10 Wrestling Spots Nobody Does Anymore
8. Three Arm Drops On Sleepers
Pro wrestling has become obsessed with incorporating some MMA tropes, and that's why this one has become less and less frequent over the years. Fans expect to see a wrestler tap out to a submission, probably because the action is more satisfying than seeing them tell the referee, "I quit" or simply losing consciousness.
Those three arm drops of old might not cut it for today's fan.
Back in the 90s, before UFC's popularity dripped onto wrestling's forehead, referees could be found performing multiple tasks during important submission holds. Instead of only asking if a wrestler wanted to give up, they'd raise his or her arm three times into the air and watch it drop. If it fell a third time, they'd call for the bell.
The insinuation was that a worker was defenceless if they couldn't manage to hold their arm up. This often led to crowd-popping comebacks and a few elbows into the heel's mid-rift. It was dramatic, it was awesome and it's sorely missed.