8 Wrestling Finishers Made Out Of Spite

2. The Undertaker's Reputation Created The People's Elbow

The Rock People's Elbow Undertaker
WWE.com

One of the descriptive breakdowns terms when defining spite is "to annoy or irritate". For The Rock, such want to playfully irk someone was what led to the creation of the People's Elbow.

The People's Elbow is one of the most absurd, ludicrous, nonsensical moves in the history of professional wrestling. You have the Great one taking a solid 20 seconds to peal off an elbow pad, followed by another few seconds of taunting, and then hitting both sides of the ring before delivering even more gesticulation and the finally dropping an elbow to an opponent. And after having had to lie there through all of that, said opponent more often than not ate a 1-2-3.

So, how did Dwayne Johnson come up with such a ridiculous signature? Well, that was down to the Undertaker.

Ever the serious, stoic sort - obvs despite being an undead wizard with a penchant for Limp Bizkit - 'Taker was all about keeping things all business when between the ropes. Priding himself on being the unflappable, no-bullsh*t leader of the then-WWF, the Phenom was dour and sour when in action.

Taking this as a personal challenge, The Rock debuted the People's Elbow as a way to poke fun at Undertaker's demeanour and to attempt to get the Deadman to crack up. Seeing the crowd reaction to the move, the rest is history.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer and Presenter, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund and Eli Roth to Kevin Smith and the Russo Brothers, to Kevin Conroy and Frank Miller, to Bret Hart and Sting, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, and Brian Flynn, to many, many more. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.