WWE Extreme Rules took place at the Scottrade Center in St Louis on Sunday May 19th. With 9 matches on the card, it looks like it could be a decent event. Let's take a look.
The Pre-show match is between Cody Rhodes and The Miz. Miz gets a couple of early pin attempts and Rhodes gets the advantage after dropping his neck onto the top rope. Both guys applies some basic submission moves before Miz goes for the figure four. Rhodes gets out of it and goes for the cross rhodes but Miz manages to apply the figure four and Rhodes taps out. It wasn't a bad match but I found it a bit weird that they used a lot of rest holds in a short match.
Winner: The Miz
Predictions: 1 for 1
The first match is between Chris Jericho and Fandango. Jericho gets the early advantage and he keeps on forcing Fandango out of the ring. Fandango finally gets some momentum when Jericho charges at the turnbuckle and he kicks them down. Fandango then does a springboard legdrop and Jericho slows him down with a back suplex. Jericho does a running bulldog and goes for the Walls of Jericho but Fandango kicks him away. Fandango goes for the top rope legdrop but misses and Jericho does the lionsault for 2. Jericho manages to apply the Walls of Jericho but Fandango gets to the ropes. Fandango goes the top rope legdrop again but Jericho hits the codebreaker while Fandango is flying through the air to get the win. Whilst I loved the ending, I felt that it was a repeat of their Wrestlemania match where Jericho gets in the vast majority of the offence; and when Fandango does get in some moves, they seem to be quite basic.
Winner: Chris Jericho
Predictions: 2 for 2
The next match is for the United States Championship as Dean Ambrose challenges Kofi Kingston. Kofi goes for trouble in paradise but Ambrose holds onto the rope. Kofi gets a little bit of offense in before Ambrose gets the advantage with a thunderous clothesline. Ambrose applies the chickenwing but Kingston manages to get out of it. This gives him the chance to make a comeback and hits the SOS but Ambrose kicks out at 2. Kofi does hit the trouble in paradise when Ambrose is on the edge of the ring and he goes to the floor. Kofi, instead of letting the referee count Ambrose out, rolls him back into the ring and covers but Ambrose reaches the bottom rope. Kofi goes for the trouble in paradise again but he misses and hits the ropes and Ambrose hits a headlock driver to get the win and become the new United States Champion. It was a good match and whilst I'm happy that Ambrose won, I am slightly worried that it could lead to the Shield breaking up. Hopefully, that will not happen for a long time.
Winner: Dean Ambrose
Predictions: 3 for 3
Next is a strap match between Sheamus and Mark Henry. Sheamus puts Henry down and hits one turnbuckle but Henry gets up and clotheslines him. Henry then uses the strap to bind Sheamus and hits two turnbuckles before Sheamus gets out of it. Shemaus then manages to hit three turnbuckles by going round the outside of the ring but Henry clotheslines him down to the floor. Henry then picks up Sheamus onto his shoulder and carries them to each turnbuckle and Henry starts to touch them. However, Sheamus does it just after him and Henry notices it when it touches the third turnbuckle and looks to see that turnbuckles that he has done so far are both lit up. Henry then headbutts Sheamus to reset both their counts. Sheamus gets the win when he touches three turnbuckles and Henry blocks his way for the fourth. Henry picks him up but he gets off his shoulder and hits the brogue kick. Sheamus then hits the final turnbuckle. This wasn't a bad match and I hope they have a rematch soon.
Winner: Sheamus
Predictions: 3 for 4
Due to Dolph Ziggler's concussion, Alberto Del Rio and Jack Swagger faced each other in "I Quit" match to determine the No 1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship. The match goes to the outside and Swagger hits Del Rio with a belly to belly suplex. The action goes back inside and Swagger beats the crap out of Del Rio with a kendo stick. Del Rio does grab the sric but Swagger clotheslines him. Del Rio eventually makes a comeback, hitting a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and a superkick followed by hitting Swagger's back with a kendo stick ad a backstabber. Later on, Swagger hits 2 gutwrench powerbombs then Del Rio applies the cross armbreaker but it's reversed to the patriot lock. Ricardo Rodriguez is considering throwing in the towel but Del Rio tells him not to. Coulter does so instead and Swagger hits the match. Or so we thought. Referee Rod Zapata comes down and tells match referee Mike Chioda that it's the last decision. Then, Chioda gets all NFL when he looks at the replay on a monitor that came out of fucking nowhere and will probably never be seen again. He sees that Coulter threw in the towel and decides to restart the match. Swagger immediately focuses on the injured ankle. However, Del Rio applies the cross armbreaker and, despite Swagger's best efforts to get out of it, he says "I Quit" and Del Rio is your new number 1 contender. I wasn't really a fan of this match due to two things: The referee constantly asking the wrestlers if they want to quit; and the ending with the replay. That has set a dangerous precedent and it has ruined my suspension of disbelief that you need to have as a wrestling fan. This is a really dumb ending and hopefully, they won't do it again.
