10 Wrestlers Banned From Using THEIR OWN Moves

8. CM Punk

Nakamura Samoa Joe Muscle Buster
AEW

Now, there were two reasons why CM Punk retired his Pepsi Plunge which, to the uninitiated, was a top-rope variation of Triple H's Pedigree.

Firstly, it was murder on the knees, which he drove into the mat from the top turnbuckle at a distance many fans, your writer among them, take for granted. The Pepsi Plunge was a young man's move, and he was intelligent enough to abandon it when he realised that he'd already been well established as an early cult hero of the nascent independent movement. He swapped the move for KENTA's GTS to in all likelihood troll fans who buried him for taking liberal inspiration from the Japanese scene.

Secondly, here's the thing: the fact of the matter is, there was never any chance of Punk bringing back the Pepsi Plunge in WWE because it was a cooler and more spectacular version of Triple H's finish, and nobody is cooler than Triple H. He rides a hog, wears a leather jacket, and gets sucked off by Divas onscreen. Not even on a special occasion did Punk bust it out again.

Triple H was right to do this, of course, since it was his move first and he was in WWE years before Punk was.

Them's-uh the breaks-uh.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!