Dropkick

Not to be confused with drop kick, a maneuver in the football codes.

Randy Orton performing a dropkick on Rob Van Dam.

A dropkick is an attacking maneuver in professional wrestling. It is defined as an attack where the wrestler jumps up and kicks the opponent with the soles of both feet, this sees the wrestler twist as they jump so that when the feet connect with the opponent one foot is raised higher that the other (depending on which way they twist) and the wrestler falls back to the mat on their side, or front. This is commonly employed by light and nimble wrestlers who can take advantage of their agility, and is often executed on a charging opponent, or while charging at an opponent.

The most basic form of a dropkick, but potentially the hardest to pull off, is a standing dropkick where the wrestler catches a standing or running opponent with a standard dropkick from a standing position. In order to be pulled off effectively, it requires great leg strength in order to gain elevation.

The dropkick is said to have been invented by Abe Coleman, and made popular by Antonino Rocca. Amongst the other wrestlers who utilize the standing dropkick as a signature maneuver are AJ Styles, Billy Kidman, Maven Huffman, Randy Orton, Hardcore Holly, and the Killer Bees (Jim Brunzell and B. Brian Blair) who have all been credited with having some of the best dropkicks in the business, and Mark Jindrak has been credited with having the highest vertical leap to his dropkick. Brian Pillman was particularly known for using a standing dropkick as a counter to diving opponent trying to perform aerial attacks.

On the other hand, Erik Watts once performed a dropkick that was so low (barely reaching his opponent's thighs) and unconvincing that some observers referred to it as more of a belly flop than a dropkick, and others sarcastically suggested a "Watts Scale" for botched dropkicks akin to the "Muta Scale" used for rating bladejobs.^{[citation needed]}

Other variations

Baseball slide

The wrestler runs and slides feet first at the opponent, kicking them with both feet, like a baseball player sliding into a base. It is usually performed by a wrestler in the ring or on the ring apron against the head or upper torso of a wrestler standing outside of the ring.

A baseball slide can also be used to counter an Irish whip, as the whipped wrestler slides before they can hit the ropes, and it can be used to slide under an opponent, by going between his/her legs.

Front dropkick

A front dropkick is an attack where the wrestler jumps up and kicks forward so that they hit the opponent with the soles of both feet, without twisting like a normal dropkick, this enables the wrestler to fall backwards to the mat, landing on their upper back and shoulder area.

This is often used to attack lower parts of the opponent than the normal dropkick. This move is also used when charging at an opponent is sitting or kneeling on the ground so that the feet will connect with the opponent's head.

Dropsault

Also known as a standing moonsault front dropkick; a dropsault is an attack where the wrestler jumps up and kicks the opponent with both feet and then executes a backflip, landing on the mat chest-first. The move was popularized by Paul London. Sometimes this move can see the wrestler land chest-first on another opponent.

Missile dropkick

A missile dropkick is an aerial version of the dropkick, performed from any elevated surface, usually a turnbuckle.

Though "missile dropkick" most commonly refers to the aerial version of a standing dropkick, the term is also used for the aerial version of the front dropkick.

Springboard dropkick

A move in which a wrestler bounces off the ropes in some fashion before performing a dropkick.

Corner-to-corner missile dropkick

In the variant, the attacking wrestler first places an opponent so they are sat on the mat in one of the corners of ring before then ascending to the top rope/second rope of the corner at the opposite end of the ring ropes. From here the wrestler leaps the length or width of the ring (this is often called "coast to coast") and performs a front dropkick to the opponent.

CIMA invented a front flip variation, where the wrestler first sits their opponent somewhere along the bottom ring rope, going to the opposite side of the ring, and out on to its ring apron before then springboarding off of the top ring rope performing a front flip and connecting with a front dropkick to the opponent

Often this will see a weapon, or foreign object, placed in front of the opponent's head usually wedged between the bottom and middle rope of the ring. Rob Van Dam popularized the move in the U.S. under the name the Van Terminator using a chair over the opponent's face, sometimes even taking the weapon with him when executing the jump.

Single leg running dropkick

In this dropkick an attacking wrestler runs towards an opponent and jumps up sideways striking an opponent's head or chin with the sole of their highest foot.

Samoa Joe is known for using a variation of this known as a single leg front dropkick where he jumps up but not to his side. This version can also be described as a jumping big boot.

References

The Professional Wrestlers' Workout & Instructional Guide - Harley Race, Ricky Steamboat, Les Thatcher, and Alex Marvez pg. 66