Can you feel it? It’s that time of year,
the time when the rules are thrown out of the window and so are the
wrestlers. It is time for Extreme Rules. Only 3 weeks since Payback, the
matches at Extreme Rules seem to benefit from this short gap between
the pay per view shows. The feuds have not overstayed their welcome as
they have had a shorter lifespan and it seems that the 3 weeks since May
1st have been used to intensify the feuds leading into this barbaric (hopefully) pay
per view. Now as this is the first pay per view that will be covered on
the site it feels necessary to explain the structure. The monthly pay
per views are going to be previewed/reviewed by both me and the resident
Smackdown reviewer and my best friend/bitter enemy Parzy.
As there are 8 matches for Extreme Rules we will take 4 matches each to
write a preview and review. Though we will both give our predictions
and scores for all 8. I know it’s a bit confusing but sharing is caring
guys.
Parzy Match 1 – Dolph Ziggler vs Baron Corbin (No Disqualifications)
In what will most likely be the pre-show
match, we’ll have Ziggler getting over Corbin on the grandest stage of
all (New Jersey). Gather all of your friends and family to watch The
King of Strong Sells get buried by the up and comer. This match suffers
in comparison to the rest of the card since the feud has received no
attention at all, even less than attention than the Golden Truth
storyline. In all likelihood, the culmination of this feud will actually
be very impressive, especially since the two have the most to prove to
the WWE Universe out of everyone on the card. This fight could decide
Corbin’s bookings for the next year, the crossroads between a Kevin
Owens opening year and a Tyler Breeze opening year. Hopefully, the two
can put on a match that will put the AGMBR winner on the road to
Corbinmania.
Parzy’s Prediction: Baron Corbin
TheRealDills’ Prediction: Baron Corbin
TheRealDills Match 1 – Jericho vs Ambrose (Asylum Match)
So first off it is the dreaded ASYLUM
MATCH! Now this match can definitely go either 1 of 2 ways, the first
possibility is that we will get Dean Ambrose going back to his CZW roots
and bring Jericho to his hard-core limit. The second possibility is
that we will get a repeat of Ambrose’s match with the Beast at
Wrestlemania 32. Which would be dull, boring and worst of all not
extreme. Whether the match is good or bad the winner will hopefully be
Ambrose. The Lunatic Fringe was beginning to become synonymous with the
phrase ‘always the bridesmaid, never the bride’ and there was truth to
that. However with his win over Jericho at Payback, it seems that WWE
may finally be attempting to build momentum for Ambrose
TheRealDills’ Prediction: Dean Ambrose
Parzy’s Prediction: Dean Ambrose
Parzy Match 2 – The Club vs The Usos (Tornado Tag Team)
The last Tornado Tag Team stipulation on
the WWE main roster occurred almost three years ago at Extreme Rules
2013 where The Shield beat Team Hell No for the Tag Team Titles. I think
that this stipulation hasn’t been wasted for this match, as shown by
the inability that these teams have to wait for tags on Raw and
Smackdown. Both teams are experienced, talented athletes with long
histories, so it’ll be good to see them wrestle without the shadows of
AJ Styles and Roman Reigns at ringside stretching over them. This match
should be a long one, provided that they work as teams rather than
immediately splitting into two one on one matches. So far The Club’s
talent has been squandered in favour of the Usos winning matches, so I
hope that all those losses will end in one big win on Sunday night to
get The Club fully over in the eyes of the WWE Universe.
Parzy’s Prediction: The Club
TheRealDills’ Prediction: The Usos
TheRealDills Match 2 – Rusev vs Kalisto (United States Championship)
The US title has been through a difficult
time in recent years. Cast your minds back to the lead up to
Wrestlemania 31 and the then champion (now challenger) Rusev
was an unstoppable monster. Then after the Rusev train was stopped by
the one and only John Cena, we got an amazing run with the US Open
Challenge. Ever since his departure back in October at Hell In A Cell,
the US title has slowly moved its way down the card and into the
pre-show. Kalisto’s run as the champion has not been able to regain the
value that the title recently held, this is why my prediction is that
Rusev walks away champion.
