In these variants, the attacker stands behind their opponent and applies a hold before falling backwards, dropping the opponent on their upper back. The most common belly-to-back variants are the
German suplex and the
back suplex.
Belly-to-back suplex (bottom) performing a belly-to-back suplex on RJ City. For the belly-to-back suplex, the wrestler stands behind their opponent and puts their head under the arm of the opponent. The wrestler then lifts the opponent up grabbing the waist and thigh of the opponent, so the opponent is on the attacker's shoulder. The attacker finally falls backwards, dropping the opponent flat on their back. Standing release versions of this move also exist with the attacker dropping the opponent behind them or to the side back first. Another version where the opponent is thrown forwards is called an
Atomic Throw. Some wrestlers perform the back suplex into a bridging position, simultaneously arching their own back and legs to elevate themselves, gaining leverage and
pinning their opponent. Very popular in
Mexico's
Lucha Libre, where this bridging version is known as a
Puente Griego or Greek Bridge in
English. In 2018, the Colombian referee
Wilmar Roldan announced a campaign to introduce this variant of the suplex to international soccer. Since the wrestler taking the move is falling backwards, the potential for injury is significant if it is not performed properly. Japanese wrestler
Mitsuharu Misawa suffered a spinal injury which triggered a fatal cardiac arrest during his last match in 2009 after
Akitoshi Saito gave him the belly-to-back suplex.
High-angle belly-to-back suplex Also known as a backdrop driver/suplex, the attacking wrestler stands behind their opponent and puts their head under the arm of the opponent. They then lift the opponent up using both of their arms wrapped around the torso of the opponent. The attacker finally falls backwards to drive the opponent to the mat on their neck and shoulders. Used by
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams and
Takeshi Morishima.
Leg hook belly-to-back suplex Sometimes referred to as a leg lift back suplex or leg lift backdrop, it is applied just as a back suplex would be, except that the wrestler wraps only the near arm or no arm around the torso of their opponent. With the free , the wrestler then hoists their opponent's knees or thighs and throws them backwards in that manner.
William Regal uses a bridging version called the
Regal-plex while
Baron Corbin and
Kevin Owens uses a spinning version called the
Deep Six (Corbin) and the
Sidewinder Suplex (Owens). Former indie wrestler
Human Tornado uses a flipping version called the
DND - Dat Ninja Dead. A wrist-clutch variation exists used by
Jushin Thunder Liger as the Liger-Plex. Another version of this move sees the attacking wrestler, while standing a facing opponent, hooks a near arm under the opponent's near armpit and around their neck with inside of the hand. Then the wrestling uses their far hand to grab the opponent's near leg and lifts if off of the ground. The wrestling then falls backwards throwing the opponent onto their head, neck, and upper back. This move best is used by both
Drew Gulak calling it the
Southern Lights Suplex (sometimes while holding the opponent into a
bridge to attempt to score a
pinfall) and
Joker as the
JokerPlex respectively.
Cobra clutch suplex The attacker places the opponent in a
cobra clutch hold. They then proceed to lift the opponent up and fall backwards, driving the opponent to the mat on their head.
Crossface chickenwing suplex The wrestler stands behind the opponent. They lock one of the opponent's arms in a
chickenwing, and
wraps their other arm around the opponent's head. They then lift the opponent up and falls backwards, driving the opponent on to the top of their head, down to the mat.
Crotch clutch suplex This move involves the attacking wrestler approaching an opponent from behind, reaching down and grasping their crotch with both forearms, with hands together and facing upwards into their groin, and lifting him overhead into a belly-to-back release suplex. The opponent reacts to both the suplex and being grabbed and lifted by their crotch, to humorous effect.
Dragon suplex Invented by
Tatsumi Fujinami, this belly-to-back suplex variation sees the wrestler apply a
full nelson and then bridge their back, lifting the opponent over him and onto their shoulders down to the mat. The wrestler keeps their back arched and the hold applied,
pinning the opponent's shoulders down to the mat. The wrestler may also release the opponent mid-arch, throwing them down to the mat shoulders and neck first, in a variation known as release dragon suplex.
