Ranking What Was Really The Best Wrestling Finisher Every Year 1990-2020

15. 2006 - Go To Sleep

Best Finishers
Pro Wrestling NOAH

The Go To Sleep was the coolest move in the world in 2006. It was so delightfully KENTA; there was a bathetic quality to it, almost, that conveyed so much of his character.

Upon his ascent, he played sadistic deadpan heel in a bid to disrespect and unsettle the fading old guard on which Pro Wrestling NOAH was built in its infancy. His Go To Sleep felt almost like a transgression. Set up with the fireman's carry that almost mirrored his mentor's Burning Hammer, it ended instead with a straight knee to the face - something closer to the old NJPW enemy recognised as something callously brutal, outlawed as it is in KENTA's background of kickboxing.

Creative, violent, even witty: the Go To Sleep was every CAW's go-to.

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!