Sharpshooter (professional wrestling)

Edge, applying on CM Punk

The Sharpshooter, originally named Sasori-gatame, Scorpion Hold in English,^[1][2] is a professional wrestling submission hold. The move is also known by several other names: cloverleaf leg-lace Boston crab, standing reverse figure-four leglock, and, the most commonly known alternative, Scorpion Deathlock. The move was invented by Japanese professional wrestler Riki Chōshū,^[3] and it was popularized by Sting, but it is generally associated with Bret Hart, who used the move and gave it the now most commonly used name, the Sharpshooter. The Sharpshooter hold begins with the opponent supine on the mat with the applying wrestler stepping between the opponent's legs with his/her left leg and wraps the opponent's legs at shin level around that leg. If the applier decides to cross the opponent's legs around his right leg, he has to cross the opponent's right leg over their left, or, otherwise, he has to cross his opponent's left leg over their right. Holding the opponent's legs in place, the wrestler then grabs the opponent's leg which he has crossed over the other and steps over him, flipping him over into a prone position before leaning back to compress his lower back.

History and variations

Natalya using the Sharpshooter on Ariel at a Shimmer Women Athletes show.

Natalya putting the Sharpshooter on AJ

While Bret "The Hitman" Hart is the wrestler with whom the Sharpshooter is most often associated, Ronnie Garvin and Sting were the first wrestlers to prolifically use the hold in North America, during which time it was called the Scorpion Deathlock, deriving from the original Japanese name.^[4] In Hart's autobiography, he noted that prior to his first major singles push, Pat Patterson asked if he could do a "Scorpion Death Lock", which he did not know at the time. Hart revealed that the only person in the locker room who knew about the move was Konnan, who taught the move to Hart.^[5] Its name was based on Hart's "Hit Man" nickname (from the underworld slang hit, murder). In WWF publications of the era, Bret's father Stu Hart, long known as a trainer in the game, was generally given credit for devising the move.

The Sharpshooter was infamously used in the Montreal Screwjob at Survivor Series in 1997. Shawn Michaels applied Hart's own Sharpshooter on him. Vince McMahon double-crossed Hart by ordering referee Earl Hebner to ring the bell and award the match to Michaels, despite Hart never having submitted. This moment would be referenced within kayfabe through various future events; McMahon repeated the action at the next year's Survivor Series in 1998, as part of a storyline, during the "Deadly Games" tournament final between The Rock and Mankind. Another occurred on the March 18, 2006 edition of Saturday Night's Main Event, during a Street Fight between Shawn Michaels and Shane McMahon.

Scorpion Cross Lock (Inverted Sharpshooter with Double Chicken Wing)

The hold sets up the same as the Sharpshooter, with the opponent supine on the mat with the applying wrestler stepping between the opponent's legs with his/her right leg and wraps the opponent's legs at shin level around that leg. However, instead of stepping over the opponent to flip the opponent, the applying wrestler flips the wrestler over from left-to-right, keeping the opponent in front of him/her. The applying wrestler then leans over the opponent and grabs his/her arms, applying a double chicken wing to the opponent. The applying wrestler then squats back, lifting the opponent's torso into the air. Currently used by Paige, who adopted it from Bull Nakano

See also

• Professional wrestling holds

Footnotes

References