Is Sheamus pulling a Shawn Michaels?

[berlinbrawler]

I cant remember the last time he used his actual finisher, this Running Razor's Edge type thingy.
Instead he uses his bicycle-kick more and more often to end his matches. It seems he is subtly changing it to his official finisher. Good thing, too. It's his best move.

I have seen this twice before. The first time was Shawn Michaels, whose finisher was some lame as hell side-suplex. He eventually couldn't deny any longer that his superkick was by far his most popular move.

Same thing with Edge. For the longest time he was floundering with various finishers that never got over. The Edgecution. LAME! Then he finally realized that he had the spear all along. And again it was the right call.

It's only weird that when other guys use those moves, it's just another move, not a devastating blow. That's the whacky world of rasslin for ya. But I guess that's why others rarely use those moves when someone made it his thing...

 

[tvcolosi]

Guys change finishers all the time

The Rock used the shoulder breaker

Austin used the "stun gun" and the "million dollar dream"

Hogan used a Larait

Taker used the Last Ride

Shelton Benjamin used the T-Bone

Jerich changed to the Code Breaker

And thats just to name a few...

I like the fact though that he changed.. its a very impactful move and looks devastating... I have always thought the cricifix powerbomb looked kinda weak.. they set you down on your shoulders, not as much impact.

 

[berlinbrawler]

What I meant was that he not only changed his finisher - that does indeed happen al the time.

What I meant is he sort of "promoted" one of his regular moves. Michaels' Superkick or Edge's Spear used to be moves that could occur at any point in the match and if the opponent wasn't down for the count, no biggie - it was, after all, just another move. It was only much later that those moves became their finishers and suddenly their opponents sold*it as is an anvil had fallen on their heads.

 

[stasheroo]

It definitely looks that way. And personally, I have no problem with it. I can think of a lot of times when I've seen the same thing in the past. I think they make the change to give them the most impactful-looking move to thrill the audience.

I remember Carlito having a lesser finisher before switching over to what would be called "the Backstabber', a much more impactful finisher over what he had been using before.

 

[fenfool]

Hogan used a suplex! He beat Tito Santana in the pre-Hulkamania days with a standard suplex that looked like he was reading the how-to manual while he was doing it.

I think Matt Morgan's kick finisher looks better, but Sheamus is getting there. It also gives him a second finishing move...good potential for a guy shaking out of one move and falling into another, like he squirms out of the crucifix, bounces off the ropes and runs into the Brough Kick. Nice way of taking someone down, without making him look totally weak.

 

[justinept]

I just finished reading Chris Jericho's new book, and I think he sheds some light on this. When he returned in 2007, he came up The Codebreaker because he was searching for an impact finisher. He claims that it was one of the things he lacked, the ability to hit a finisher out of nowhere.

The same can be said for HBK, Edge, Shaemus and a number of other guys. They had finishers that took a while to set up ... and they ultimately switched to finishers that could be hit out of nowhere. This, to me, adds excitement to a match because you just never know when the guy is going to strike with it ...

 

[AntiChristDeicide]

Maybe Sheamus changed his finisher because it was too dangerous. The Celtic Cross is basically a Razor's/Outsider's Edge,the Border Toss. Yes he sets the shoulders on the mat, but he is supposed to throw the guy off his shoulders and one false move and a guy could break his neck. The brogue kick seems to be less dangerous to execute.

 

[mrbooker]

Its not to much of a big deal the same thing was done with John Morrision and the running knee over star ship pian, i like it it goes back to super stars being able to end a match in different ways making the matches more exciting and less predictable Sting with the scorpion death lock or death drop, angle olympic slam/angle lock, takers tombstone/last ride/hells gate just to name a few.

I still expect to see the crucfix powerbomb WWE seems to just a certain amount of tops stars to have finishers that will catch the fans of guard in a match which i can appreciate

 

[DAFC_Punk_Can_Save_Us]

Sheamus has been using the brogue kick as a finisher for quite a while now. When he first broke onto the scene he was using the irish curse backbreaker, which looks nasty and legit, but it is now demoted to one of his signiture moves. Personally I think most superstars should have a couple of finishers in their repitoire because as people said it adds an element of unpredictability to the end of the match. With someone like Edge you know the only way he is going to end the match is by using the spear (I know he used the killswitch at the RR but that was just a one off).

 

[Lazerball]

idk why this is coming up now, sheamus has been winning matches with the brough kick for a buncha months, he hardly ever won matches with the razors edge, usually the opponent does squirm out of it. most superstars have more than one finisher, and almost always have a impact move and something else, even edge used the educator not long ago to win. if u really want surprise id like to see CM Punk actually win with the anaconda vise, and not just the GTS. Del rio is someone who lacks a impact finisher, he needs to get one.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

It's not uncommon for wrestlers to change finishers. It's not all that unheard of for wrestlers to have more than one finisher and to use one much more than the other.

