wrestler has his/her role in the ring. It is usually quite peaceful, but made to look violent!

However, wrestling does have rules, as well as restrictions, even though the moves are all fake. Wrestlers must respect the ropes of the ring, as well as the colour codes.

There are also methods of wrestling, which include the folk style, freestyle and Greco Romanian styles. Each of the styles has its own set of rules, although the freestyle and folk style are fairly similar. Usually, the styles are demonstrated so well that you wouldn’t know which style the wrestlers are using.

As with a script or a dance routine, most of the moves are choreographed, which means that a director is off camera using his/her hands to direct the wrestlers in the rings. For the most part, wrestling is nothing more than an act with a few exemptions like when the KAYFABE is broken, when a real fight might break out. The KAYFABE is wrestling’s verbal communication.

About the Author:

Owen Jones
View all posts by Owen Jones
Owens website
Related Products:

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Related posts

Tagged with:

Filed under: Martial Arts

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!