How could the WWE Extreme Rules 2017 match card shape up?
On Sunday, June 4, the WWE Extreme Rules pay-per-view will take place. It will emanate from the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, Maryland, and be a Raw-exclusive show. This is going to follow up on Payback, which saw a title change and other events occur.
As of Saturday, no matches for Extreme Rules have been created. Some have been teased, but none got the official treatment from WWE. That could change by Monday’s episode of Raw, and the subsequent shows in the month of April.
So, before WWE creates the Extreme Rules match card, we’re going to predict what could be seen. How many bouts do we think will go down? What about the gimmicks that are used? Let’s take a look.
Photo by WWE.com
WWE Cruiserweight Championship Match
Neville (c) vs. Austin Aries vs. TJP
The WWE Cruiserweight Championship is just one of two titles that have only changed hands once in 2017 (SmackDown Tag Team Championship is the other). Belts have bounced around all over, but the Cruiserweight title has mostly stayed with Neville, who quickly rose to the top of this division in early 2017.
The biggest feud for the King of the Cruiserweights has been with Austin Aries. These two had matches at WrestleMania 33 and Payback, both of which saw Neville retain the title. He won clean at the former and lost via disqualification at the latter.
In the midst of this, TJP has emerged as the No. 2 heel in the Cruiserweight division. He’s had multiple matches with Aries, and continues to do the dirty work for Neville’s championship run. That seems set to continue, but it seems obvious that the Man Formerly Known as TJ Perkins is after a title match, right?
This potentially sets up a Cruiserweight Championship bout at Extreme Rules, with Neville vs. Aries vs. TJP. It has a chance to be a show-stealer, but will it include a gimmick?
Source: WWE.com
Ladder Match for the Raw Tag Team Championship
The Hardys (c) vs. Cesaro and Sheamus
The Hardys returning at WrestleMania 33, only to win the Raw Tag Team Championship, has been well-documented. They won it in a Ladder Match over Cesaro and Sheamus, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, and Enzo Amore and Big Cass.
Four weeks later, Matt and Jeff successfully defended the titles against Cesaro and Sheamus. They also beat the International Duo in singles matches, giving the Potentially-Broken Ones even more momentum.
However, after this ended, Cesaro and Sheamus ran back to the ring to beat down the champions. It marked their heel turn, something that hadn’t of been teased, but may have been made necessary when Dash Wilder of the Revival got hurt.
Based on this interaction, it would seem that the Hardys vs. Cesaro and Sheamus will be made for Extreme Rules. Before that, a Tag Team Turmoil Match to determine the PPV opponents will take place, so it’s not guaranteed we get a rematch. Would WWE really make Cesaro and Sheamus turn heel for nothing, though?
If this happens, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a Ladder Match made as the stipulation. We’ve seen the Hardys in countless versions of this bout, but when in doubt, you put the Ladder Specialists in a match that they partially made famous, right?
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Extreme Rules Match
Seth Rollins vs. Samoa Joe
Seth Rollins and Samoa Joe had a battle of their own at WWE Payback. It finally put them head-to-head in a ring, after what happened in early February. This saw Joe injure Rollins surgically-repaired knee when he went down for the Coquina Clutch submission.
For the next two months, the Architect sat out. He returned for WrestleMania 33, defeating Triple H in an Unsanctioned Match.
Things continued to go well for Rollins at Payback, as he defeated Joe with a pinfall that didn’t result from a finishing move. It gave the feeling these two weren’t done with each other yet, which became the case when the Samoan Submission Machine interfered and took out Rollins, during his No. 1 Contenders Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship.
Now, we’re just waiting on a match being made for Extreme Rules. If we get this, look for them to face off in a match representative of the PPV’s name. It would allow Rollins and Joe to destroy each other with objects, putting a final touch on a personal feud. Plus, it may even allow for the result to not need a finishing move, either.
This match seems like a guarantee for Extreme Rules. Let’s just see when WWE announces it.
WWE.com
Finn Balor vs. Bray Wyatt
One of the most surprising moves of the Superstar Shakeup saw Bray Wyatt move from SmackDown Live to Raw. He had just lost the WWE Championship to Randy Orton at WrestleMania 33, and looked to be in for a rematch. That wouldn’t take place, but these two did face off at Payback in a House of Horrors match. This gave Wyatt the win, before he officially focused on Raw.
