To become a champion in WWE, a Superstar needs to master a wide variety of holds and grappling maneuvers, but sometimes a swift kick or a jaw-rattling punch is the most effective tool in a ring warrior’s arsenal. Inspired by Mattel’s line of action-packed Super Strikers figures, WWE.com ranks the 10 best striking attacks ever seen in WWE. 

Kofi Kingston’s Trouble in Paradise

Check out one of the most beautiful and vicious moves in WWE. Boom Boom!

No one brings the boom like Kofi Kingston, who finishes off his opponents with a stylish spinning kick he calls Trouble in Paradise. It’s this incredibly athletic maneuver — equal parts dazzling and dangerous — that has helped The Dreadlocked Dynamo become a four-time Intercontinental Champion and a three-time United States Title holder. 

Watch Kingston in action

Cesaro’s Very European Uppercut

Cesaro’s signature European uppercut has made Superstars say “ouch” in five languages since The Swiss Superman emerged in WWE back in 2012. Not content with merely attacking his adversary’s jawline from a standing position, Cesaro will often hurl his opponents several feet in the air, putting his foes on a direct collision course with his very European fist. 

Watch Cesaro’s best uppercuts

Ryback’s Meathook Clothesline

Whenever Ryback begins pumping his arm in the corner of the ring, momentarily indulging in an appetizer of “Feed Me More” chants, The Big Guy is getting ready for the main course. The Meathook Clothesline is a painful precursor to Ryback’s Shell Shocked, nearly taking off his opponent’s head as he sets the table for a victory feast.

Watch Ryback’s return to Raw

Roman Reigns’ Superman Punch

The imposing Roman Reigns relies on big power moves to take his opponents off-balance, but his most superhuman feat is the aptly named Superman Punch, a maneuver with origins in Muay Thai and kickboxing that gives the tattooed titan some serious air before sending his fist soaring into an adversary’s face. 

Watch Reigns in action

John Cena’s Five-Knuckle Shuffle

Before using an Attitude Adjustment to lay his foes “down for the three-second tan,” John Cena adds a little insult to the injury with a fist drop that hearkens back to his “Doctor of Thuganomics” days. Mocking a prone opponent with his signature “You Can’t See Me” hand gesture, Cena then projects off the ropes, brushes some figurative dirt off his shoulder and nails his foe between the eyes with an incredibly effective falling punch. 

Relive  Cena’s 50 greatest matches

Sheamus’ Brogue Kick

Innumerable Superstars have gotten an up-close and personal look at Sheamus’ size 13 boot over the years thanks to the Brogue Kick, The Celtic Warrior’s notorious, face-flattening signature maneuver. This modified bicycle kick has helped cement the Irishman as one of the most decorated brawlers in WWE history, earning him a 210-day World Heavyweight Championship reign that kicked off — literally — at WrestleMania XXVIII. At the Miami-hosted event, a well-timed Brogue Kick scored Sheamus a victory over Daniel Bryan in just 18 seconds.

Watch WrestleMania XXVIII highlights

The Rock’s People’s Elbow

A maneuver doesn’t become “the most electrifying move in sports-entertainment” because it’s only somewhat effective. Although The Rock didn’t invent the elbow drop by any stretch of the imagination, The Brahma Bull made it one of the most exciting moves of The Attitude Era. After removing his elbow pad and bounding off the ropes on either side of his opponent, The Rock would drive his elbow deep into the heart of his adversary to snag the three-count. And the People’s Elbow has lost none of its efficacy over the years. At Royal Rumble 2013, The Rock used the move to score the three-count on CM Punk and capture his eighth WWE Championship.  

Watch The Rock battle Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania X8

Daniel Bryan’s running knee

Sure, Daniel Bryan is one of the most gifted mat technicians in recent history, but it was a running knee to John Cena at SummerSlam 2013 that earned The “Yes!” Man his first WWE Championship and proved to doubters everywhere that this bearded Superstar had arrived. After wearing down his adversary with a series of kicks and perilous dives, Bryan fires up the crowd with a “Yes!” chant before running full-force at his opponent’s skull knee-first. It’s the maneuver that launched a movement, propelling Bryan to the main event of WrestleMania 30 where he would capture the WWE World Heavyweight Title. 

Go inside the “Yes!” Movement

Big Show’s KO Punch

Big Show makes a big impact with 30 KO Punches!

It’s mean, it’s ugly and it destroys anything in its path. Easily twice as damaging as a right hook from any other Superstar, Big Show’s KO Punch puts all of the 425-pound, 7-foot giant’s power into a single blow, sending the behemoth’s meaty paw into an opponent’s face with the force of a speeding train. Whenever Big Show raises his fist to signal the impending knockout, a giant-sized victory is almost always just a moment away. Use Big Show’s Super Strikers action figure to dominate your toy collection with a KO Punch that’s just like the real thing! 

Watch Big Show clobber his foes with the KO Punch

Shawn Michaels’ Sweet Chin Music

Shawn Michaels tunes up the band for 30-Second Fury!

It’s the move that destroyed The Rockers, ended Ric Flair’s career and nearly snapped The Undertaker’s WrestleMania winning streak. Far more than a simple superkick, Sweet Chin Music helped define HBK as WWE’s resident bad boy in the 1990s before aiding Michaels’ in becoming one of the most prolific Superstars in history and a 2011 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee. Whenever Michaels tuned up the band, we were all in for a symphony. 

See why Sweet Chin Music was our favorite Super Strike