Here’s a preview for every match on the card at the 2018 edition of WWE Extreme Rules.
So let me get this straight. We have another WWE Extreme Rules pay-per-view and there is exactly one match on the card that has an Extreme Rules stipulation? Yeah, that makes sense.
Sure, we’ve got a cage match in there so I suppose that qualifies, even if that’s going to be a glorified squash, and we have an Iron Man Match, which should be phenomenal, but other than that, we get a ridiculous shark cage with someone in it that nobody cares about and a Tables Match with The New Day and Sanity … but even that is on the kickoff show. So the basic point is that this pay-per-view either needs to just go away or needs to be tweaked something fierce.
But anyway, let’s get into the main card for the 2018 edition of WWE Extreme Rules.
Finn Balor vs. “Constable” Baron Corbin
I really wish that the Twitter promos that Finn Balor and Baron Corbin have been throwing at one another would translate to WWE television as I think I might have a little more interest in this match than I do now.
I will admit to somewhat enjoying this new “Constable” character for Baron Corbin. The old gimmick was getting a bit stale, and the new haircut and the new look seems to be working for him. It can’t be the most comfortable thing wrestling in those suits and such, but it’s better than what we were getting, so I hope that continues to work out.
As for Finn Balor, he still hasn’t quite gotten that push that a good portion of the WWE Universe has been waiting for, and this little program isn’t helping matters. The whole thing seems a bit forced to give both of them something to do, which obviously isn’t an uncommon thing in WWE, and things don’t look very promising here at the start of it.
Prediction: With the push that creative seems to be going for with Corbin’s new character, I think he picks up the win here, which should send the marks into a frenzy. I can’t say that I would look forward to a rematch at SummerSlam but I think there’s a good chance at that happening as well. This should be a decent match at best.
RAW Tag Team Championship Match
“Woken” Matt Hardy & Bray Wyatt (c) vs. The B-Team
At long last, The B-Team, otherwise known as Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas, finally get that shot at the RAW Tag Team Championship that they’ve had coming to them for quite a while after winning that Tag Team Battle Royal way back when.
I really thought this match could have been on the Money in the Bank card last month, even if just on the kickoff show, but that obviously didn’t happen, and here we are. It’s becoming harder and harder to watch Matt Hardy wrestle these days as you can really see him starting to slow down. But Bray Wyatt has been able to pick up the slack nicely, and even if I still believe there’s bigger things out there for him than this, I like that he’s got something to do and is racking up some wins.
However, the Deleters of Worlds haven’t been the most entertaining team in this program. That honor goes to Axel and Dallas, whose imitations of the champs have been hilarious. Axel obviously has experience with the imitation thing, but who knew that Bo Dallas could do such a great job of imitating Bray Wyatt? I mean, you’d think the two were brothers with how good that’s been. (For those not in the know, the joke there is that the two are actually real life brothers.)
I’m not expecting an all-time classic but this could be fun enough if done correctly. After all these years, I am excited to finally see Bray and Bo go at it in the ring.
Prediction: While I think it would be awesome to see The B-Team actually win the titles, that seems highly unlikely, so I’ll go with Wyatt and Hardy here. What I’d really like to see is Bo join up with his brother in a new faction, but that doesn’t seem likely either.
SmackDown Women’s Championship Match
Carmella (c) vs. Asuka
So the big stipulation here is that James Ellsworth, who returned last month at Money in the Bank to assist Carmella in retaining her SmackDown Women’s Championship, will be suspended above the ring in a Shark Cage so he can’t get involved. Yawn.
I really do believe that Carmella was finally starting to get over on her own. Her promos have been solid for months and her in-ring work really had gotten a little better. No, she’s not on the level of the likes of Charlotte Flair or Sasha Banks or Alexa Bliss or her opponent for this match, Asuka, but it’s improved. Bringing Ellsworth back into the fold seems like a step backwards, and watching Asuka vs. James Ellsworth on SmackDown Live has been absolutely dreadful. But it is what it is.
The match these two women had at Money in the Bank certainly wasn’t the greatest in the world, but it wasn’t the worst either. The story is there, even if Ellsworth’s involvement takes away from it, so they’ve got a little chemistry, but I expect another average matchup here. As per usual, I also expect Carmella to be screaming a lot, so be sure to turn down the volume on your television just a bit when this one gets going.
Prediction: We’ve seen Enzo Amore escape a shark cage before, so it stands to reason that little James Ellsworth could probably do the same and get involved here, which likely means that Carmella could retain her title. But I’m going to go with Asuka here. She needs to win this title now, win a rematch on Tuesday night and get something bigger set up for SummerSlam.
WWE United States Championship Match
Jeff Hardy (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
As much as I enjoy Shinsuke Nakamura’s entrance and theme music, could he just this once come to the ring to “Who Let the Dogs Out?”
Jeff Hardy’s reign with the WWE United States Championship hasn’t been the most exciting thing in the world, but it was something to get him back into the singles role after the injury and Matt doing his own thing over on Monday nights. He’s not showing as much age as his brother, but his matches as of late have been fairly average, so I’m hoping that putting him in there with someone like Shinsuke Nakamura will bring out what’s left in him.
