Extreme Rules (2019)
| Extreme Rules (2019) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Promotional poster featuring Becky Lynch and Seth Rollins | |||
| Promotion | WWE | ||
| Brand(s) | Raw SmackDown 205 Live | ||
| Date | July 14, 2019 | ||
| City | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||
| Venue | Wells Fargo Center | ||
| Attendance | 12,800[1] | ||
| WWE Network event chronology | |||
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| Extreme Rules chronology | |||
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Extreme Rules (2019) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view and WWE Network event produced by WWE for their Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brands. It took place on July 14, 2019, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[2] It was the eleventh event under the Extreme Rules chronology.
The card comprised thirteen matches, including two on the Kickoff pre-show. In an impromptu main event, Brock Lesnar cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on Seth Rollins to win the Universal Championship for a record third time, right after Rollins and Raw Women's Champion Becky Lynch had retained their respective titles against Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans in a Last Chance Winners Take All Extreme Rules mixed tag team match. In other prominent matches, Kofi Kingston retained the WWE Championship against Samoa Joe, AJ Styles defeated Ricochet to win his third United States Championship, The New Day's Big E and Xavier Woods defeated Heavy Machinery (Otis and Tucker) and former champions Daniel Bryan and Rowan to win the SmackDown Tag Team Championship for a record-tying fourth-time, and The Undertaker and Roman Reigns defeated Shane McMahon and Drew McIntyre in a No Holds Barred tag team match in the opening bout.
Production
Background
The concept of the Extreme Rules pay-per-view is that the event features various matches that are contested under hardcore rules;[3] the defunct Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) promotion originally used the "extreme rules" term to describe the regulations for all of its matches. WWE uses the term in place of "hardcore match" or "hardcore rules". The 2019 event was the eleventh event under the Extreme Rules chronology. Three matches carried a hardcore-based stipulation, one of which was an Extreme Rules match on top of other stipulations.
Storylines
The show comprised thirteen matches, including two on the Kickoff pre-show. The matches resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed heroes, villains, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brands,[4][5] while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Monday Night Raw, SmackDown Live,[6] and the cruiserweight-exclusive 205 Live.[7]
At Stomping Grounds, Becky Lynch retained the Raw Women's Championship against Lacey Evans, and later that night, Seth Rollins defended the Universal Championship against Baron Corbin with a special guest referee of Corbin's choice. Corbin chose Evans, who changed the ongoing match to a no countout, no disqualification match and Evans eventually attacked Rollins, prompting Lynch to come to his aid. Rollins subsequently retained his title.[8] The following night on Raw, Corbin and Evans brawled with Rollins and Lynch and challenged them to a mixed tag team match. Rollins and Lynch agreed as long as it would mean the end of their respective feuds, while Corbin and Evans insisted that their opponents put their respective titles on the line. As a result, a last chance winners take all mixed tag team match for both the Universal and Raw Women's championships was scheduled for Extreme Rules,[9] with an extreme rules stipulation added the following week.[10]
At Super ShowDown, Shane McMahon defeated Roman Reigns thanks to interference from Drew McIntyre.[11] This led to a match between Reigns and McIntyre at Stomping Grounds that Reigns won, despite Shane's multiple attempts to distract Reigns.[8] On the following Raw, Shane and McIntyre dominated wild card guest Reigns in a handicap match until The Undertaker appeared and attacked both Shane and McIntyre. A tag team match featuring Reigns and Undertaker against Shane and McIntyre was then scheduled for Extreme Rules,[9] which was made a No Holds Barred match the following week.[12]
On the June 24 episode of Raw, after WWE Champion Kofi Kingston had defeated both Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn in consecutive singles matches (both Kingston and Owens appearing via the wild card rule), Kingston was randomly attacked by Samoa Joe, who performed an uranage on Kingston. As referees tended to the champion, Joe returned and applied the Coquina Clutch on Kingston.[9] Kingston was subsequently scheduled to defend the WWE Championship against Joe at Extreme Rules. On the following SmackDown, Dolph Ziggler, who Kingston had retained the title against at Stomping Grounds, faced Kingston in a two out of three falls match in which if Ziggler won, he would have been added to the championship match, but he was unsuccessful.[13]
At Stomping Grounds, Bayley retained the SmackDown Women's Championship against Raw's Alexa Bliss.[8] Nikki Cross, who was in Bliss' corner, felt it was her fault that Bliss lost as she tried attacking Bayley during the match.[9] On the following SmackDown, wild card guest Cross defeated Bayley, thus earning Bliss a rematch for the title at Extreme Rules.[13] On the July 8 episode of Raw, Cross and wild card guest Bayley both competed in a Beat the Clock challenge with the winner deciding the stipulation of Bayley and Bliss' championship match. Cross won and decided that the championship match would be a handicap match with Cross teaming with Bliss against Bayley.[14]
