10 Awesome Wrestling Moves That Nobody Ever Talks About
2. Yokozuna's Bonzai Drop
The very best pro wrestling moves feel as terrifying to anticipate as they look painful to endure. Under that premise, Yokozuna's Banzai Drop is a psychological masterclass of a what-a-manoeuvre.
There was no escaping it, because Yoko was a colossus capable of smashing hapless jobbers into smithereens well before he felt the need to drop the bomb. But there was also no escaping it because it was simply better to lay there and take it. If his opponent dared sit up, in an attempt to scurry away, the margin for error was drastic. They risked a serious concussion or spinal compression, which is just about less preferable than a caved-in chest or a collapsed lung.
A gruesome-looking fusion of velocity and impact, the set-up was equally excellent. Yoko would drag the lifeless bodies by their limp hands. This was a total over-kill of a move, the transition to which felt unspeakably cruel.
It can not be overstated how gargantuan a man Yoko was. The Banzai drop looked like an instant avalanche delivered by a mountain of a man.