10 Absolute Best Moves In Wrestling Right Now

6. Malakai Black's Jumping Knee Strike

Konosuke Takeshita
All Elite Wrestling

Malakai Black is one of the most unique wrestlers on the planet.

He's almost underrated as a pure bell-to-bell talent because he insists upon doing esoteric character work that is subjectively received. Wildly so; he's either in that vaunted "supernatural" class, which enrols literally every performer with a penchant for dry ice because those fans are the least discerning in all of wrestling, or people think he is cringeworthy.

You can see why certain wrestlers opt for the supernatural persona. It's a cheat code for getting over to a certain subgroup of fans. Any supernatural gimmick works for them. Mordecai, Hade Vansen and Karrion Kross were all "wasted opportunities". You could paint your face green and glue screws either side of your neck, perform abysmally for two weeks on WWE television before promptly disappearing for a decade, and people on Reddit will say sh*t like "Yeah man he could've been the next 'Taker".

Others are actually suspicious of Black as a result of their distaste for the archetype, but the man is an elite-tier pro wrestler. Few others are able to bump so closely to their neck to create the illusion of complete peril. Black is on Kota Ibushi's level in this regard, and he's just as superb on offence. His jumping knee strike is executed so quickly that it's as if he teleports right beneath his opponent's chin before cracking them in the mouth.

It is the perfect integration of a martial-arts move in the pro wrestling context.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!