It’s all in the style!
I thought this week, I’d do something different, that, with your help would work into next week as well, that can help us define the different styles in wrestling. Apart from hearing and talking about different styles with my fellow wrestlers, there are also descriptions of styles, that generally have no name. So for these two weeks, I was hoping we could try naming these variations and see what we can get.
The UK scene is very much a mishmash of styles, it was very distinctive in the world of sport days, but, with the insurgence of WWE to British TV screens, a lot of American influence has affected the way the modern British wrestler trains.
So here we go, have a read of these styles I have compiled (and tried to name) and we’ll see where we go from there:
Old school British Wrestling
Thought of as the technical or grappling style that was used mainly during the World of Sport Era in Britain. The focus with this style is to use locks and holds to force your opponent to submit. Slams and throws were also used, but not to a great extent.
American/Canadian Wrestling Old School
More spot minded than British old school, technical or grappling styles were thought of as “boring”. Therefore a more brawling and power move style was developed; they also worked to different rules.
Anglo Canadian hybrid
The style of Bret and Owen Hart, it is a mixture of technical excellence, brought on by cutting their teeth on the Old School British technique and developing it further with the American/Canadian old school.
Modern American Wrestling
Seen in some WWE wrestlers, it is the general technique developed from old school with the addition of high-risk acrobatics and athleticism. Wrestlers also need to become good actors as their actions are shared with the audiences.
Highspot wrestling
A bastardisation of the Modern American style, which is misinterpreted as doing as many cool moves as possible in one match. Frequently seen in Backyard wrestling.
Note: this is a generalised wrestler opinion and not mine.
Modern British Wrestling
A mix of both old school with Modern American wrestling, there is still a focus on the locks and holds but can be mixed up with power moves and high-risk manoeuvres.
That’s it so far, I don’t profess to them being 100% accurate, so now the rest is up to you, if you have an idea or knowledge on a particular style, then feel free to email me and we’ll see if next week we are able to expand the list of technical styles.
I’m particularly interested to hear from Japanese and Mexican wrestling experts as well.
Till next week, take care.
Saracen