Obviously, it was very unfortunate that Shinsuke had to go through the dog incident that cost us this match a few weeks back, but everything seems to be fine now and I think he’s right where he needs to be. Following his WWE Championship program with AJ Styles that really brought his character to new heights, even if he could never successfully gain the title, Shinsuke now finds himself back down the card a bit but still in position to win a championship, which is actually very good booking. I think these two will put on a good match.
Prediction: The nice thing about Shinsuke, even with this heel turn, is that he’s not ever been one of those tacky foreign-born superstars that’s anti-America. He’s just a great competitor that is Japanese and that’s all he needs to be. I do see him winning this match and finally getting some gold on the main roster, and it won’t have to be him holding the U.S. Title hostage, which will be a nice change of pace.
RAW Women’s Championship Match (Extreme Rules Match)
Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Nia Jax
Look, everyone. It’s an Extreme Rules Match on the Extreme Rules pay-per-view. What a novel concept, am I right?
I’ve heard some people say that they’re not too thrilled with Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax going at it once again, but this has been one of the best feuds in WWE in 2018 and I’ve got zero problem seeing these two in the ring again, especially with this stipulation. The storytelling at Money in the Bank was absolutely brilliant. After winning the MITB briefcase earlier in the night, Bliss got herself involved in the Nia Jax vs. Ronda Rousey title bout and came out looking so good … as if she wasn’t awesome enough already. She manhandled Rousey, which is never a bad thing, and then cashed in to once again become the RAW Women’s Champion. Brilliant.
Rousey, who didn’t take too kindly to what happened and is serving a storyline suspension, has said that she will be in attendance as a member of the WWE Universe, and that’s certainly going to play into what happens here. I’m hoping that Bliss and Jax get a little time before the interference as the chemistry between the two is fantastic, and getting some weaponry in there will only add to it. I’m expecting a lot of fun here.
Prediction: Rousey is out for blood on Bliss, and she’ll be going after her once she decides to get involved. How that plays out should be very interesting. Ronda is likely to be a huge part of SummerSlam next month, and while Alexa Bliss has certainly earned the right to be in a match with her, I think it might turn into a Triple Threat. If things are going to go that way, it makes sense for Nia Jax to win this match. Bliss can then talk about getting her rematch and can get upset when Kurt Angle tries to mend fences with Rousey by putting her in the match as well. So I think Nia wins due to Ronda taking out Bliss.
SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match
The Bludgeon Brothers (c) vs. Team Hell No
Following a very boring feud with Big Cass, Daniel Bryan’s return takes another weird turn as he’s been reunited with Kane in Team Hell No (shouldn’t it be Team Hell Yes at this point?) to battle The Bludgeon Brothers from the SmackDown Tag Team Championship. Sure, why not?
There are plenty of people out there wondering why Bryan is being booked this way, but it actually makes a ton of sense to me. Sure, a WWE Championship program with AJ Styles is something everybody would love to see, and that whole thing with The Miz has to come to a head at some point, but there’s a few factors in play here. There’s the issue with his contract being up in a few months, and there’s no reason to put him into something bigger if there’s no guarantee he’s going to be around. Secondly, there’s the matter of his health. Yes, he’s looked great since coming back, but given his history, there’s always that risk of something happening, which would once again put the company in a tough spot. So I’m actually okay with this. And more people have liked this reunion than I thought they would, so this is fine.
As far as what I’m expecting in this match itself, I think it could be solid. Harper and Rowan have always been very good in the ring, especially given their size, and being in the ring with two veterans like Kane and DB should make for a decent match. Kane obviously isn’t the competitor he used to be but he can still go a little bit when necessary. So this should be entertaining enough.
Prediction: This could go a couple of different ways. Kane could always turn on Bryan to set up something at SummerSlam, or The Miz could get involved as well, even though I still think creative wants to wait until WrestleMania to do that. It’s not known how much Kane is going to be around with his mayoral campaign in full swing, but I still think that Team Hell No walks away with the titles.
Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens (Steel Cage Match)
In what could be considered the only other Extreme Rules-type match on the main card, we’ve got Braun Strowman and Kevin Owens in a Steel Cage Match, which should be a lot of fun to watch, even if KO’s life may be in danger.
The funny thing about this whole program is that the roles should be reversed here. Owens tried to conspire against Strowman in the Money in the Bank Ladder Match last month by getting everyone to jump him, and he paid dearly for it when Braun threw him off of that monstrous ladder to the table below. Okay, that’s fine. But then he just continues to attack him for no reason week after week. Yes, it’s very entertaining and hilarious and is exactly what people want to see from Strowman, but it doesn’t make sense. But perhaps I’m reading too much into that.
