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Cook’s WWE Extreme Rules 2022 Review
Image Credit: WWE
Loading...Hey kids! It’s WWE’s most extreme night of the year. It’s Philadelphia, it’s extreme, it’ll be a good time!
Cook’s WWE Extreme Rules 2022 Review
Paul Heyman voices over the opening video that most of you likely already saw online. It’s fun.
Michael Cole & Corey Graves are your Premium Live Event hosts and are with over 15,000 fans. They’ll be calling every match on these live events going forward! There’s some kegs at ringside for our first match.
Good Old Fashioned Donnybrook Match: The Brawling Brutes (Sheamus, Ridge Holland & Butch) vs. Imperium (Gunther, Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci: Some White Rabbit imagery interrupts the Brutes’ entrance. Might be something to keep an eye on, might not be. The six men face off and go right at it. Butch & Vinci head outside and fight on top of the announce table. Sheamus sends Gunther into the barricade. Holland gives Kaiser Snake Syes in the ring and places him in the Tree of Woe. Butch dropkicks Kaiser in the face. Vinci sends Sheamus into the ringpost. Imperium stands tall in the ring after disposing of Holland. Kaiser & Vinci clear the bar, Sheamus attacks but gets beat down by his three opponents. Sheamus sent into the steps, and Butch briefly comes to the rescue before he gets driven through the barricade. Gunther with some chops while Sheamus is held by his two partners. Gunther back suplexes Sheamus on the bar, while Holland & Butch finally return to the fight. Imperium with the 3 on 2 advantage while Sheamus is down outside. Butch hits an enziguri on Gunther but Vinci & Kaiser keep him from taking advantage. Holland lifts both those men up and drops them before getting booted by Gunther. Kaiser & Vinci hit an Imperial Bomb on Holland on the outside, leaving Butch all alone in the ring. Butch goes after Gunther, but it’s 3 on 1 so it doesn’t last long. Butch placed on the top turnbuckle, and Gunther stretches him up there while Kaiser & Vinci hit a double kick. Imperium hit their pose, then roll Butch back in the ring for more punishment. Sheamus emerges from behind the bar though, and he’s ready to continue fighting. Vinci & Kaiser get thrown into the barricade, and it’s time for more of that Sheamus/Gunther fighting. The fans are hype. Gunther with a German suplex, Sheamus with a clothesline, and another in the corner before running into a boot, but Sheamus hits a powerslam before soaking in the cheers. Sheamus goes to work on beating Gunther’s chest, and his fellow Brutes join him. Sheamus drops Gunther and sets up for the Brogue Kick. He hits it, but Vinci breaks up the count with a splash. Holland gets sent into the corner and clotheslined down before blocking another Imperial Bomb. Butch gets involved, he & Holland are removed from the ring. Sheamus with the Irish Curse, then he locks in the Cloverleaf. There was some controversy whether or not he tapped last night, none tonight as the move gets broken by a shillaleigh shot from Kaiser. The fans think it’s awesome. The six men face off again, and four of them start fighting. Sheamus & Gunther return to their feet and start clubbing away. Some hard shots, as you’d expect. Butch runs into a reverse powerslam, Sheamus hits a move on Gunther for two and Vinci & Kaiser drag Sheamus outside before clearing the announce table. Holland breaks up the attempted Imperial Bomb, then Butch hits a moonsault off the barrels. Gunther hits Sheamus with another shilleaigh, and I have no idea how to spell that word. All I know is that it gets a two count. Gunther sets up for a powerbomb, but the Brutes break it up. Butch with some joint manipulation, and they hold Gunther for the shot from the shillealigh. Holland & Butch have ones of their own now, and they repeatedly hit Kaiser & Vinci with them. Sheamus grabs Gunther and hits the Celtic Cross through the table! Vinci gets held by Holland & Butch, Sheamus hits the Brogue Kick and that ends that.
Winners: The Brawling Brutes (17:50 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ****
That certainly lived up to the advertisement as a “Good Old Fashioned Donnybrook”. Nothing wrong with these guys beating the crap out of each other.
The Miz is walking around backstage and Megan Morant says Dexter Lumis’s name. Miz doesn’t approve of this. He’s got a birthday celebration coming up this Monday, and he’s going to talk to Triple H to make sure it doesn’t get ruined. Miz then sees GRITTY! Gritty gives Miz a t-shirt to wear, and Miz throws it down and stomps on it. Gritty is not impressed with Miz, showing he is a man of taste. Even if his hockey team stinks.
