ThunderStruck: WWE Extreme Rules 2015 Preview

Extreme Rules is tonight. I have minimal excitement going for the show as I was unable to record a predictions podcast. Surprisingly enough, all eight matches have had some decent TV build. Let’s dig into this post-WrestleMania card!

Ryback isn’t booked. Bray Wyatt isn’t booked. They are rumored to be starting a feud soon. Wouldn’t be surprised to see Ryback in a squash match. Fandango and Erick Rowan also aren’t doing anything.

Kickoff Match: Tyson Kidd and Cesaro vs The New Day(Kingston and Big E)

JT: Kidd and Cesaro continue to impress me as champions. The New Day has finally found a personality where the audience responds to them; this is a good thing. The New Day aren’t ready for the belt, but it will be fun to watch them chase the talented champions. Without question, Kidd and Cesaro retain.

Kiss Me Arse Match: Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler

JT: Forget about the stupid stipulation and all the people expecting Dolph Ziggler to be embarrassed. Sheamus has the worst hair style on the planet, but he’s been kicking ass since his return. Sheamus beating the tar out of Ziggler with Ziggler selling like a pro and stealing the show gives this match a winning formula. I expect to enjoy every minute of this one. Sheamus wins just because that’s how WWE does things.

Chicago Street Fight: Luke Harper vs Dean Ambrose

JT: I remember Ahmed Johnson and the LOD taking on Faarooq, Savio Vega and Crush in a Chicago Street Fight. I remember Jericho and Punk in a Chicago Street Fight. This one will be just as ridiculous and probably will be the most extreme of the three. Ambrose will show everyone why he was a stud in CZW here, and Harper is not shy about putting his body on the line. Ambrose wins.

Last Man Standing: The Big Show vs Roman Reigns

JT: Roman becoming popular over time was the winning formula, and that’s exactly what we are getting. Fans need to quit bitching about his “repeated matches” with Big Show. They’ve had four or five one on matches on TV this year. Yeah, that’s a lot of Big Show. However, Show can cut a promo with the best of them and he’s done a good job elevating Reigns to that main event level by making the rivalry feel important(despite all of you being “bored” of it). The only way Big Show wins here is if Bray Wyatt costs Roman the match to launch their feud, but I don’t see that being the direction of things. Roman comes out on top and builds towards superstardom. Believe that.

Divas Champion: Nikki Bella vs Naomi

JT: Naomi…who? People say she is athletically gifted and earned her spot, but I don’t feel she’s done much at all to stand out. I know for a fact that I could also knock someone out using my fat ass. I don’t care who wins, and that’s largely because the Bellas are terrible and I haven’t seen enough impressive things from Naomi to be intrigued by this one.

Intercontinental Champion: Daniel Bryan vs Bad News Barrett

JT: Not expecting this match to happen. Sad about Bryan. I’d be fine with a triple threat or fatal four way to crown a new champion. I’d prefer a tournament, but WWE doesn’t know how to do those well. Someone will be IC Champ when the show is over, even if it’s still Daniel Bryan with no title vacancy or defense.

Russian Chain Match: US Champion John Cena vs Rusev

JT: Third time is the charm. This is the unofficial rubber match. Cena will win. Rusev won’t have a more memorable feud in 2015, but I’d be thrilled to be wrong about that. The champ is here to keep doing his thing for the time being. I liked their first two matches, but not enough to warrant a third. Go watch his last man standing matches(Cena’s, that is) in the past if you want to see what this one will look like(Khali, Miz, Batista, Umaga). Yes, I do realize this match isn’t last man standing, but it will be just like all his big man matches with him selling a beatdown and coming back to win(hence why I didn’t list the draw with Ryback and the loss to Del Rio).

Steel Cage Match: WWE World Champion Seth Rollins vs Randy Orton(RKO is banned) – Kane is Gatekeeper of the Cage

JT: Cage matches aren’t unique whatsoever anymore. Lesnar and Triple H had what I consider to be one of the better overall cage matches in recent memory in the 2013 Main Event of this same show. Wyatt/Cena flopped hard last year. This match SHOULD deliver us another classic between Rollins and Orton as both are innovative enough to be unique and to give us something special. Unfortunately for us as an audience, this one is bound to be riddled with outside distractions and ridiculous moments involving people who aren’t competing in the match. So yeah, that’s why I’m already complaining. Rollins leaves with his title whether he wins the match or it ends up as a no-contest. Ultimately Kane will probably drag Rollins out of the cage or stop Orton from winning, but give WWE credit for THINKING that they’re making an interesting stipulation that could change the outcome of the match when it absolutely will not.

By the end of the show, I’ll be annoyed that I stayed awake. It’s funny that I was watching an episode of Raw is War this morning from July of 1998 where Shawn Michaels is on commentary repeatedly bashing the WCW Bash at the Beach Show(they didn’t state the name specifically) from the night before where everything flopped and didn’t deliver. Ironically enough, WWE is probably going to put on that sort of show tomorrow night.

The card is solid, but somehow I don’t expect it to be anything special. The show could definitely be better with Brock Lesnar being around.

What do you think? Comment below with your thoughts, opinions, feedback and anything else that was raised.

Thanks for reading!