100 Best Wrestling Moves EVER
9. Petey Williams | Canadian Destroyer
The Canadian Destroyer was pioneered by Petey Williams two decades ago. It remains the most divisive and exciting move in the industry in 2025.
Its mere existence, to some people, is shorthand for bad or fake-looking wrestling. The move, a front-flip piledriver, is undeniably contrived - the recipient clearly performs a back flip to land on their own head.
Some people hate it for that reason - even if a simple body slam is pure cooperation. Others love it because it looks really, really, really spectacular.
It is also used as shorthand by wrestlers of a certain age to prove they can still go and still get over: Dustin Rhodes has played with the juxtaposition of age versus move to generate many a shocked, jubilant pop.
A vernacular and a culture war in one move, the Canadian Destroyer is meant to be some disgrace that betrays the ideas of storytelling and character. In reality, it is a useful tool for character development.
While Petey’s version has been improved upon in the years since - by Penta, most notably - Williams deserves the credit.
He is responsible for the most awestruck in-ring pops across the entire history of 21st century wrestling.