The German Suplex has become a common move over the past 15 years - so much so, that it's now the main staple of the repertoire of WWE's best paid star, Brock Lesnar. It's an effective maneuver, to be sure - it looks both devastating and athletically impressive (especially when accompanied by a well-executed bridge into a pin). Unfortunately, the move is quite dangerous for both parties. The suplex first gained traction in WWE in the early 2000s, when Chris Benoit joined the company. Benoit used a rolling German suplex where he'd deliver the move, keep a waistlock cinched in, then deliver another. And another. And another (he once nailed Steve Austin with nine spine-jarring Germans in a row). Kurt Angle began to use the rolling German suplexes as well, and the results soon became apparent - both the suplexer and the victim land high on their shoulders, and repeated Germans would eventually lead to severe neck damage. Both Benoit and Angle ended up needing surgery, missing a significant amount of time. Edge also needed to go under the knife and lost a year of his career immediately after working extensive programmes with the suplex-happy Angle and Benoit.
Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried.
*Best Crowd of the Year, 2013