On the Stomping Grounds Kickoff pre-show, Drew Gulak defeated former champion Tony Nese and Akira Tozawa in a triple threat match by pinning Tozawa to win the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.[15] On the following episode of 205 Live, Nese defeated Tozawa to earn a rematch against Gulak on the Extreme Rules Kickoff pre-show.[16]
At Stomping Grounds, Daniel Bryan and Rowan retained the SmackDown Tag Team Championship against Heavy Machinery (Otis and Tucker).[8] On the following SmackDown, The New Day's Big E and Xavier Woods defeated the champions in a non-title match, thus earning a title match at Extreme Rules.[13] The following week, Heavy Machinery were added to the title match after defeating Kevin Owens and Dolph Ziggler, thus turning the title match into a triple threat tag team match.[12]
Since being drafted to SmackDown during the 2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up in April, Aleister Black began appearing in ominous backstage promos in a dark room, awaiting a challenger. On the June 25 episode of SmackDown, there was a knock on Black's door, indicating that someone had accepted his challenge.[13] The following week, however, Black stated that no one was at his door when he answered and said he would be waiting for them at Extreme Rules.[12] On the July 9 episode, Raw's Cesaro was revealed as the mystery challenger.[17]
After Ricochet won the United States Championship at Stomping Grounds, Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, and AJ Styles interrupted a photoshoot, congratulating the new champion.[8] The following night on Raw, Styles defeated Ricochet in a non-title match, with both wrestlers showing mutual respect.[9] In a title match the following week, Ricochet retained against Styles. After the match, Gallows and Anderson attempted to enter the ring and taunted Styles, who held them off, only to attack Ricochet himself, turning heel. Gallows and Anderson also joined in on the attack, reuniting The Club,[10] and another title match between Ricochet and Styles was scheduled for Extreme Rules.[14]
At Super ShowDown, Braun Strowman defeated Bobby Lashley.[11] On the June 17 episode of Raw, Strowman eliminated Lashley from a fatal five-way elimination match for an opportunity at the United States Championship; Lashley in turn helped in getting Strowman eliminated.[18] The following week, Lashley attacked Strowman after losing a tug of war match.[9] A falls count anywhere match on the July 1 episode ended in a no contest after Strowman tackled Lashley through the LED video wall of the entrance and both were taken to a local hospital.[10] A Last Man Standing match between the two was then scheduled for Extreme Rules.[14]
On the Super ShowDown Kickoff pre-show, The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) defeated The Revival (Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder).[19] On the following episode of Raw, The Revival won a triple threat tag team title match against The Usos and Raw Tag Team Champions Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder to become the new champions.[20] After more feuding on subsequent episodes, The Revival were scheduled to defend the Raw Tag Team Championship against The Usos at Extreme Rules.[14]
Event
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| English commentators | Michael Cole (Raw) |
| Corey Graves (Raw/SmackDown) | |
| Renee Young (Raw) | |
| Tom Phillips (SmackDown) | |
| Byron Saxton (SmackDown) | |
| Vic Joseph (205 Live) | |
| Nigel McGuinness (205 Live) | |
| Aiden English (205 Live) | |
| Spanish commentators | Carlos Cabrera |
| Marcelo Rodríguez | |
| German commentators | Carsten Schaefer |
| Tim Haber | |
| Calvin Knie | |
| Ring announcers | Greg Hamilton (SmackDown/205 Live) |
| Mike Rome (Raw) | |
| Referees | Danilo Anfibio |
| Mike Chioda | |
| John Cone | |
| Dan Engler | |
| Darrick Moore | |
| Charles Robinson | |
| Drake Wuertz | |
| Interviewers | Charly Caruso |
| Kayla Braxton | |
| Sarah Schreiber | |
| Pre-show panel | Jonathan Coachman |
| Charly Caruso | |
| Sam Roberts | |
| Beth Phoenix |
Pre-show
Two matches were contested on the Extreme Rules Kickoff pre-show. In the first match, Finn Bálor defended the Intercontinental Championship against Shinsuke Nakamura. In the end, Bálor missed a Coup de Grace, which allowed Nakamura to performed a Kinshasa on Bálor to win his first Intercontinental Championship.[21]
In the second pre-show match, Drew Gulak defended the WWE Cruiserweight Championship against Tony Nese. Gulak performed an Argentine Neckbraker on Nese to retain the title.[21]
Preliminary matches
The actual pay-per-view opened with The Undertaker and Roman Reigns facing Shane McMahon and Drew McIntyre in a No Holds Barred tag team match. Midway through the match, as Undertaker attempted a Last Ride on Shane, Elias intervened and attacked Undertaker. Reigns attempted to fend off Elias, only for McIntyre to perform Claymore Kicks on both Reigns and Undertaker. Shane then went to the top rope and performed a Diving Elbow Drop on Undertaker through the English announce table. Back in the ring, with a trashcan positioned on Undertaker, Shane performed a Coast-to-Coast, however, before Shane could pin Undertaker, the latter performed his signature sit-up. Undertaker then performed Chokeslams on Shane and Elias. As McIntyre attempted to perform another Claymore on Undertaker, Reigns intercepted him with a Spear. In the end, Reigns threw Shane into Undertaker, who performed a "Tombstone Piledriver" on Shane to win the match. Afterwards, Undertaker gave a nod of approval to Reigns.[22]