As for Balor, he’s been back for one month, having missed the previous seven with a shoulder injury. WWE quickly moved him back into the top of the Raw card, and had him compete in a No. 1 Contenders Match for the Intercontinental Championship.
At one point, it looked like the Demon King had this match won; he was going to the top turnbuckle to hit Coup de Grace on the Miz. However, the lights went off and Wyatt appeared on the apron. He pushed Balor off the turnbuckle, hit Sister Abigail and allowed Miz to win the match.
This didn’t come out of nowhere, though, as on the night of the Superstar Shakeup, Wyatt called out Balor. So after three weeks, we had the resulting confrontation.
Could this match have a stipulation at Extreme Rules? That’s tough to tell since these two haven’t faced each other yet. Don’t be surprised if this stays as a normal encounter then.
WWE.com
WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Dean Ambrose (c) vs. The Miz
The first nearly-confirmed match for Extreme Rules turned out to be Dean Ambrose vs. The Miz. This will be for Ambrose’s WWE Intercontinental Championship, which came about when Miz won a No. 1 Contenders Match.
This feud looked like it would result in a match at Payback, but either wrestled. Actually, the Lunatic Fringe didn’t even appear on the show, which was a convoluted one with SmackDown Live Superstars competing, like Kevin Owens and Randy Orton. Chris Jericho even moved to the Blue Brand in his match. So, maybe it wasn’t the worst thing to see Ambrose left off a somewhat-meaningless PPV.
Ambrose vs. Miz isn’t an old program, not factoring in what they did during April. They feuded on SmackDown Live, with the former Shield man winning the Intercontinental Championship from the A-lister. He’s held it ever since.
What was also noteworthy is Ambrose’s real-life wife, WWE personality Renee Young, being involved. However, this was quickly dropped. She’s also on SmackDown, so don’t expect her to have a presence in this program.
This could be a match that doesn’t include an Extreme Rules-related gimmick. It’s the first PPV bout these two have had, so should it necessitate a stipulation this soon?
WWE.com
Tables Match for the Raw Women’s Championship
Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Bayley
The Raw Women’s Championship is closing in on 10 title changes through its 10 months of existence. It changed five times during the Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks feud, before the belt went to Bayley on an episode of Raw in February.
For two-and-a-half months, Bayley held the title. She even successfully defended it at WrestleMania 33. However, during the Superstar Shakeup, Alexa Bliss joined Raw and won a No. 1 Contenders Match to earn an opportunity at the Raw Women’s Championship. Their match took place at Payback, with Bliss winning. The result allegedly got changed four times in a 30-hour span.
On the following episode of Raw, Bliss pinned Bayley in an eight-women tag match. It potentially takes the air out of a rematch between the two, but given WWE’s booking of champions, we are certainly in for a Round 2 between two former NXT stars. Expect it to happen at Extreme Rules, barring a change in the usual direction of title rematches.
WWE has been giving the women gimmick matches, so look for this to continue in Bayley vs. Bliss. A Tables Match could work with Extreme Rules and Ladders already in use. It’s also something Ms. Five Feet of Fury has already done, as she beat Becky Lynch in a Tables Match for the SmackDown Women’s Championship at TLC.
Source: WWE.com via Twitter
Ambulance Match
Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman
The war between Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman seems set to continue, just as Kurt Angle said on the most recent episode of Raw. This comes after Strowman defeated Reigns at WWE Payback, but not without a blood-filled post-match beatdown.
Both times we’ve seen these two brawl, an ambulance has been involved. The first time, Strowman pushed the vehicle over, which was made to look like Reigns had been in there. Then, the Monster Among Men smashed through the ambulance door at Payback, when it looked like the Big Dog was going to go in there. So, could the potential gimmick for this match be any more obvious?
An interesting add-on to this match would be with the winner getting a Universal Championship match. We haven’t had any sign of this yet, but wth Brock Lesnar’s first defense being advertised for WWE Great Balls of Fire, maybe something develops. If that’s the case, will Reigns join the title picture before SummerSlam?
If that’s the case, will Reigns join the title picture before SummerSlam? This may make more sense for Strowman, who hasn’t received a PPV championship match yet and had a standoff with Lesnar on the Raw after WrestleMania 33.
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How does your match card look for Extreme Rules? Will there be other bouts added to the show?