Electric chair suplex Also known as an
electric chair slam. The wrestler lifts the opponent on their shoulders in an
electric chair sitting position and then bridges their back, slamming the opponent down to the mat shoulder and upper back first.
German suplex Formally known as a
reverse gutwrench suplex or
waist-lock belly-to-back suplex, and abbreviated as a
German, this move sees the wrestler stand behind the opponent, grab them around their waist, lift them up, and fall backwards while bridging their back and legs, slamming the opponent down to the mat shoulder and upper back first. The wrestler keeps the waistlock and continues bridging with their back and legs, pinning the opponent's shoulders down against the mat. The regular pinning variation can be referred to as the German suplex pin or German suplex hold. The wrestler can also release the opponent in mid arch, which is referred to as a release German suplex. The move is named after the innovator of the
bridging version of the move,
Karl Gotch, who had originally coined the move to be known as the
Atomic suplex, but had to be scrapped by Japanese promoters due to the taboo nature of the
Japanese atomic bombings post-
Second World War. The actual suplex itself was said to have been innovated by wrestlers from
Finland. performing a German suplex on
Timothy Thatcher Sometimes, rather than bridging for a pin, the wrestler may roll himself into another position to perform the move again, often referred to as
multiple, rolling, or non-release German suplexes, in which the attacking wrestler performs a German suplex, then rolls their legs to get back into a standing position, but does
not let the opponent go to do so. The attacking wrestler then repeats this numerous times, most commonly three, but sometimes up to eight or more. The WWE superstar that uses the maneuver most commonly is
Brock Lesnar, although it has also been used by
Chris Benoit,
Kurt Angle, and others in the past. This move is confusing referred by some color commentators on television as a belly-to-back suplex. A delayed, high-angle bridging variant of the standard German suplex, which targets the opponent's head and neck more than the shoulders or upper back, was innovated by Karl Gotch. It is known commonly as a
German suplex hold, but is also known as an
Everest German Suplex (in the case of
Yoshihiro Takayama) or a
Mount Fuji Suplex (in the case of
Manabu Nakanishi) in reference to heights of these mountains. A
Rebound German suplex sees the wrestler, while standing behind an opponent, shoves them forwards into the corner turnbuckles or ring ropes with enough force to cause them recoil backwards to then grab them around their waist, lift them up, and fall backwards while bridging their back and legs, slamming the opponent down to the mat shoulder and upper back first. A bridge can also be applied to attempt to score a pinfall. The move can also be used a counter against a charging opponent with the wrestler moving off to one's side allowing the opponent hit the turnbuckles or ropes causing them to stumble backwards to which the throw can be performed. Another version of this move, known as a
21 plex and innovated by Mexican luchador
Bandido, begins with the opponent standing facing the ropes, while hunched over grabbing the second rope trying to catch their breath or recovering from an attack. They then charge towards the opponent from behind, then leaps into the air performing a front flip while applying a rear waist lock tucking their head forwards and to either side to allow themself clearance to roll onto the standing opponent's back. They use the momentum placing their legs on the top rope for leverage to bounce upwards and roll backwards to land on their feet to perform the German suplex. Another version of this move called a '''Rebound
O'Connor roll German suplex'
sees the wrestler standing behind the opponent. After applying a rear waistlock, the attacking wrestler then charges forwards propelling the opponent chest first into the turnbuckles or ropes using the momentum from the collision to roll backwards, while maintaining the waistlock, with enough force to roll backwards over the opponent who were on their shoulders with the attacking wrestler rolling on top of their legs to both end up in a standing position to which the wrestler performs the German suplex. A bridging version of this move is the most common. An alternative name for this move is known as the Chaos Theory'' as popularized by retired English wrestler
Douglas Williams as a finisher and is currently being used by WWE wrestler
Chad Gable also as a finisher.
