crippler crossface

A neck crank in which the wrestler wrap both hands around the opponent's face and pull back, which applies pressure to the neck and shoulder area.

This submission hold has multiple variants, as it is performed in several ways, usually from a prone position involving the wrestler trapping one of the opponent's arms:

- The standard Crippler Crossface: Also known as an Arm-Trap Crossface or simply, the Crossface, it is a variation that involves an arm-trap by locking an opponent's arm in a leg scissors. This version is popularized by Chris Benoit. WWE Hall of Famer and current All Elite Wrestling wrestler Adam Copeland/Edge also uses this move as well as his own variant called the Glasgow Grin, where he uses a broken piece of a folding chair to gain more leverage in applying pressure to the opponent's neck. Copeland also uses the standard, legal version which he sometimes combines with a sleeper hold.

- Omoplata Crossface: The wrestler takes an opponent’s arm and puts it in an omoplata. From there, the wrestler puts the opponent in a crossface, wrenching the neck and shoulder. Popularized by All Elite Wrestling wrestler Bryan Danielson as the LeBell Lock (also formerly known as the YES! Lock or NO! Lock). New Japan Pro Wrestling wrestler KENTA also uses this as the Game Over.

- Chickenwing Over-the-Shoulder Crossface: The wrestler goes to a fallen opponent and places the opponent's nearest arm over the wrestler's nearest shoulder before applying the crossface, where the attacking wrestler locks their hands around the opponent's chin (or lower face), then pulls back, stretching the opponent's neck and shoulder. WWE wrestler Johnny Gargano uses this as his finisher named the Gargano Escape, which he adopted from his mentor, Impact Wrestling wrestler Alex Shelley, who calls this move as the Border City Stretch. New Japan Pro Wrestling wrestler Ishimori Taiji also uses this move as the Bone Lock. All Elite Wrestling wrestler Lee Moriarty also uses this move with Shelley's blessing just like Gargano (though unlike Gargano, who renamed the hold for his own use, Moriarty retained the Border City Stretch name).

- Scissored Armbar Crossface: Innovated by New Japan Pro Wrestling wrestler Nagata Yuuji as the Nagata Lock III, it is also known as a Double Underhook Crossface or a Double Arm Crossface. It is a scissored armbar combined with a crossface, where the attacking wrestler traps one of the prone opponent's arms in his/her legs, wraps the opponent's other arm under the attacker's shoulder, and then applies the crossface. All Elite Wrestling wrestlers Pac and Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D. both use this variant, with the former calling his version the Brutalizer and the latter's version the Lockjaw which also has a mandible claw added to fit her dentist gimmick (which is also her real-life profession). Former professional wrestler Batista also used it as the Batista Bite. WWE wrestler Tommaso Ciampa started using it again in 2023 as the Sicilian Stretch. All Elite Wrestling wrestler Julia Hart has a sitting variation of this hold that she calls as the Hartless.

- Bridging Crossface: A variant performed in a bridging position where the wrestler wraps both hands around the opponent's neck and pulls back, which applies pressure to the neck and bridges on the opponent's back for added leverage. However, it has no arm-trap involved unlike other crossface variants. This variation is used as a submission finisher by New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Wonder Ring Stardom wrestler Mercedes Mone (formerly known as Sasha Banks in WWE) as the Bank Statement.