Formerly Banned WWE Move Almost Left Rey Mysterio Injured On RAW
Rey Mysterio avoided a serious injury while taking a move that used to be banned in WWE.
The former 6-time WWE World Champion Seth Rollins has used The Stomp (or Curb Stomp) as his finishing move for most of his WWE career over the last decade-plus, but not all of it.
After Seth Rollins won the WWE Title with The Stomp at WrestleMania 31 in 2015, former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon thought it looked too violent. Rollins explained how the ban began in an interview several years ago.
“That is pretty much true. He thought it was too violent. I was going to do The Today Show, then the following morning after I had won the title with that move. And obviously, they are replaying me winning the title, and whether he saw it or anybody else saw it, or there was a conversation that involved him. He decided that we’ll do something different.
I’ve been using it for a few years up to that point and won the title with it, but we went a different direction the following night.
“My mind went to WTF? What are you talking about? You’re out of your mind, come on. His big concern was that kids can do it to each other. I’m like it’s pro wrestling, it’s every pro wrestling move ever invented. Come on man, this argument is flat. But at the end of the day, he’s the boss, he signs the cheques, it’s his deal, so you figure it out.”
Rollins ended up using Triple H’s Pedigree as a finishing move for several years, but Rollins was eventually allowed to use The Stomp as a finisher again.
Fast forward to today, and prior to Austin Theory revealing himself as the mysterious masked man, Theory hit WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio with The Stomp on the ring apron. This allowed Logan Paul to hit the Superstar Splash off the top rope, and he beat Rey because of Theory’s assist.
Rey Mysterio Could Have Been Hurt Taking The Stomp On WWE Raw
Former WWE, TNA, WCW, and ECW wrestler Stevie Richards talked about The Stomp on his YouTube show. Richards spoke about The Stomp that Theory did on Rey Mysterio and why the move was banned in the first place. Simply put, it was banned because it looked too real, and that made it difficult for wrestlers to protect themselves while taking the move.
“I can see why Vince banned the Curb Stomp in WWE for a while. If people don’t remember, that move was banned…because it’s essentially real. And it wasn’t any more real, it was actually more real and devastating because you can put your hands there. Rey totally ate the corner of the ring apron with that Curb Stomp. How can you not get a concussion or at least get your bell rung to some point?”
As you can see in the image below, when Theory hit The Stomp on Rey on the apron, Rey was able to get his right hand down, but he had to take the full bump on the top of his head and his left shoulder.
The good news is that Rey Mysterio wasn’t injured and was actually in action at the tapings for the December 22nd episode of Raw.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit the original source and then h/t with a link back to TJR Wrestling for the transcription.