Straight jacket suplex performing a straight jacket suplex on
Kevin Steen The
straight jacket suplex or package German suplex has the attacker trapping the opponent's arms while performing a German suplex. Variants such as the cross-arm suplex or X-Plex see the opponent's arms crossed across their chest and held by the attacker. The wrestler then uses the crossed arms as leverage to aid in lifting the opponent up while falling backwards to throw the opponent as in a German suplex.
Half and half suplex This is a suplex variation in which the wrestler, while standing behind the opponent, places one arm in a
Half nelson and the other arm in a
chickenwing. The wrestler then proceeds to fall backwards while lifting the opponent overhead in the hold and driving them into the mat behind them. This move is referred to as a half and half suplex as it is a combination of a half nelson suplex and a tiger suplex. The move can be either released or brought into a pin. This variation is often used by
Sami Zayn.
Half nelson suplex This is a version of a
German suplex where the attacker stands behind the opponent, facing the same direction. The attacker uses one hand to apply a
half nelson hold and wraps the other hand around the opponent's waist. The attacker then lifts the opponent up and falls backwards, dropping the opponent on their head, neck, or shoulders. The move can be either released or brought into a pin.
Pumphandle suplex The wrestler stands behind the opponent and bends him forward. One of the opponent's arms is pulled back between their legs and held, while the opponent's other arm is hooked by the attacker maneuvering their arm around in front of the opponent's shoulder (as in a
pumphandle) and securing it behind the head (a
quarter-nelson). The attacker then lifts their opponent up, over their head and falls backwards to slam the opponent against the mat back-first. There are many variations of the pumphandle suplex, including the maintaining of the grip in order to land the opponent on the mat face-first, or inverting the opponent's body position and securing the opponent's free arm using a
half-nelson grip instead of the normal quarter-nelson.
STARDOM wrestler
Momo Watanabe used the pumphandle half-nelson as the
Peach Sunrise. AEW commentator and former wrestler
Excalibur also used the move as the
Galactica Phantom.
Sleeper suplex The attacker places the opponent in a
sleeper hold and then hooks one of the opponents arms with their free arm. The attacker then lifts the opponent up and falls backwards, driving the opponent on their head. A slight variation sees the attacker apply a
half nelson choke instead of the sleeper hold before performing the suplex.
Jay White uses this move.
Katahajime suplex The attacker stands behind the opponent, facing the same direction. The wrestler puts one arm in a half nelson and the other hand around the neck in front of the opponent, like in a sleeper. The hand in front of the neck is locked with the other hand at the wrist. With the grip secure, the attacker then lifts the opponent up and falls backwards, dropping the opponent on their head, neck, or shoulders. The move can end in a release or bridging position. This was invented by
Tazz as the
Tazmission-plex.
Three-quarter nelson suplex Invented by
Mitsuharu Misawa. The attacker places their opponent in three-quarter nelson before lifting them and falling backwards, dropping them on their head or neck. It is also known as the ''Tiger Suplex '85'', due to its association with an August 1985 match between Mitsuharu Misawa, then working as the second incarnation of
Tiger Mask, and
Kuniaki Kobayashi.
Tiger suplex performing a tiger suplex on
Sendai Sachiko. Innovated by the original
Tiger Mask (
Satoru Sayama), this move sees the wrestler standing behind their opponent,
hooks both of the opponent's arms from the sides, and places their hands palm down flat against the opponent's upper back. The wrestler then lifts the opponent up and falls backwards, arching their back and legs and then slamming the opponent down to the mat shoulder and neck first. Like other suplex variations, this move can either end in a bridging pin or be released upon execution. A Wrist-Clutch variation was invented by
Tiger Mask IV (
Yoshihiro Yamazaki), called ''Tiger Suplex '09,'' because he invented it in 2009.
Wheelbarrow suplex This move is performed when a wrestler wraps a forward-facing opponent's legs around their waist, in a
wheelbarrow hold, from either standing behind an opponent who is laying face-first on the mat or by catching a charging opponent before then applying a waistlock to lift the opponent up off the ground into the air, then the attacking wrestler would continue lifting the opponent over their while falling backwards to hit belly-to-back suplex. ==Belly-to-belly variants==