10 Wrestlers Who Got PISSED When Their Moves Were Stolen

5. Sami Zayn's Blue Thunder Bomb

Sami Zayn
WWE.com

So what's the actual rule/etiquette on move-theft/inspiration?

Perhaps it's an exposure thing. Is anything fair game, until it happens under the same umbrella? It's not as if, for example, Naomichi Marifuji got any less over in Pro Wrestling NOAH when Chris Jericho adopted the Codebreaker in WWE. It makes sense, if that is indeed the craic. There's no direct toe-stepping. Nobody is trying to outshine anybody else in the same company. It's basically all a big race to see who watches a great Japanese match first.

Which makes Sami Zayn's conniption fit somewhat understandable. Famously high on his own ability, as well he should be, he still can't think he invented moves that he certainly did not. Zayn as El Generico was terrifically inventive - the Brainbusstaaaahhh! was so good that he should jump to AEW just to perform it on national TV - but he didn't invent the Blue Thunder Bomb. He adopted it.

He had a go at HC Dyer for busting out the move in the inaugural United Kingdom Championship tournament. "Why imitate when you can create?" the man who imitated Jun Akiyama's move tweeted. Tyson Kidd replied to point that out, and that was that, pretty much.

Maybe the wrestlers who have pioneered a move are...more allowed to rip something else off? Is that the etiquette? Shouldn't avowed socialist Zayn have expressed more contempt for WWE monopolising the entirety of BritWres?

F*ck knows, they're all insane.

Sympathy factor: The Brainbusstaaaahhh! is too good. Sorry HC.

Contributor
Contributor

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!