Extreme Rules 2018 Preview
IMG Credit: WWE
It’s another pay per view and WWE isn’t exactly hiding the fact that this is just a pit stop on the way to Summerslam….whatever that’s going to be. The show isn’t exactly extreme with a cage match, an Extreme Rules match and an Iron Man match. It’s also a ten match card (plus two matches on the Kickoff Show, because this needed two matches on the Kickoff Show), one of which is guaranteed to go thirty minutes, that they claim will be ending at 10:30pm. Last time that meant 11:20 so maybe they can make it even later this time. Let’s get to it.
Kickoff Show: Sanity vs. New Day
This is a tables match for the sake of trying to make the show live up to its name. Ignore the fact that this isn’t actually on the show of course. Sanity was called up back in April but didn’t debut until June because….uh, reasons. New Day makes perfect sense for a first feud so this is as good about as good as things are going to be at the moment. That being said, Sanity has looked good so far so maybe there’s some hope.
I’ll take Sanity to win here as there’s no reason for them to lose. New Day has nothing to gain by winning here and Sanity has yet to actually win a big match. The violence would seem to suit Sanity quite well and a win over one of the best trios ever would do them some good. Killian Dain gets to look like a monster and overpower Big E. while Eric Young probably gets the win. That’s how it should go and New Day will put in a good performance in the process.
Kickoff Show: Andrade Cien Almas vs. Sin Cara
Here’s another match on the Kickoff Show which was added for the sake of adding something else. They already did the match on Tuesday and while it seemed quite good, a lot of it took place during the commercial. I’m not sure why they felt the need to cram something else in but that’s the way WWE tends to go.
Of course I’ll take Almas to win here because even WWE isn’t crazy enough to have him lose to someone as low level as Cara. Almas could become a top star in a very short amount of time around here and having him lose to Cara would be one of the dumbest things that WWE could do to him. If the match is as good as the one on Tuesday was though, we’ll be fine.
US Title: Jeff Hardy(c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
This was supposed to happen a few weeks ago but Nakamura was bitten by a police dog (wrestling writers wish they could come up with something that out of nowhere) and the match had to be postponed. Hardy has been champion for about three months now and all of his injuries have really held his reign back. What could have been a stepping stone to the main event has been every lame midcard title reign all over again.
Nakamura winning the title here is really the only result that makes sense here and somehow, despite being in the World Title match at WrestleMania earlier in the year, he kind of needs it. Hardy has shown that he can bounce back almost immediately from any loss but Nakamura has won a grand total of one important match (when he beat AJ Styles, allowing him to pick the stipulation for the next match, which he also lost) in the last few months. Give him the title and let people chase him for a few months.
SmackDown Women’s Title: Carmella(c) vs. Asuka
Speaking of people who have fallen through the floor since WrestleMania, we have Asuka, who went from someone who was being talked about as a big time Ronda Rousey opponent to….this. Earlier this week I was worried that they might have James Ellsworth go over her and had to be relieved when he tapped. Carmella is getting better as a character, but when you go from Charlotte vs. Asuka to her very tired act with Ellsworth, it’s a bit of a drop.
I’ll go with Carmella retaining here, likely through some major shenanigans. Asuka can go off to beat up the Iconics again and either Becky Lynch or Charlotte can come up to challenge for the title. I’m really not feeling Carmella as champion long term and she needs to lose the title, but that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.
Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens
This was put inside a cage as Owens kept running away from Strowman and maybe because there was only one match involving anything EXTREME on the EXTREME Rules card. Strowman has had it in for Owens since Owens tried to get everyone against Strowman during Money in the Bank. For some reason this has sent Strowman over the edge, to the point where he’s destroyed Owens’ car and knocked him off the stage in a portable toilet. And we’re supposed to cheer for him.
I know the logical answer here would be to have Strowman wreck Owens all over again, but I can’t shake the feeling that WWE would rather have Strowman destroy him until Owens finds a way to sneak out so Strowman loses by slipping on a banana peel. For some reason they love the idea of having Mr. Money in the Bank lose before cashing in, which seems to be destined for Summerslam next month. I have a feeling I’m wrong but I’ll take Strowman with what should be the logical ending.
SmackDown Tag Team Titles: Bludgeon Brothers(c) vs. Team HELL NO
Here’s the real SmackDown main event, which does suggest that WWE sees something more in Daniel Bryan’s future than him just leaving in September. The reunion with Kane has been some very good television (I can always go for N’Sync lyrics) and if they can back it up in the ring to any degree, there’s some money to be made there.
That being said, I have no reason to believe that the titles are going to change here so we’ll go with the Brothers retaining. There’s a good chance that Kane turns on Bryan for trying to make him into less of a monster and not doing things the way Kane wants to, setting up a match at Summerslam. With Kane having his election coming up next month, putting the titles on Kane and Bryan would be rather dumb, even more so with the Brothers being a strong monster team. No change here, but I don’t think Kane turns on Bryan just yet.
