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

9. 2012 - Rainmaker

Best Finishers
New Japan World

Kazuchika Okada's Rainmaker was a phenomenal finish because Okada needed something iconic to warrant the biggest mega-push of the decade. Really, everything about his act had to be perfect. In the biggest flex in modern pro wrestling history, it was.

The ripcord set-up was beyond inspired because it placed Okada in firm control. The finish was as inevitable as his ascent to stardom. Except, in pulsating moments of drama, when his opponents somehow found a final surge of energy in their exhausted bodies and managed to duck it. It's a finish made for himself, his opponents, and the match. In later years, it developed into the perfect in-character counter; luck saved the exhausted Kenny Omega, finally drained of his peerless stamina, where Jay White simply nope'd it in MSG.

The execution looked fantastic because Okada is rangier than most of his NJPW opponents; that, combined with that lunging, brutal connection, meant it never lost that sense of finality even after it was diminished as a one-and-done kill shot.

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!