10 Last WWE Stars To Take Banned Wrestling Moves

9. John Cena - Piledriver

Buckle Bomb Nia Jax
WWE.com

That Jerry 'The King' Lawler, a man who'd made all his money in Memphis dropping opponents on their heads, stopped using his patented Piledriver after it was prohibited in 2000 showed just how seriously the company was taking the ban.

It was later revealed that wrestlers given special permission could bust out of the boncebuster, explaining why company vets The Undertaker and Kane continued using their Tombstone inversions (though why dispensation wasn't granted for the similarly dyed-in-the-wool Lawler's infrequent matches isn't clear).

As you can imagine, then, Vince McMahon was absolutely furious when CM Punk drove company star John Cena into the canvas with the outlawed hold during their epic February 2012 Raw main event. However, both men escaped further censure; the shock of the move, informed by the ban, had helped make the match.

Interestingly, outside of Tombstones, Cena was the last man to take the move before himself, some six years prior during his WrestleMania 23 conflict with Shawn Michaels. And that onto steels steps too. There's flouting, and then there's flouting.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.