Raw Women’s Title: Alexa Bliss(c) vs. Nia Jax
This is the show’s namesake match, likely taking place for the sake of trying to make this match feel more interesting than the first two times they did it earlier in the year. The personal issues have long since been settled, leaving Ronda Rousey being at ringside as the lone point of interest. That being said, WWE managed to cool her off after her great performance when she snapped, so I have little faith that they’ll get this right either.
I’ll go with Bliss retaining here as there’s no one not named Ember Moon around to challenge Jax for the title at Summerslam. Just let Rousey get involved somehow to set up Bliss’ complete and utter destruction next month. This isn’t exactly a thrilling story in the first place though as their regular matches weren’t great and Rousey is the real focal point, even though there’s little reason to believe that she’ll even be on the upcoming episodes of Monday Night Raw. Bliss retains, in the only logical conclusion they have.
Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin
The fact that I can barely remember that this match is taking place tells you almost everything you need to know. I don’t really understand why they’re fighting in the first place but I have a feeling it has something to do with either something Stephanie McMahon wants or something unfunny that Balor said to set up a match for the sake of getting the two of them on the show.
Corbin wins here as he’s been built up far better over the last few weeks, but more importantly because Balor is ice cold right now. He has nothing going on at the moment and while Corbin isn’t very far ahead of him, at least he has a character with something to do. Just get this in and out because it’s a story that isn’t drawing any interest and really doesn’t need to be on the show.
Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. Seth Rollins
This is the thirty minute Iron Man match, which was the long gimmick the show had on the card for a good while. We’ve already seen these two fight for about thirty minutes on Monday Night Raw a few weeks ago and the match wasn’t terrible, though I have little confidence in Ziggler being able to pull off another very good match.
I’m expecting a draw here actually, probably setting up WWE’s favorite blowoff match between smaller guys: the ladder match at Summerslam. Drew McIntyre can interfere a bit here and keep things even as Rollins would win on his own, so at least the guy who should have the title in the first place can be involved. The match should be fun, though it has the same issue that all Iron Man matches will have: you can skip the first twenty seven minutes or so and still get the important stuff. But hey, anything to fill in time.
Raw Tag Team Titles: Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt(c) vs. B Team
Hardy and Wyatt had some potential a few months ago but my goodness it’s gone sailing out the window. This entire feud is built around the B Team parodying the champions week after week, making them more entertaining than the easy to mock champions. The B Team is just a comedy pairing and while they’re doing fine, it’s rather pathetic to see that they’re the best challengers WWE can come up with for these lame champions.
I’ll go with the champs to retain here while hoping to hear SAY YEAH as soon as they come to the ring the next night on Monday Night Raw. This should have been on the Kickoff Show for all the interest it has and while the B Team is funny, I can’t imagine them actually getting the titles. Go with what works (at least better than the other option) and keep the titles on Hardy and Wyatt until the Revival can take the titles they should have taken about a year ago.
SmackDown World Title: AJ Styles(c) vs. Rusev
I’ll spare you my well covered rant about how this should close the show because even I’m tired of hearing how stupid it is for the SmackDown World Title to be treated so badly. Rusev is finally getting some form of a reward after months of being one of the hottest things in the company, but at least Jinder Mahal got to pin him at WrestleMania. This is long overdue and somehow Rusev’s first ever one on one shot at the World Title.
Of course I’m going with Styles to retain here as Rusev is more of a Monster of the Month than anything else. Rusev can get a lot out of a match with Styles before moving on to something else, though I’m hoping he’ll be back to the main event scene (or two matches from the main event because the Tag Team Title match is SmackDown’s real main event) one day. Styles retains here and hopefully moves on to a showdown with Samoa Joe at Summerslam.
Bobby Lashley vs. Roman Reigns
That’s right. This is your main event. The match with nothing on the line and with no gimmick attached other than IT’S ROMAN FREAKING REIGNS. There’s a good chance that this is going to be the de facto #1 contender match because….well it’s a Reigns match….but naturally we can’t do that for the sake of making fans boo Brock Lesnar, which has worked so well before.
In something I’m going to regret, I’ll take Lashley to win here because he needs a major victory. That feud with Sami Zayn left a very bad taste in fans’ mouths so it would be rather beneficial to give him a win and a potential title shot at one of the biggest shows of the year. There’s no reason whatsoever to have Reigns win so you can probably pencil him in. I’ll take Lashley to win though and hope that WWE isn’t as stupid as they come off at times.
Overall Thoughts
Is it any real shock that this week’s Monday Night Raw audience was so absolutely terrible? Consider what we have on the red side: a match which will close the show that is built around a kind of personal issue but certainly not for the title shot because the champion has already said that neither of them are worthy of a shot. That’s the big deal around here and that’s supposed to be the big attraction. Oh and it’s a regular match of course because we can’t bother living up to the show’s title. This is one of the laziest builds I’ve ever seen and I can only hope that Summerslam is better. For some reason though, my hopes aren’t up.
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