Seth Rollins Took The Stomp From Naomichi Marufuji, Vince McMahon Thought Move Was Too Vicious

Seth Rollins has had a few finishers in WWE, from the Ripcord Knee to the Pedigree. But The Stomp (Blackout) has been the move he’s used to win multiple championships in the company.

Speaking to Fox, Rollins gave the origin story behind his finisher.

“I can’t take credit for inventing the move. I stole it, yanked it, from Japanese legend Naomichi Marufuji. He used it to expertise for years. I was kinda using it as a set-up move for a long time. Then I was on a live event — one of my first ones with WWE — I was wrestling Tyson Kidd. I did the move to him and he thought it was so impactful that I should use it as my finish. He thought it was a move I could do to anybody at anytime, so I transitioned from what I was using at the time into the Stomp,” he said.

Rollins used the move to win the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 31 when he cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase to defeat Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar in what became a triple threat match. The next day, Vince McMahon banned the move after seeing it during a morning show appearance by Rollins.

“The next day, I go to The Today Show and our boss, Vince McMahon, saw the highlight package and he thought the move looked too vicious for his champion and the guy representing WWE. So, he asked me to change the move,” recalled Rollins. “I was not interested in changing the move. I loved it, it’s super safe. He got it in his head that he wanted me to do something different so I had to drift away from it for awhile. When the time was right, I found my opening and I was able to convince him to allow me to bring it back. Hopefully, it’s back for good.”

Rollins has used The Stomp this year to win the WWE Universal Title on two separate occasions from Brock Lesnar. He also used the move on Kevin Owens, hitting The Stomp on concrete, to solidify his heel turn.

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