Say it Again?!

If you're new to wrestling or even a seasoned pro in the sport you'd be forgiven for sometimes confusing your wrestling terms as there's certainly plenty of jargon to choose from!

Here, we give you the differences and explanation of all the most common phrases in UK Wrestling and don't worry, we won't test you later, just pop back here when you need a reminder!

Arm Bar: A near fall hold where you twist your opponents arm across his body to put pressure on his shoulder and elbow to pin him to the mat for a hold. Variations on this hold include the cross armbar, crucifix armbar or Hammerlock.

Babyface: The good guy of wrestling who is in a position to be cheered and revered. Previous examples of babyface characters are Hulk Hogan and Shawn Michaels before he turned to become a heel.

Blading: Also called ‘juicing’. When a wrestler will deliberately cut himself when out of view of others so that he can claim to have been weakened by his opponent before moving in for the kill.

Bottom Position: Also known as a Defensive Starting Position. When a wrestler starts on his hands and knees in order to perform a defensive manoeuvre such as a reversal or escape to avoid being pinned.

Breakdown: The breakdown includes the spiral ride, near arm crunch and crab ride and is where you bring your opponent down to the mat on his side or stomach.

Crab Ride: One of the most dominant attacks in professional wrestling which usually arises from your opponent attempting a sit-out. Sitting behind your opponent, put your legs around your opponent’s body under and inside your opponent’s legs and hold the upper body with a half nelson or crucifix armbar. You then pull him over one of your shoulders, elevating his legs to achieve back points. This can be repeated to gain numerous points before your opponent escapes from the hold.

Cradle: A hold very similar to the way you would hold an infant in your arms and very difficult to escape from. Grab your opponent’s neck with one arm while wrapping the elbow of your other arm behind the knee of the opponent. Lock both hands together to achieve the cradle hold.

Escape: A defensive manoeuvre to gain a neutral position and turn to face your opponent when your opponent is in control. Typical moves include the standup and the sit-out.

Defensive starting position: see bottom position

Half Nelson: One of the most popular Near Fall holds or Pin manoeuvres whereby you pass your hand under your opponents arm and lock your hand at their neck. A very effective hold and one of the easiest.

Heel: The opposite of the babyface, Heels are the bad guys of wrestling.

Illegal hold: Any move where the opponent’s body is extended beyond its normal range of motion, or that inhibits breathing or circulation or involves excessive force.

Injury timeout: Time allowed for a wrestler to recover during a match before resuming competition. Two timeouts of a maximum of 90 seconds each are permitted in any one match.

Near fall: A hold where both shoulders are within four inches of the mat or when one shoulder is touching the mat and the other is at an angle of less than 45 degrees. Hold for 2 seconds to be awarded 2 points, a hold for 5 seconds will be awarded 3 points. If an injury timeout occurs during the near fall an additional point is added. Typical near falls include the arm bar, tilt leg ride and half nelson.

Neutral position: A point at which no wrestler is in control. Opponents will work on a takedown during this period usually by creating a tie-up to achieve a win.

Offensives Starting Position: see Top Position.

Par terre: Also known as referee’s position is the most traditional starting position, where one opponent starts in the top position and the other starts in the bottom position ready to engage.

Pin: An offensive hold where both shoulders are held to the mat. Typical moves to create a pin include the quarter nelson and half nelson as well as the cradle and double arm bar.

Reversal: A move from under your opponent which brings control back to you. Typical reversals include switches, rolls and hip heists and are all worth 2 points.

Smackdown: This is the act of knocking down your opponent with devastating consequences to achieve a win. First phrased by The Rock, it has now been taken on as the name of the popular WWE show on pay-per-view television.

Spiral Ride: A move to break down your opponent from the top position to circle him round and break him to the mat.

Standup: The stand up is the process of the bottom wrestler in a referees position achieving a neutral position by taking an explosive step up as soon as the referees whistle is blown and then turning to face the opponent before attempting an offensive position.

Sit-Out: The sit out is a reverse manoeuvre to regain control by twisting to a sitting position out of an offensive hold before attempting to pin your opponent.

Stalemate: A position where neither wrestler can gain further control. Wrestling is broken and resumed from the starting lines.

Stalling: When it is considered that a wrestler is no longer making an effort to improve his position or gain control. Initially a warning is given however penalties are applied for continuous lack of play.

Supporting Points: These are the key points of your body which support your stance and must stay within the boundary line for a wrestler to be considered in bounds. These include the feet, knees, hands and buttocks.

Takedown: To drop the opponent down to the mat when standing. Popular takedowns include single legs, double legs, headlocks, fireman's carries, and body throws.

Tie-Up: To grab your opponents body while standing in order to gain control and disarm your opponent. Typical tie-ups include the head and arm tie and the double bicep tie.

Top Position: Also called an Offensives Starting Position where one or both wrestlers start with at least one knee on the mat, one hand around the opponent’s body and the other on their opponents elbow to attempt a breakdown.

Turnbuckle: The turnbuckle is the platform in the corner of the ring which enables a wrestler to gain height on his opponent or climb up the side of the ring and walk across the ropes to perform popular manoeuvres such as the summersault or diving elbow drop to achieve a smackdown.

Tie-up: Wrestler grabs the opponent's upper body while standing to gain control. Common tie-ups include the head and arm tie, as well as the double bicep tie.