100 Best Wrestling Moves EVER
28. Hangman Page | Buckshot Lariat
The Buckshot Lariat is not a perfect move because, you could argue, the front-flip set-up is a bit wasteful. It looks awesome, but if you think about it too much, Hangman Page does rather halt his own momentum before connecting with the lariat. Sometimes.
When he hits it perfectly, the momentum does carry him forward into a jaw-rocker of a blow. Other times, he needs a small moment to get his bearings, which undermines things very slightly. (The impact is bruising enough, thankfully).
While he’d be better off simply sprinting, it’s better to receive the Buckshot as pure wrestling theatre.
Page is a phenomenal wrestler, a future all-timer working in his prime, so the not immaculate execution isn’t important. When he’s deep in that finishing stretch, there’s a strong chance that he’s in the process of crafting something transcendent. He can generate a pop purely by hopping onto the apron and slowly gripping the top rope with his hands.
Wrestling is as much about making the crowd make noise as it is making it look like it hurts - and Hangman’s now-iconic finish intersects those two principles beautifully.