SmackDown Women’s Championship Extreme Rules Match: Liv Morgan (c) vs. Ronda Rousey: Morgan makes sure to prop her baseball bat in the corner for later usage. Rousey uses her early on in the match. Liv grabs the bat, but Ronda blocks, takes Liv down and grabs said bat. Ronda rolls it outside as she doesn’t need it. Ronda goes for the ankle lock and ends up on the apron. Morgan baseball slides into the apron, and Rousey takes advantage of the situation with some shots before grabbing the bat. Liv empties a fire extinguisher, goes for a leg sweep and gets flipped over by Ronda. Morgan meets the baseball bat with her ribs a few times. Rousey swings and misses back in the ring, and Morgan hits an enziguri. The fans want tables, but Liv uses the bat on Ronda instead. Ronda throws a gi in Liv’s face, then whips her with her black belt. Both women are down after taking several bat shots from each other. Liv gets a table and eventually slides it into the ring. She props it in the corner, but Ronda bangs her head into it a few times. Rousey chokes Morgan in the ropes. Both end up on the floor, and Liv re-takes the advantage. Liv uses a chair on Ronda and sets it up in another corner. The chair falls off the position, so they take some time before improvising Ronda going into the ringpost. Liv with some chairshots now. She hits a modified Codebreaker with a chair that gets a two count. Liv sets up the table for destruction and places Ronda on it. Liv goes up top, hits the senton through the table! That’ll get a two count. Ronda goes for the armbar, Liv powerbombs Ronda on the table scrap for two before Ronda goes for another armbar. Ronda eventually locks in a bicep crusher, and Liv passes out.
Winner: Ronda Rousey (12:05 via passout)
Match Rating: *1/2
Rousey takes a step on Morgan’s chest while celebrating her victory. This was pretty awkward. Lots of weapon shots that didn’t mean much of anything, some weird spots and an interesting finish. I wouldn’t worry about this “burying” Liv, as it’s really tough to bury people in 2022 WWE if they’re popular. She’ll be fine.
Strap Match: Drew McIntyre vs. Karrion Kross (w/Scarlett): So this is one of those strap matches where you win by pinfall or submission, not that corner touching gimmick. Kross doesn’t want to be tied to the strap, dragging this thing out like it’s 1980s Memphis. Kross stomps Drew down in the corner, misses a whip on the outside, then sends Drew into the ringpost & over the barricade. They fight in the crowd and I can’t help but notice people got more excited for this spot back in the day. Back over the barricade, and Drew suplexes Kross on the floor. Drew side slams Kross on the apron. Back in the ring, Kross is attached to the strap and the match begins. Cole out here making Sting vs. Vader references is the surest sign I’ve seen so far that Vince has no power. Well, that and Kross being in this match. Scarlett faces off with Drew, which allows Kross to pull Drew into the ringpost with the strap. Kross targets the left shoulder, which he also did on last night’s SmackDown. Scarlett approves on the outside, and I’d approve of seeing more of her approval than this extended bit of offense for Kross. Kross hits a modified Flatliner off the announce table. Kross doing the same spots Ronda did with her black belt in the previous match isn’t helping things, but Drew could use some help after getting whipped approximately 30 times on the floor. Back in the ring, a Saito suplex gets two for Kross. Drew finally fights back, hits a neckbreaker & nips up. Kross fights out of the Futureshock, series of reversals leads to a spinebuster by Drew for two. Some fisticuffs brings back part of the crowd. Then they exchange strap shots. Drew wins the strap battle and hits the Futureshock DDT. Time for the countdown, but Scarlett breaks up the Claymore attempt. She sprays Drew with pepper! Kross from behind with the Kross Hammer, and he gets the three count.
Winner: Karrion Kross (10:20 via pinfall)
Match Rating: *
Woof is about all I can say about that. Ten minutes that felt like twenty.
Miz is on the phone with Maryse, and Gritty is still following him around. Cole randomly heels on Gritty before throwing it to the pre-match video package. I really hope they don’t plan on bringing that back.
