10 Most Insane Wrestling Spots Of 2020
Including a man who was literally run down by a golf cart - wrestling!
Considering the effects 2020 has had on the professional wrestling industry (and everything else, if we're being honest) in terms of having no live audiences for three quarters of the year, it would have been acceptable for the wrestlers involved to hold back on some of the more death-defying spots we'd typically see in front of a crowd.
Except, that's quite the opposite of what actually happened, as those on this list will vouch for.
Simply put, the lack of fans in attendance didn't prevent anyone from holding back in the ring. In fact, it almost pushed them to achieve more in order to deliver a memorable performance for everyone watching at home. Had the ongoing global b*stard not happened, and shows did have full capacity, who knows what sort of spotfests we would have been treated to.
For this list, we're incorporating a mixture of weapon-based offence, finishing manoeuvres off and/or through surfaces outwith the squared circle, huge dives to ringside, and a goddamn Tombstone Piledriver on the ring apron. Yes, Kota Ibushi was really up for taking such a move on New Japan's biggest stage because, apparently, it's impossible for 'The Golden Star' to give his neck a rest.
As for some other insane spots of 2020...
10. The Destroyer Heard Around The World - Impact Hard To Kill (12 January)
OH MY GOD!
— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) January 13, 2020
SUPER DUPER CANADIAN DESTROYER BY @Willie_Mack! #HardToKill pic.twitter.com/inNLxXCm8p
Coming into the first Hard To Kill pay-per-view on 12 January, Impact Wrestling management found themselves in quite the pickle.
Their scheduled World Tag Team Championships bout for the evening - The North defending against Willie Mack and Rich Swann - was thrown into uncertainty as Swann suffered a serious ankle injury two nights before. Left with no other option, Mack went into battle against Ethan Page and Josh Alexander on his own, and oh boy, did the match deliver.
Looking to seize an opportunity to make himself a bonafide star in Impact after floundering around the midcard since his debut, Mack took it upon himself to give Alexander a Canadian Destroyer off of Page's shoulders. Keep in mind that 'Chocolate Thunder' weighs near 300 pounds, and you immediately have to give immense praise to he and both members of The North for making the spot appear so smooth.
A Canadian Destroyer, although overused in today's era of wrestling, is a dangerous move to pull off in itself. When you add in the Doomsday Device aspect of it, however, it's a totally new ballpark.
Even to this day, it remains the greatest spot of that pay-per-view, and perhaps of Impact's 2020 in general.