Story: Bret's signature finishing move is a submission hold called the Sharpshooter. A Japanese wrestler Riki Choshu has been credited as the inventor of it. It became a regular move in the American wrestling scene when Sting started using it the NWA/WCW. Sting was working as a singles wrestler before Bret, so he was using it first. Sting called it the Scorpion Deathlock, which was a rough translation for what the move originally meant in Japan. When Bret became a singles wrestler 1991 he needed a finishing move. Apparently it was Konnan that taught him the move. A lot of people figure that it was Bret's dad Stu that taught him it or somebody close to the family, but it was actually Konnan. He had a brief run in WWE in the early 1990s as Max Moon so that's where he picked it up. It's a move that is still used in WWE today by Bret's niece Natalya and her husband Tyson Kidd. Why People Believe It: It's a story Bret has told many teams, so we should believe him. Should We Believe It: Yes. There's no reason for him to lie about it. It's just a shame that Konnan probably doesn't get the credit for it because people saw Bret using it so often that they probably think of it as something he invented. In pro wrestling, a lot of things aren't new. When it comes to moves, it's probably been done somewhere else whether you've seen it or not.
John wrote at WhatCulture from December 2013 to December 2015. It was fun, but it's over for now. Follow him on Twitter @johnreport. You can also send an email to mrjohncanton@gmail.com with any questions or comments as well.
