Back in the 1980s, a pro wrestler by the name of Colonel DeBeers would pick up his opponent in a piledriver position but instead of falling backwards, would fall forwards onto his knees. The move was soon used by Diamond Dallas Page in World Championship Wrestling in the 90s, now called the Diamond Clash. DDP modified to instead of falling on his knees like DeBeers, he dropped flat. In 2001, AJ Styles made his debut in WCW and began using a modification of the Diamond Clash. Instead of holding the opponent by the waist, Styles would hold them by the thighs. To ensure they didn’t simply hang with loose arms, Styles would step his feet over to hook their arms. Finally, Styles would drop to the mat, sometimes flat like the Diamond Clash, and other times directly to his knees, more reminiscent of DeBeers. It would all depend on whether there was enough momentum with the opponent when executing the move. Either way, it was the Styles Clash.
The maneuver has had other wrestlers using it or another form of it, from Michelle McCool to Cesaro. With close to 13 years of use, the move should be considered a safe wrestling move to perform. Unfortunately, wrestlers have been getting hurt from it, most recently former WWE superstar Yoshi Tatsu. It’s beginning to beg the question: is the Styles Clash too dangerous?
Yoshi Tatsu adds to a list that includes Roderick Strong, Sterling James Keenan (now Corey Graves in NXT), Frankie Kazarian and independent wrestlers Steve Stone and Lionhart have all been injured by the move, three of which (Strong, Lionheart, Tatsu) have been hurt in the calendar year. Any move that injures that many wrestlers is going to add some questions to whether it should be used at all.
It’s important to watch footage of the Styles Clash in the moments where it injured opponents but also where it was executed successfully. It’s also important to be careful what you say. The problem when watching the injury clips is that it doesn’t seem like AJ Styles is ever really executing the move in a way that’s going to add to its severity. While Styles falling to his knees makes for a less clean bump than when he falls with his legs extended, it doesn’t really change the potential danger of the move. What is synonymous with every clip of the move is the opponent tucking in their chin. Tucking in your chin comes in reflex when taking bumps in pro wrestling, but not on stomach bumps. When wrestlers tuck in their chin on a stomach bump, it leaves the head open to be dropped on.
It’s hard to come to this conclusion since it puts the blame on the victim. Styles has never been very sympathetic of the people who did drop on their heads from the move, from Kazarian to Strong. He usually just expresses that it’s a safe move and they’ll take it properly next time. Lionheart urged AJ Styles to quit using the move due to the statistical possibility it would take a wrestler out for life. It wasn’t so much about how many times the move was done safe or if Styles can potentially do it wrong, but just in how easy it was to slip up and lead to a major injury.
Styles always says he asks a wrestler if they know how to take the Styles Clash. Any wrestler who has seen it would know not to tuck in their chin, but it’s possible the reflex of doing so just catches the best of workers. How else could you explain an experienced, smart wrestler like Roderick Strong getting injured by the move in 2014? Of course, Styles claimed Strong tucked in his chin on purpose, which is probably why he was only out for a month and comments focused on how dumb Strong looked taking the move. Did I say Strong was smart? If Styles comments are true I take that back.
One should watch footage of Michelle McCool doing the move, where the Divas she would face (most inexperienced) would hook their arms around McCool’s legs in an incredibly telegraphed and fake way before taking a very flat bump with no chins hooked in. Divas in the WWE always knew never to tuck in their chins but it seems like on the independents and even in Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling, some wrestlers just don’t remember how to take the move properly.
Should a wrestling move be banned not because the person executing it puts their opponent in danger, but because opponents have a tendency to miss their safety responsibility? It’s hard to say, but I have difficulty seeing where AJ Styles is in the wrong with the execution of the Styles Clash. Hopefully, no more wrestlers get hurt with the move.