Raw Women’s Championship Ladder Match: Bianca Belair (c) vs. Bayley: NXT’s Nikkita Lyons is shown in the crowd for this one. It’d be funny if they had Bray do one of these random crowd appearances, wouldn’t it? Bayley & Bianca both go for a running crossbody, and they both drag ladders into the ring. It’s like they have the same mind. They have a tug of war over the ladder, which Bianca wins. Bianca keeps trying to climb that ladder, but Bayley keeps cutting her off. Bianca slams Bayley on the ladder, then hits the back handspring moonsault. Bayley fights back and puts Bianca in the corner. Bayley hits a sunset flip, driving Bianca into the ladder. Bayley drives Bianca out of the ring using the ladder. A ladder gets propped up with the steps & ringpost, and Bianca is placed on it. Bayley hits a flying elbow on Bianca, and takes a nasty spill herself. The main laddeer gets split in two, and Bianca uses one of the sides as a weapon. Bianca finds another big ladder and places it in the ring. That doesn’t work out for her, as she ends up falling off of it to the floor. Bayley removes part of her knee brace, but misses a knee smash in the corner. Bianca hits the KOD and climbs up. Sure enough, here come Dakota Kai & Iyo Sky to knock Bianca off the ladder & beat her down. Bianca fights back, and stacks them up for a double KOD. Eh, close enough anyway. Bianca tries to get another ladder, but Bayley hits her with a ladder. A ladder is placed in the corner, and Bianca gets knocked off of it. She takes Bianca out and eventually places her under the ladder. Bianca is not trapped enough though, and she powers the ladder up so Bayley can fall off of it. They race up the ladder and face off up top. Bianca gets knocked off, but she whips Bayley with her braid. Bianca goes for another KOD, Bayley has a ladder in her hands and ends up eating that ladder on the landing. Not exactly the smartest thing she’s ever done. Bianca climbs up, Cole’s voice breaks and it’s over.
Winner: Bianca Belair (16:40 via retrieving the championship)
Match Rating: ***
Your rating may be higher than mine, as I’ve been over ladder matches for a couple of years now and haven’t gotten back on the bandwagon yet. This wasn’t bad or anything, it just wasn’t my bag. The contrived spots tend to take me out of things, even if Bianca’s feats of strength are pretty cool. No super crazy risks taken here, which is probably for the best but will get some hate from some circles.
I Quit Match: Edge vs. Finn Balor: The guy with the sign saying “Edge is More Played Out Than Harley Quinn Cosplay”…I mean, I don’t disagree with the general sentiment, but that’s choosing violence with most wrestling crowds. Edge gets the advantage early on, sporting Flyers orange & black. The referee has a microphone so we can hear the wrestlers grunt and moan. They trade the advantage back & forth and go for submission holds that everyone knows won’t win the match, but you gotta establish a pace. Finn with a figure four, a bit early, but Edge works the reversal spt and it goes well. Balor flips back over. Edge gets caught in the apron and stomped by Balor. Second time tonight for the apron, but one assumes we won’t see it a third. Unless the Fight Pit also has an apron. Balor with a sling blade on the floor. Edge fights back, and drives Balor through the barricade. They go into the crowd, and this portion of the crowd seems a little more excited than when Drew & Kross went through the crowd earlier. Edge suplexes Balor on the floor, but Balor says he’ll never quit. Edge finds a hockey stick and hits Balor with it for one of the biggest pops of the night. They’ve found the Kickoff Show set, and Edge locks in a crossface with the assistance of the hockey stick. Balor fights back and whips Edge into the wall a couple of times. Edge shoots Balor into a concrete overhang. Edge charges towards Balor and runs crotch-first into a railing. Balor marches Edge around the arena and they finally end up back at ringside. Balor finds a chair under the ring and hits Edge in the ribs with it. He hits Edge a few more times, but Edge refuses to quit. More chairshots. Balor places the chair in the corner, but Edge blocks the Irish whip. Balor with the Irish legsweep, then a stretch. Balor goes for the crossface. Edge still won’t quit though, so Balor continues beating him up. Edge sends Balor into that chair in the corner. Edge targets Balor’s knee with the chair. Edge locks in the Edgucator, and Balor teases quitting until Damian Priest comes down. Dominik Mysterio is also there, and Edge spears Balor into both of them. Back in the ring, Edge sets up another spear until Rhea Ripley emerges and handcuffs him to the top rope. The Judgment Day theoretically has a 3 on 1 advantage now, and Edge catches the beatdown. Kendo sticks are produced, and Balor goes to town on Edge. Rey Mysterio appears now, and he attacks Balor & Priest. Dominik attacks Rey though, and sends him into the ringpost. Dominik attempts to stomp Rey’s head in while Cole screams bloody murder. Balor returns to the kendo stick attack, until Beth Phoenix commandeers the kendo stick. Balor & Priest get some abuse, then Rhea re-enters the ring to face off with Edge’s wife. Beth wins that battle & spears Rhea out of the ring. She gets the key and un-cuffs Edge. Edge spears Priest, then faces off with Dominik. Dom wants to shake hands, but Edge answers with a low blow. Balor returns and hits a sling blade. Edge with the spear. He hits another one, then gets a nightstick. Rhea distracts Edge with an attack on Beth with brass knuckles, and Edge gets some top rope double stomps. Three, to be exact. Edge still won’t quit, so Rhea threatens Edge with more bodily harm to his wife via Conchairto. That gets Edge to quit.
