10 Most Awesome Wrestling Submissions (And Who Did Them Best)

Before The Olympic Hero was twisting opponents' feet off, Ken Shamrock was torturing foes (The Rock mostly) with it, crouching down and applying extra torque on the ankle joint.

Despite being a vicious, high-intensity performer with legit tough guy and fighting cred from his UFC and Pancrase days, Shamrock was mostly trapped in the midcard. As dangerous as his ankle lock was in presentation, it rarely broke the spirits of top stars.

Kurt Angle, on the other hand, has seemingly snapped the ankle of every big star he's worked with at some point or other. Even the likes of Brock Lesnar, Hulk Hogan and Samoa Joe (who was undefeated in TNA until he tapped to Pittsburgh's favourite son) were no match for it.

It's not just the superior booking that places Angle's ankle lock (often misnamed the Angle Lock) in a league of its own. The WWE Hall of Famer's character work and aggression added suspense to the hold, leading viewers to wonder if this really was it for his foes. He would often throw in a grapevine, wrapping his legs around his opponent's knee, for an added sense of impending doom.

A key fixture in Kurt Angle's remarkable ring arsenal, the ankle lock is one of the most iconic holds of The Ruthless Aggression Era. Stars with folkstyle wrestling backgrounds such as Jake Hager and Chad Gable have since adopted the move in homage to Angle.

While their respective takes on it are on point, no one holds a candle to Angle's impact on the move's popularity and believability.