WWE Extreme Rules: Top 10 Matches of All Time
By Tim Sherry
credit: wwe.com
8. Chris Jericho vs Rey Mysterio – Extreme Rules 2009
Jericho really has a way of making things personal, doesn’t he? Between his feud with The Rock in 2001, Triple H in 2002, and Shawn Michaels in 2008, Y2J always had a pension for bringing out the rage in his rivals. In the spring of 2009, Jericho was at it again, this time with Mysterio. Jericho, in search of his ninth Intercontinental Championship, the belt Rey currently was holding, was hell-bent on humiliating his foe by constantly chiding him and trying to remove his mask, the latter being something that came in to play in their No Holds Barred match at the 2009 Extreme Rules.
Much like their match at Judgement Day a month earlier and at The Bash a month later, it came in just under 15 minutes, making it a pretty quick battle. But these two managed to cram more action into that time frame then most can do in double that amount. There were no really no rest holds or stoppages in action. It was just high-octane, back and forth wrestling that dazzled the New Orleans, Louisiana crowd. In the end it was Y2J who evened up the score with Rey but it wasn’t without controversy. Just when it looked like it was Mysterio’s night, Jericho made good on promise of removing Rey’s mask. When “The Ultimate Underdog” went for his patented 619, Jericho snatched his mask off of his head and rolled up his opponent for a 3 count.
It was a stunning development to see Rey’s head gear come off and it left the audience stunned as the then former champion retreated to the back covering his face. Rey hadn’t been without a mask in over 13 years and it’s a testament to how dastardly Jericho was when playing the part of a heel. Their aforementioned match a month later at The Bash was possibly the best of their trilogy but this match was a close second and sure-fire lock for this list.