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
Predictions: 4 for 5
The Tag Team Championships are on the line in a tornado tag team match as Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins challenge Team Hell No. Hell No get the advantage early on before Reigns and Rollins start to wear down their opponents. Reigns tries to hit Byran with a top rope powerbomb but it's reversed. Bryan applies the LeBell Yes No Lock on Reigns while Kane is preventing Rollins from interfering. Rollins eventually elbows Bryan and Kane hits him with a chokeslam then Reigns hits Kane with a spear. Kane tries to hit Reigns with another chokeslam but Reigns hits him with a flying knee from the top rope then a spear from Reigns. Reigns covers Kane but the pin is stopped by Bryan. The end comes when Reigns puts Bryan onto his shoulders and Rollins jumps off the tope rope and knees him in the face to get the win and make them the new Tag Team Champions. Afterwards, US Champion Dean Ambrose comes down to celebrate. I really enjoyed this match and it turned out to be a good day for The Shield.
Winners: Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins
Predictions: 5 for 6
Randy Orton took on Big Show in an Extreme Rules match. Show gets the early advantage before Orton starts hitting a kendo stick on him. Show grabs it and breaks it and does the same to another stick later on. Show continues to dominant until he misses a shoulder block and this gives Orton the chance to make a brief comeback. Show takes down Orton with a spinebuster then puts a ladder on top of 2 chairs. Show puts Orton on top of the ladder and tries to splash but he misses and crashes through the ladder. Orton makes a comeback and hits a top rope DDT then the RKO for a 2 count. Orton uses a chair on Show's back then gets hit with a spear. Orton does another RKO, this time driving Show's head onto a chair then almost punts his head off to get the pinfall. I thought that was a good match which was quite brutal for the PG era.
Winner: Randy Orton
Predictions: 6 for 7
The penultimate match is for the WWE Championship as Ryback challenges John Cena in a last man standing match. Cena hits a running facebuster but Ryback hits a clothesline almost immediately then a powerslam for a count of 6. He then hits a gorilla press slam followed by a powerbomb for a count of 8. Cena brings in a table, which turned out to be a bad idea as a few minutes later, Ryback sends him flying through it with a fallaway slam. Cena keeps trying to make a comeback but Ryback manages to stop it with a move such as a spear. Cena hits a powerbomb for a count of 8 and later on, Ryback hits a meat hook clothesline for a count of 8. Cena then applies the STF in order to make Ryback pass out. However, Ryback gets up at the count of 9. Cena brings in another table and sends Ryback through it with an AA for a count of 9. Ryback gets another count of 9 with a shell shock then tries to injure Cena's ankle with a steel chair. However, Cena counters and sends Ryback through the barricade with a spear. The match goes into the crowd and Ryback hits Cena with a ice hockey board but when Cena gets up after a 9 count, he apllies a sleeper for a count of 9. Cena then elbow drops Ryback through a table for a 9 count. The action goes to the titantron area as Cena attacks him with a fire extinguisher. Ryback recovers, picks up Cena and they both go crashing through the lights under the titantron. Both men are down and the match is declared a draw. The match was good until the ending. I don't really mind the match ending in a draw but this is for the WWE Championship and you don't even see the referee make the count. You see them go through, the referee start to run to the back, a replay of what happened then other referees and paramedics tending to the wrestlers. I normally enjoy last man standing matches but the last one they had ended with Del Rio taping up Show's feet to help him win. If the WWE continue in that vein, I may start to hate them instead.
Winner: Draw so no contest
Predictions: 6 for 8
The main event is a steel cage match between Brock Lesnar and Triple H. Triple H wanted the match to start quickly as he attacks Lesnar from behind during his entrance, punches Paul Heyman and throws Lesnar into the cage. Triple H continues to be dominant, throwing Lesnar into the cage a few times then hitting a AA spinebuster. He goes for the pedigree but Lesnar stops it and flips him onto the cage. Lesnar starts to throw Triple H round like a rag doll and hits a throwaway German suplex. Lesnar hurts his knee when he tries to knee Triple H and he misses driving into the cage. Lesnar aggravates it when he hits a running powerslam. Triple H takes adavantage and focuses on the knee and he goes for the pedigree. However, Lesnar reverses it by going for the kimura and Triple H punches the knee to get out of it. Lesnar tries to leave the cage through the door and is stopped by a chop block and Triple H tries to go through the door. However, Heyman pushes referee Charles Robinson out of the way and slams the door onto Triple H's head. Lesnar then hits the F-5 for a 2 count. Heyman gives Lesnar a chair and attacks Triple H with it. Later on, Triple H uses the chair on Lesnar, especially on the injured knee. Lesnar manages to apply the kimura but Triple H slams Lesnar into the turnbuckle and applies the figure four. Lesnar then reserves the pressure and Triple H has to release it. Lesnar attempts to climb the cage but Triple H stops that with a steel chair to the injured knee. Lesnar falls down to the ring and Triple H grabs a sledgehammer that was hidden in the top of the ring but Lesnar stops him from using it. Triple H then applies the sharpshooter and Heyman goes into the ring to attack him but he gets hit with a pedigree instead. Triple H then hits the pedigree to Lesnar for a 2 count. Lesnar hits Triple H with a sledgehammer and hits the F-5 to get the win. I enjoyed this match and I wonder who Lesnar will feud with next.
Winner: Brock Lesnar
Predictions: 7 for 9
I enjoyed most of Extreme Rules. The matches were entertaining and good. It's a shame that the matches involving the World Championships were ruined by extremely stupid endings. Hopefully, they won't do anything like that at the next PPV.
No comments:
Post a Comment