It's no secret that a lot of moves in wrestling that were once devastating finishers have turned into just another mid-match move. The DDT and a piledriver come to mind, and submission holds are no different. Some guys can still work them, such as Chris Jericho and variations on the Boston Crab or Bobby Lashley in WWE showing how deadly a good old-fashioned Full Nelson can be.
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However, there are many old-school submission holds that just don't have the same impact anymore. Once, some of them were downright feared and terrific moves to get fans going but lack the same spark today. Nowadays, they're resting holds or to get a minor pop, not meant to end the bout in devastating fashion. These are ten submission holds that were once major moves in wrestling but now just elicit yawns from fans.
10 Tarantula
Among the more contrived moves in wrestling, the Tarantula requires the opponent to be dazed enough around the ropes for the other wrestler to be able to get outside, hook their arms and legs between the ropes and pull the person back.
Taijri made it look cool, but since then, it just hasn't worked as well. It not only looks even more fake but rarely used for a win. While it's used a lot, it's more just wearing someone down, not a real finisher, and looks even more contrived.
9 Sharpshooter
This may sound goofy, but really, outside of Natayla, when was the last time you saw someone actually win a big match with the Sharpshooter? Sting and Bret Hart made it iconic as a fantastic submission finisher in its time.
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But over the years, as more and more guys borrow it, the Sharpshooter has lost its impact. It's now commonplace for the person in it to make the ropes or even power out of it, something you never saw before. When it works, it can be good, but it's not the feared ending the Hitman made it.
8 Chicken Wing
There are some variations on this move, as Ricky Steamboat could use a double-arm version, hoisting a guy up and so painful even Ric Flair submitted to it. Bob Backlund used the cross-face chicken wing, which he sold like a maniac.
It was fun in its time, but like other moves on this list, it doesn't look as effective as it once did. Guys prefer an armbar variation over this, and when a chicken wing is used, it's brief mid-match rather than a finisher that really looked like a guy was in agony from it.
7 Thumb Spike
It was always a bit goofy that a guy using his thumb was some sort of ultra-painful finisher. Yet folks like Don Muraco or Brian Adidas made a huge deal out of holding their thumb up and jamming it into a guy's throat over and over until they quit.
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Some did it for the side of the head, which didn't look any better. A quick jab of the thumb to the throat looked more legit, and you rarely see this used now as a thumb finisher outside of a "thumb war" it never felt like a serious finishing move.
6 Bearhug
As soon as a guy slaps on a bearhug today, you can hear the groans from the audience. A bearhug is code for "let's take a bit of a break" and failing to sell the monster worker as the threat he should be.
So it's easy to forget how the bear hug could have been a dreaded move when used by the right guy. It was usually someone truly huge, say Andre the Giant or such, so it could be seen as crushing someone badly and making them pass out. It's too bad the bearhug has fallen into being this disliked maneuver rather than a painful finisher.
5 Camel Clutch
While the Iron Sheik made the Camel Clutch famous, he didn't invent the move. It still looks good with stretching a guy out and pulling him back by the chin to look agonizing and an easy submission.
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Like others on this list, it's now used as a stalling move to wear a guy down rather than a true finisher. To be fair, few pulled it off as well as the Sheik did to make it look imposing and able to be a legit finisher, yet the Clutch doesn't have the hold as a finisher as it once did.
4 Backbreaker
There have been a few variations on the backbreaker over the years. The most famous is Lex Luger's "Torture Rack" finisher of hoisting a guy on his shoulders and shaking him hard to force a submission.
There are other ways of pulling the guy up and forcing the submission for the win. It's a good submission move, yet not one used as often as guys prefer fancier slamming moves using the back. It's too bad as Luger made it a cool visual and could still be sold well as a painful move to survive.
3 Sleeperhold
Today a sleeper is basically a "rest hold" (no pun intended) to kill time in a match. So it's easy to forget that once, it was a legit finisher for guys. Roddy Piper used it a lot, including winning the Intercontinental title with one, and other guys did as well.
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It could be slow, but some drama of the opponent trying to fight out of it and sometimes succeeding. Maybe it just seems a bit lame to win a match making a guy pass out like this, and why the sleeper hold doesn't wake crowds up as much as it once did.
2 Claw Hold
The legacy of the Von Erichs always tied in to "The Iron Claw" they'd use. No matter which brother was doing it, the claw hold was made as a way of crushing a guy down, either for a submission or a pin.
The Von Erichs weren't alone, as Baron Von Raschke was known as "the Clawmaster" for how well he used it. Now, you barely see a claw anymore, and why it's used, it's brief. It's still amazing to look back at how feared this maneuver once was, and yet the claw has passed on as a major finisher.
1 Figure Four Leglock
It can still pop up with Charlotte doing her spin on it with the Figure Eight. Yet, it's forgotten the figure-four leglock was once one of the most feared submission holds around. Ric Flair is, of course, the guy who pulled it off better than others.
Yet others used it, from Dusty Rhodes to Buddy Landell, and Bret Hart could do it on a guy around a ring post to make it worse. Some guys will use it, but it's more a mid-match weakening hold when once, putting on a figure-four meant victory and made it a truly feared submission hold.
