When I was just a little wee lad, I use to be a mark for damn near every submission hold I would see applied in a pro wrestling ring. And seeing as I grew up with three brothers in the house, we naturally tried about as many as we could at home.
Even if they kept telling us not to.
Doing so fostered a period of growth as a fan of the sports entertainment world, namely the fact that we figured out what holds were effective and actually worth taking the time to learn to apply compared to those that were not.
For example, the sleeper hold can actually put people to sleep. The Figure Four Leglock hurts like hell, depending on how sadistic the person is who is throwing it on you. And the Sharpshooter can cause pain but it's mostly harmless.
The one I hated most? The Full Nelson. I'm not sure there's a single submission hold out there that makes one feel any less powerless. Quite frankly, it's embarrassing.
Of course, once I became a fan of mixed martial arts and started studying jiu-jitsu I quickly came to realize how far I had been led astray.
But in the spirit of keeping kayfabe alive, WWE released a list of the top 25 submission holds and you can see it after the jump.
25. Gory Special
24. Colossal Clutch
23. Vise Grip
22. Regal Stretch
21. Tarantula
20. Dragon Sleeper
19. Texas Cloverleaf
18. Brock Lock
17. The Claw
16. Sleeper Hold
15. Torture Rack
14. Tazzmission
13. Anaconda Vise
12. Mandible Claw
11. Full Nelson
10. Camel Clutch
9. The Yes Lock
8. Figure Four Leglock
7. Crossface Chicken Wing
6. Walls of Jericho
5. Million Dollar Dream
4. Ankle Lock
3. STF
2. Hell's Gate
1. Sharpshooter
Thoughts?