Speaking on The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy, the current AEW star discussed WWE’s ban on the piledriver.
The ban was put into place after Steve Austin suffered a neck injury in 1997 after Owen Hart botched the move and Austin was nearly paralyzed. WWE did allow The Undertaker to perform the tombstone as he protects his opponents with his knees instead of the bottom of someone in the traditional piledriver.
“Being banned isn’t gonna change a ton of injuries. Obviously you’re not gonna get anybody being hurt from a piledriver because you can’t do the piledrivers, but do I think it’s a good thing it’s banned? Not necessarily. I think if you have someone who knows what they’re doing and they’re strong, I think it’s a fine move.”
“We were all at that point where we wouldn’t have pushed the rules if we were told not to do something. I don’t think any of us were that kind of rebel at that point. But I was surprised even when I saw the piledriver [rewatching No Way Out 2000] because I know later on a couple of years later, after that, it ends up being banned permanently.”
H/T to Sportskeeda for the transcript