The meaning of the word 'high-flyer' has changed drastically over the past thirty years in wrestling. Back in the 1980s, guys like Randy Savage, the Great Muta, or Bobby Eaton were considered high flyers. By the mid-nineties, guys like Rey Mysterio and Billy Kidman did things in the ring that those guys couldn't even have imagined. Nowadays, Rey Fenix, PAC or Kommander display a level of acrobatics that the high-flyers of the nineties may have thought about but rarely ever displayed.
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As a result, the history of typical finishers for high-flyers has evolved just as the style itself has. This list is reflective of that: a lot of classic high-flying finishers have entered the world of big man wrestling, and a lot of high-flyers that made these moves famous have become heavyweight legends. This, however, shows the evolution of pro wrestling from a mat-based, grappling style into a more acrobatic, fast-paced spectacle.
8 Sliced Bread #2
As odd as its name is, the move has never been very popular - yet, a few high-flyers have used it over time as their finisher. Also known as Asai DDT, the likes of Brian Kendrick and Kalisto have used this Ultimo Dragon invention as their finish in WWE, as has the Dragon himself during his forgettable WWE run.
7 450 Splash
One of the more recent innovations is the 450 splash. While one of the first men to execute this move was Scott Steiner, it has become much more prominent among cruiserweights thanks to WCW stars like Too Cold Scorpio and Juventud Guerrera.
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More recent high-flyers have taken the move and altered it to breathe new life into it as a finisher, such as Mustafa Ali's Inverted 450 Splash, or AJ Styles' Springboard 450 Splash.
6 Michinoku Driver
One of only two moves on this list that does not occur from the top rope, the Michinoku Driver was invented by - of course - Taka Michinoku. It is essentially a sit-out scoop piledriver. It was used by Vampiro and Juventud Guerrera as his secondary finisher (Juvi Driver) in WCW. Rey Fenix uses a variation of the move as his finisher as well.
5 Flying Elbow
The Macho Man Randy Savage does not fall into the category of a modern high flyer. However, his double axhandles from the top rope to the floor and other aerial attacks inside the ring made him stand out during the eighties and early nineties. His most famous offensive weapon, though, was the Flying Elbow finisher. Many have copied the move - including Shawn Michaels and CM Punk - but only few have used it as a finisher. Among those were Shane McMahon (usually through an announcer table on the outside) and Kairi Sane.
4 Guillotine Legdrop
Aside from being one of the most beloved wrestlers among his peers, Bobby Eaton was to the NWA what Randy Savage was to the WWE: a heavyweight that incorporated aerial moves into his regular repertoire. Eaton was most famous for his Alabama Jam legdrop off the top rope.
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Later, Psychosis would use the move as a finish in WCW's cruiserweight division. Others have incorporated different versions of the move, such as Booker T's sommersault legdrop called Harlem Hangover or Too Cold Scorpio's moonsault legdrop.
3 Moonsault
Popularized in the United States by the Great Muta in the late eighties (although Lanny Poffo had used it years earlier as a finisher), the moonsault is one of those moves that used to be a finisher and has now become more of a regular move. Nonetheless, different high-flyers have used it - or a variation of it - as a finisher over the years, including Christopher Daniels' Best Moonsault Ever, Lita, Iyo Sky or Sabu's Triple Jump Moonsault.
2 Frog Splash
While guys like Jimmy Snuka used a regular splash from the top as early as the seventies, the frog splash was popularized by Eddie Guerrero and Art Barr in the early and mid-nineties.
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Over the years, it has remained one of the most popular finishers among high-flyers, including Rob Van Dam, Rey Mysterio, Montez Ford, and Hiroshi Tanahashi.
1 Shooting Star Press
Without question the most popular - and dangerous - move on this list is the Shooting Star Press. Invented by Jushin Thunder Liger, it is somewhat of the high-flying endgame. Many high-flyers have used it over the years as a finisher, starting with Billy Kidman in WCW. Kidman also brought it over to WWE, where the move has been used as a finisher since the 2010s by the likes of Evan Bourne, Justin Gabriel, Paul London, and Ricochet. PAC's Black Arrow is a variation of the move - basically the next step up in its evolution.
