6 Wrestling Finishers That Have Never Been Kicked Out Of
2. The Death Rider
Jon Moxley's fabulous Death Rider finisher has thus far claimed him a host of New Japan Pro Wrestling scalps, but the move has a lot more going on than just head meeting mat with the furious force of a fighter reborn.
A spring-loaded spiked variant on his Dirty Deeds DDT, the upgraded finisher was debuted against Juice Robinson after the original simply wasn't good enough to put the then-United States Champion away. This was telling from the perspective of giver and receiver - for Moxley, it was a reminder he needed more than he'd previously had to offer back when he was working with half the enthusiasm. For Juice, it was the opportunity to show how far he'd come from the developmental prospect WWE had probably quietly deemed a failure.
Kayfabe failure came his way with the Death Rider - all-new Moxley had an all-new way to win, informed by his patient and powerful WWE escape.
It concluded a spectacular match just like it did during Moxley's iconic G1 Climax campaign. The day he allows a victim to survive it is the day 'Mox' has found his ceiling outside of Vince McMahon's empire - a day that hopefully never comes.