MMA's 10 Craziest Pro Wrestling-Style Finishes

Admit it. When Hulk Hogan planted that leg drop on the enemy's grill, you cheered. Ditto the wonder that was The Stone-Cold Stunner. And don't forget about The Ultimate Warrior's military press, Macho Man's flying elbow and the pre-Iraq War Camel Clutch.

I could go on. You may have already been sensing that. But that's because devastating finishers are like a tomahawk dunk and a walk-off home run rolled into one. There is nothing else like it.

Suffice it to say this is one area where I don't mind MMA taking a page from the pro wrestling playbook.

Here are 10 of MMA's craziest pro-wrestling-style finishes. In order to qualify, first, a fighter needs to be actively associated with the move in question. No random dudes on YouTube.

Second, the move has to have actually caused a finish—the faster and cleaner the better.

Third, it has to be more than just lightning in a bottle; the fighter has to have pulled it off more than once, or at least stand a realistic shot of doing so.

And fourth, the move has to be able to start with the word The. 

Those are the metrics. Now here's the list.

Honorable Mention: The Showtime Kick

The mind-bending wall-walking kick would probably be No. 1 if it had actually finished Benson Henderson. Anthony Pettis still got the win, though, and plenty of respect just for landing the thing.

Honorable Mention No. 2: The Jon Jones Standing Guillotine

It's not exactly "signature," and there are surely others who have done it and perhaps done it better.

But the way Lyoto Machida drops like a bag of overripe laundry when Bones lets him go, and the way the champ strolls away from the scene like he just paid his check at Applebee's, well, it was pretty cold-blooded.

10. The Sassangle

Paul Sass may not be the most famous guy on this list. Nevertheless, the 23-year-old lightweight owns one of the few moves in MMA—a vicious triangle choke that has netted him seven of the wins in his 12-0 record—that has earned its own nickname.  

9. The Paul Harris

Rousimar Palhares may be the nastiest jiu-jitsu finisher in the game today. And the heel hook is his deadliest and most frequently brandished weapon; it has thus far ended the evening of six of "The Tree Stump"'s opponents.

(Photo credit: MMAGospel) 

8. The Twister

A lot of fans don't know who Chan Sung Jung is. But The Twister Guy...they know him.

7. The Front Kick

Technically, I suppose Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida should share this one. But screw that. This one goes to Mr. Steven Seagal. Or, as I like to call him, the greatest coach in the history of organized sport.

This could also have gone to Silva's clinch knees, but those had a little bit less finality about them than The Kick.

6. The Inverted Flying Freaking Triangle

Cheers to Toby Imada, who has 19 career submission victories, for pulling this off on Jorge Masvidal back in 2009 at Bellator 5. Still one of the best YouTube clips in MMA history.

5. The Iceman's Overhand

That iron-dipped right arm is why Chuck Liddell would star in the UFC cartoon series.

4. The Liver Kick

With the exception of Royce Gracie and his armbar, Bas Rutten may have been the first MMA fighter to get famous in part due to a signature finishing move. He used it to finish two fights and swing plenty more in his favor.

Check out this grainy photo of El Guapo in action. You can almost see the grassy knoll in the background.

3. The Emelianenko Armbar

Speaking of armbars, once Fedor Emelianenko had it locked on, there was no getting it off. And it didn't matter how big you were, as evidenced by this photo in which Hong Man Choi attempts to shake off Fedor like a shark shaking off a remora. Sorry, Hong. No chance.

Plus, much like the Stone Cold Stunner, he can slap it on from just about any position. He's used it six times over the years to put his opponents away; two times, that opponent was Mark Coleman.

2. The Rampage Slam

The power bomb on Ricardo Arona is the most famous example, but in his PRIDE heyday, the slam was Rampage's bread and butter. Fight fans looked for it the way they looked for Liddell's right hand or Wanderlei's soccer kicks. 

1. The Cemetery Kick

Mirko Cro Cop and his widowmaker of a head kick: Best. Finishing. Move. Ever. I will not debate this.