The Brogue Kick is a much more explosive move that can come out of nowhere. Nothing flashy about it, it's not difficult to perform but Sheamus looks like he takes the guy's head off whenever he hits it. It looks effective and that's what counts more than anything.

Those kinds of finishers seem to be the preferred ones among a lot of WWE wrestlers. Orton's RKO, Zigglers Zig Zag, Morrison's running knee, Kofi's Trouble in Paradise, Edge's Spear, etc.

 

[Dzone]

I love Sheamus's brogue kick, that mid air one looked bad ass xD

I think WWE made him change it because only a handful can sell the Celtic Cross (or what ever) without getting seriously injured.

To a another point touched on, Matt Morgan's is only better because of his size and the fact that he looked more agile which is why I think Sheamus should try use a Lariat or Shoulder Block (like Hernandez) because it suits his build a bit more.

 

[mral82]

Taker's original finisher was the Legdrop not the Last Ride and HBK's was a Missile Dropkick or Diving Crossbody. As far as Sheamus goes he started w/ the Brogue Kick from his ECW days and the 1st man that I know of who got the Celtic Cross was Jamie Noble before he retired him. Yeah the reason Matt Morgan's Carbon Footprint look better is that he's got the height unlike Sheamus.

 

[Wicked Valentine]

There is the fact that he has to lift guys who weigh over 200 lbs above his head and then throw them half across the ring.

I don't think Vince, or Sheamus, for that matter, would really want to risk the chance of Sheamus or his opponent getting injured because of the move.

 

[berlinbrawler]

Taker's original finisher was the Legdrop

Really? I seem to remember that he used the tombstone in his debut match at Survivor Series '90. I don't ever recall him using a legdrop finisher.

 

[MVPBTU]

well lots of guys change it up. Jericho used to have the triple power bomb and lately orton is using the angle/olympic slam even though he hasnt won with it. So no i guess its not really "pulling a shawn michaels" cause lots of guys do it.

 

[bjarvis]

Randy Orton had the Overdrive, where he placed the opponents head under his knee area and spun them into the mat. Kind of crappy, stupid to set up and nowhere near as popular or dominate as the RKO would become.

 

[AnthonyMango/NoFate007]

The kick is easier to execute, safer as others have mentioned above, and allows for a more flexible outcome to a match, seeing as how he can't perform the Cross on heavier targets. But this isn't really an issue of upgrading his move - he's used this as his finisher for a long time. He'll most likely continue to use both similar to how Batista had the Batista Bomb, spear, a spinebuster...HHH has the Pedigree and spinebuster...Taker has the Tombstone, choke slam, Hell's Gate, and Last Ride...so on and so forth. Multiple moves that could finish a match leads to a wider variety of match finishes (and gives you the option of having people kick out when you're expecting them to lose, which of course upgrades a match if done correctly).

 

[wushady]

Sheamus has been using only the kick as a finisher for a while now. He might still use the Celtic Cross here and there. A lot of wrestlers have had two finishers, it's not very common but it happens. Or he may have had to change it because it's dangerous. I remember reading that a couple stars got injured taking that move. One of them was HHH if it's true that would explain why he's not using it much anymore.

 

[Calderownz]

Yeah, I've noticed the change. It's good.

The old finisher was dangerous if attempted the way it was meant to be done but done incorrectly. This is a move, however, that has a quick feel to it, while still have the power that his offense is based around.

So, it was a good change for him, to be truthful.

 

[Reddog1146]

I dont know i liked sheamus's high cross manuveur. it looked pretty effective. he should keep the brogue kick but also use the high cross still in my opinion

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I think I may be the only guy who is not liking the change a lot. The difference between HBK and Sheamus is their size and their wrestling style. HBK was mainly an athletic guy and so the superkick was the perfect finisher for him. His side suplex also looked weak and it was impossible for HBK to execute such a move on a really big guy.

Sheamus is different. He is a fairly big guy and it doesn't look odd if he is executing a power move like the High Cross. It is a decent finisher. The Brogue Kick is a good move too but it looks a hell lot like the Big Boot which has never been used as a finisher.

I'd like it if Sheamus used the Brogue Kick as a setup move and the High Cross as his finisher. The Brogue Kick could be used like Orton's suspension DDT too, as a good nearfall move. Sheamus is a powerful wrestler and so it would make sense if he used a power move as his finisher like the High Cross.

 

[hollowpoint]

Sheamus promoting his Brogue Kick as a finisher is good with me. Like many others on here said, it just adds to the moves set. The match gets more unpredicatable which is always a breath of fresh air. I don't think he's getting rid of the Celtic Cross, I just think he's making the kick just as dangerous.