While Owens has been trying not to get into physical confrontations with Braun, he now has no choice, which makes the booking of this type of match very good. I’m hoping that we see a little bit more of the Kevin Owens that’s always looking for a fight here than the comedic Kevin Owens. Don’t get me wrong, he’s perfect at both, but I want to see a little more aggression and it will do nothing but good for him to give Strowman some trouble.
Prediction: The easy call here is that Owens is going to take a really dangerous bump at some point. He’s one of the best in the business at that right now, and whatever it is on Sunday, it’s going to hurt .. .a lot. Braun Strowman is the easy call to win here, and that’s who I’m going with, but Owens somehow sneaking out of the cage or getting thrown through it to win isn’t out of the question. Strowman is going to come out looking strong either way, so it really doesn’t make a difference.
Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley
While not officially a number one contender’s match for the WWE Universal Championship, this first-time match between Roman Reigns and Bobby Lashley seems to be just that.
The two were originally scheduled to be part of a multi-man match to determine who will face Brock Lesnar when he returns (whenever the hell that may be), but Vince McMahon is said to have changed his mind on that and we’ve got these two powerhouses ready to go at it. While some of the promos leading up to this match have been pretty bad, there’s been some good in there as well. Reigns throwing in that Lashley couldn’t get things done a decade ago was a nice touch. Lashley is better on the mic than he used to be but still can’t quite get anyone to believe in him. This is the type of high-profile match that we’ve been expecting since his return, and at the very least, we don’t have to sit through Lashley vs. Sami Zayn again.
How this match goes will be determined by the type of match it is. If these two go out there and try to actually wrestle one another, the crowd is going to lose it immediately. That’s why I liked the two needing to be separated on Monday Night RAW, as it leads me to believe that we’re going to get an all-out brawl, which is what this needs to be.
Prediction: The window for Roman Reigns taking the title off of Brock Lesnar is rapidly closing with Brock seemingly ready to start training for his return to UFC. There’s been no official announcement on whether or not he’ll be defending at SummerSlam, but this needs to all be done. If creative knows that going in, I see Reigns picking up the victory here to give more momentum heading into next month. If not, I could see a double-DQ or double-countout to protect both guys. But I’m going to try and play optimist that Lesnar will be around for SummerSlam, so I’ll take Reigns here.
WWE Intercontinental Championship Match (30-Minute Iron Man Match)
Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. Seth Rollins
With all due respect to everyone else on the Extreme Rules card, there’s no chance that any of the other bouts have a chance of being the match of the night. Not with Dolph Ziggler and Seth Rollins going 30 minutes in an Iron Man Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship.
A night after defeating Elias at Money in the Bank, Seth Rollins once again put his title on the line in an open challenge, and we knew we’d get a treat when Dolph Ziggler answered the call. What was surprising was that Ziggler walked away with the IC title for the sixth time due to a little help from Drew McIntyre. Just a week later, the WWE Universe was given yet another amazing display of athleticism when the two went at it once again in a rematch, which Rollins won by disqualification when McIntyre again got involved, and here we are.
The hope here is that the falls are kept to a minimum to keep things moving. I’m not saying that it needs to be 0-0 going into the final minute, but I think three falls in 30 minutes will be plenty. We all know that things are based around that final minute or two, and giving one of these guys a 2-1 lead or having a 1-1 tie would be good. That gives those watching a couple of falls to keep them invested while waiting to see how things play out at the end. And the energy is going to be electric with these two. Very excited for this one.
Prediction: I think putting the title back on Rollins here is the way to go. A match like usually ends a feud, which would make Ziggler the favorite what with the rematch clauses and all. But I’m going to go with Rollins here to keep this going, only so we get another match at SummerSlam.
WWE Championship Match
AJ Styles (c) vs. Rusev
I’m going to continue to complain about this until it happens so if you’ve read my previews and predictions before, I apologize. I worry that once again, AJ Styles, the freaking WWE Champion, is going to get the CM Punk treatment and isn’t going to go on last. And that’s still a travesty. None of his matches with Nakamura were the main event, and that makes no sense. With Brock Lesnar holding the Universal Championship hostage, Styles has been a tremendous champion and hasn’t been rewarded for it. But maybe that’s just me.
As for Rusev, this is a good spot for him, even if it only seems to be temporary. The “Rusev Day” thing has been entertaining enough and has gotten him more over than he’s ever been, but I don’t think it takes him to the WWE Championship. But I do fully expect him to give a great performance, which sometimes isn’t difficult when in the ring with someone like Styles, who tends to make everyone he’s in the ring with look … wait for it … phenomenal.
With just about everyone, myself included, expecting Rollins and Ziggler to be the match of the night, this could be right behind it. There hasn’t been a ton of build for this, but it’s been good enough to pique my curiosity. Both of these men know how to go in the ring, and I’m expecting a nice surprise here.
Prediction: I think that something bigger is in store for AJ Styles for SummerSlam, possibly that matchup we’ve been waiting for with Samoa Joe, so I expect the champ to retain.
Next: 10 who deserve to be in the WWE Hall of Fame
Which match are you most looking forward to at WWE Extreme Rules? Please feel free to join in the conversation in the comments section below.