100 Best Wrestling Moves EVER
56. Kevin Owens | Pop-Up Powerbomb
Speed and sheer impact are the hallmarks of moves perfect for either ending matches or luring people in with a crowd-fooling near fall. Kevin Owens understood that when looking for an easy way to lace his bouts with a move that could achieve both. Sometimes, he's won major matches with the Pop-Up Powerbomb. Other times, it's little more than another tease-heavy spot that convinces most a wrestler sustaining it is toast. '1...2...he-got-him-no-he-didn't' vibes.
KO uses Steve Austin's classic Stunner a lot of the time, which is fine. That finisher is over with fans as a legacy move, and it'll always get a pop because of the suddenness of it all. The Pop-Up Powerbomb has the same kind of air, although there's a bit more time for fans to settle in and prepare due to Owens firing opponents off the ropes before hitting it.
On that: Kev sporadically hits his Powerbomb to cut off an offensive bid from someone else. For example, he might duck a clothesline then meet enemies bouncing back off the opposite ropes. It's the fact that everything happens in the blink of an eye that makes the move so aesthetically cool. High fives all round in the stands when KO goes Pop-Up, basically.
Variations on the Pop-Up Powerbomb include one Owens nails on the ring apron. That always looks gnarly, and has been deployed to great effect when running injury angles, turns or the like with workers like Bryan Danielson/Daniel Bryan or Sami Zayn. Once again, the evil speed of the move helps there.