Winner: Finn Balor (29:39 via Edge quitting)
Match Rating: ***
Of course, Rhea still does it because she’s a goshdarn heel. Like most Edge matches, this went way too long and did too much, but there were still some enjoyable moments mixed in there. Business definitely picked up once everybody else got involved.
Miz has enough of Gritty’s antics and beats him up. This leads to Dexter Lumis emerging behind Miz and choking him out. Dexter helps Gritty up, and Gritty kicks Miz in the stomach before leaving with Dexter. Deserved.
Fight Pit Match: Matt Riddle vs. Seth Rollins: Daniel Cormier comes out first, as he’s the special guest referee for this match. If all that speculation about his future is accurate, he’ll need to get into ring shape. Bron Breakker is shown in the crowd in a suit. When did Seth start doing the RVD thumb points and dressing like him? It’s an interesting choice. Riddle with some kicks early on. Riddle with a takedown and some strikes. Riddle rebounds off the cage and kicks Rollins down. Riddle accidentally elbows Cormier while punching Rollins, which leads to some issues. Rollins attacks from behind. Riddle flips out of a suplex and goes for a triangle choke. Rollins rams Riddle into the cage. Rollins touches Cormier too, and the referee isn’t too happy about that. Rollins punches away on Riddle and takes control. An elbow to the back of Riddle’s head, and Cormier starts counting. Riddle slips out of a suplex, but gets superkicked a couple of times. Cormier counts again before Rollins goes back on the attack. Rollins suplexes Riddle into the cage, then he climbs up the cage so he can frog splash Riddle. Riddle fights back, evades a power bomb and hits an RKO. They exchange blows. Rollins shrugs off another RKO and hits the stomp. Cormier checks on Riddle instead of counting though. The pause allows Riddle to get up. Rollins goes up to the platform on top and walks around while the crowd sings his song. Riddle follows him up. Riddle & Rollins fight on top. Rollins powerbombs Riddle off the cage up top. Rollins tries to throw Riddle off, but Riddle blocks. Rollins hits a Pedigree, but Cormier can’t count up there. Rollins misses a stomp and Riddle hits an RKO. Rollins rolls down to the mat below, managing to navigate his fall. Riddle looks down at Rollins, and hits a Broton from the top of the Pit! Riddle seems to have injured himself on that one, but Rollins sure isn’t in good shape. They both make it up to their feet, and Riddle goes for a triangle choke. Rollins drives Riddle off the cage a couple of times, but Riddle still has the triangle in. Rollins taps!
Winner: Matt Riddle (16:35 via submission)
Match Rating: **1/2
Tricky to rate a Fight Pit match, at least for this fella. I didn’t like it as much as I liked the Lion’s Den match at SummerSlam 1998, that’s for sure. It was an interesting spectacle and a different choice to main event a show, so I appreciate that part of it for what it is. People forgot about this a minute or so after it happened anyway.
Riddle leaves with his hand raised, and the lights go out! We hear that song about somebody having the whole world in their hands. We see human versions of the Firefly Funhouse puppets. A Fiend mask appears on the announce table. We then go to a deserted, dark version of the Funhouse. Some funky effects on the television, then a big box with a door. The door opens, the light from that disappears, and here comes Bray Wyatt with a lantern. The fans chant about religious excrement! Bray blows the lantern out, and that’s all we’ll see tonight.