TheRealDills’ Prediction: Rusev
Parzy’s Prediction: Rusev
Parzy Match 3 – The New Day (C) vs The Vaudevillains (Tag Team Championship)
This matchup has had one of the biggest
build-ups out of all of the card, with the Number 1 Contender contest
starting…. Holy shit it was only a month ago, this build up has felt
like its been going on for much longer, with the debut of Enzo and Cass
and The Vaudevillains kicking off the contest and so much going on
since then (The Dudley Boys/Enzo and Cass feud, the Enzo and Cass/The
Vaudevillains feud, Enzo’s injury and The Vaudevillains/The New Day
feud). Even though this match has had so much build up I expect the New
Day to win, The Vaudevillains are too fresh for a championship already
and The New Day are only 11 days off of the record for longest Tag Team
Title reign (As of 20/05/2016). I love the New Day as champions so I
hope that they hold on to the titles this time. The belts would look
great on The Vaudevillains in the future, though.
Parzy’s Prediction: The New Day
TheRealDills’ Prediction: The New Day
TheRealDills Match 3 – Natalya vs Charlotte (Women’s Championship)
The match between Charlotte and Natalya
at Payback was a really solid match with the only flaw being the ending,
and it was a very big flaw. The way the match ended at Payback was so
unnecessary and frankly a bit disrespectful towards Bret and Natalya.
The solution that was offered for Extreme Rules was the added
stipulation that this will be a submission match. It does make sense as
this will prove who truly able to outlast the other. I am pretty
confident when I say that Charlotte will be able to get the win as her
reign is clearly heading for bigger things. Hopefully, with the added
stipulation that Flair cannot be at ringside, we do not get a repeat of
the events of May 1st.
TheRealDills’ Prediction: Charlotte
Parzy’s Prediction: Charlotte
Parzy Match 4 – The Miz (C) vs Cesaro vs Zayn vs Owens (Intercontinental Championship)
This match is my most anticipated match
of the night, with each contender equally worthy of the title, it’s the
least predictable match-up on the card. I can also now confidently say
that this match has had the longest build-up to the match, starting way
back when KO lost his title to Zack Ryder at Wrestlemania. Even though
we have seen these four fight each other again and again over the weeks,
I still feel invested in the story, and these four can definitely put
on a great match together. This match would definitely benefit from a
longer run time than some of the other matches on the card, with each
superstar given time to flesh out the rivalries on display in the match
up. Although this match’s results are up in the air, I think that Sami
Zayn could be the surprise victor here, especially since KO is more
compelling when he’s working for a title and Cesaro has nothing to
prove. It would also set up a great one on one Sami vs KO feud in the
coming weeks, which would be perfect without any other superstars
diluting it.
Parzy’s Prediction: Sami Zayn
TheRealDills’ Prediction: Cesaro
TheRealDills Match 4 – AJ Styles vs Roman Reigns (WWE World Heavyweight Championship)
Let’s not kid ourselves here guys. We all
know that Roman Reigns is leaving this match with the title. Despite
the fact, he is still not, and probably never going to get the crowd
reaction that Vince and co want is clearly not deterring them. The Roman
Reigns project is in full effect. I expect this match to be a great
match, AJ is, in my opinion, the best in the world at pure wrestling and
Roman is half bad in the ring either. There is also the extreme rules
stipulation which means things are bound to get out of control. Normally
the lack of a clear face/heel in the feud would lead to an
unpredictable match. But this is Roman Reigns we are talking about. Sure
Styles definitely deserves a victory as not only is he the better
wrestler but also a fan favourite, but Roman is not dropping that belt
before Summerslam. My only real question is, are we going to see Finn
Balor? Please let it be so.
TheRealDills’ Prediction: Roman Reigns
Parzy’s Prediction: Roman Reigns
So there we go, those are our predictions
for WWE Extreme Rules. Do you agree with me or are you more inclined to
agree with Parzy? Maybe you disagree with both of us and if so be sure
to leave a comment and tell is what you think the outcome of Extreme
Rules will be. You can follow me on twitter @THEREALDILLS and Parzy
@oliverwoodster.
