The Man Responsible For The Stone Cold Stunner Is... John Laurinaitis?

Most American wrestling fans love to poke fun at the raspy-voiced head of talent, John Laurinaitis. It’s actually hard not to. After all, long before Darby Allin actually rode a skateboard to the ring, Johnny Ace was seen doing his best to look like a cool guy in the early nineties, carrying his skateboard to the ring, and sporting a mullet that only hair metal fans would love.

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His methods behind the scenes have always seemed a little questionable to some fans, but that might just be because just about everyone in the business has a Johnny Ace impression that makes him look and sound like the total doofus he actually was a part of the Dynamic Dudes with Shane Douglas. To look at him isn’t much, but Johnny Ace is actually one of the most influential men in the industry.

John Laurinaitis Was Big In Japan

Though seldom if ever acknowledged on-screen, Johnny Ace comes of the Laurinaitis wrestling family that has now through his marriage extended to the Bella-Danielson Army as well. The brother of Road Warrior Animal tried to make it stateside, working for the NWA as part of the Dynamic Dudes tag team, managed briefly by Jim Cornette. Once Cornette turned on them, Ace and Douglas floundered around for a while before Johnny lost to a certain future Deadman in final NWA match before heading to Japan. In Japan, Johnny Ace was able to find the success that eluded him him stateside. Wrestling for All Japan, he was able to have had hitting matches with the likes of Dr. Death Steve Williams and become a multi-time tag champion. While the Dynamic Dude was becoming one of the most over-gaijin in Japan, he also created one of the most influential moves of all time.

The Ace Crusher

While in Japan, Johnny Ace’s big finisher would be a move called The Ace Crusher. The move was a reverse Rude Awakening that Ace would use all of his weight to bring an opponent down with him. Sometimes, he’d be able to catch his opponents off guard in precarious positions, seeming out of nowhere. He also was known to do it while sitting straight down. Over the years, the move has been coopted by not one, but five separate Hall Of Famers and at least one current superstar as well.

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Stateside, Triple H had arrived in the WWE with the idea of using the move for The Pedigree. But his friend in WCW, Diamond Dallas Page wanted to use the move for The Diamond Cutter; which less than a decade later Randy Orton came to utilize as the RKO. Bubba Ray was generally able to hit the move anywhere, provided D-Von heaved their opponent up in the air for the 3D. Without a doubt, the biggest proponent of The Ace Crusher would come when Michael Hayes made a suggestion to a new wrestler gaining popularity fast - Stone Cold Steve Austin would use the Ace Crusher as The Stone Cold Stunner!

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He might be easy to make fun of and thought of as a bit of a sycophant, Johnny Ace was actually a fairly capable worker. He just saddled himself or was saddled with a silly gimmick. He inadvertently also created one of the most dynamic moves in wrestling, something fans and superstars can all be thankful for when they’re not doing their best “sure thing boss, and your arms are looking massive today” impression.