Next, The Revival (Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder) defended the Raw Tag Team Championship against The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso). In the end, The Revival performed the Shatter Machine on Jimmy to retain the title.[22]
After that, SmackDown's Aleister Black faced Raw's Cesaro. In the end, as Cesaro went for a Neutralizer, Black countered and performed the Black Mass to win the match.[22]
In the fourth match, Bayley defended the SmackDown Women's Championship in a handicap match against Raw's Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross. In the end, Bayley countered Bliss' Twisted Bliss by raising her knees and performed a Diving Elbow Drop on Cross to retain the title.[22]
In the following match, Bobby Lashley faced Braun Strowman in a Last Man Standing match. In the end, Strowman performed a powerslam on Lashley from an elevated platform. Strowman got to his feet, but Lashley was unable to make the ten count, thus Strowman won the match.[22]
After that, Daniel Bryan and Rowan defended the SmackDown Tag Team Championship against The New Day's Big E and Xavier Woods, and Heavy Machinery (Otis and Tucker) in a triple threat tag team match. The end came when Bryan attempted a backflip to avoid a charging Big E in the corner, who caught Bryan and tagged Woods to perform a Midnight Hour to win the title for a record-tying fourth time.[22]
Next, Ricochet defended the United States Championship against The Club's AJ Styles (accompanied by fellow Club members Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson). Before the match began, Ricochet was attacked by The Club. During the match, Ricochet performed a Lionsault on Styles for a nearfall. Styles performed a brainbuster on Ricochet for a nearfall. Ricochet performed a Shooting Star Press on Styles and as Ricochet attempted a pin on Styles, Gallows notified the referee that Styles’ leg was underneath the rope, thus voiding the pin. In the end, Anderson attempted to distract Ricochet, who fended him off. With the referee distracted by Anderson, Gallows attacked Ricochet and Styles performed the Styles Clash on Ricochet from the middle rope to win the title for a third time.[22]
Kevin Owens then faced Dolph Ziggler in an unadvertised match. As soon as the match started, Owens performed a Stunner on Ziggler to win the match in about seventeen seconds.[22]
In the penultimate match, Kofi Kingston defended the WWE Championship against Samoa Joe. During the match, Joe crushed Kingston's hand between the steel steps. Joe performed a snap Powerslam for a nearfall. Kingston performed the S.O.S. for a nearfall. In the end, Kingston performed the "Trouble in Paradise" to retain the title.[22]
Main event
The main event was the Last Chance Winners Take All Extreme Rules mixed tag team match in which Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch defended the Universal Championship and Raw Women's Championship against Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans. Corbin performed a DDT on Rollins onto a steel chair for a nearfall. Evans performed a Moonsault on Lynch for a nearfall. As Rollins and Lynch were setting up tables outside the ring, Corbin and Evans attacked them with kendo sticks and performed simultaneous chokeslams for a nearfall. Outside the ring, Lynch and Rollins positioned Corbin and Evans onto the previously set up tables. Lynch performed a Leg Drop on Evans while Rollins performed a Frog Splash on Corbin. Back in the ring, Corbin delivered an End of Days to Lynch. An irate Rollins then furiously attacked Corbin with a kendo stick and a steel chair, followed by three Stomps to retain both his and Lynch's respective titles. After the match, Brock Lesnar (accompanied by Paul Heyman) appeared and cashed in his Money in the Bank contract. Lesnar performed two German suplexes and the "F-5" on Rollins to win the Universal Championship for a record third time.[22]
Aftermath
The following night on Raw, a 10-man Cross Brand battle royal was contested to determine the number one contender for the Universal Championship. Seth Rollins won the match by last eliminating Randy Orton to face Brock Lesnar in a rematch for the title at SummerSlam.[23]
Following Extreme Rules, The Club (AJ Styles, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson) were renamed to "The O.C." (Original Club), and Ricochet won a gauntlet match on the July 29 episode of Raw to earn a rematch against Styles for the United States Championship at SummerSlam.[24]
The Usos had another opportunity at the Raw Tag Team Championship against The Revival on the July 29 episode of Raw, but in a triple threat match that also involved Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, who won to become the new champions.[24]
Results
References
- ^ https://www.wrestlinginc.com/news/2019/07/wwe-extreme-rules-attendance-up-from-stomping-grounds-656535/
- ^ Johnson, Mike (March 4, 2019). "WWE EXTREME RULES PRE-SALE CODE". PWInsider. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
- ^ "Specialty WWE matches: Hardcore match". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
- ^ Grabianowski, Ed. "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
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- ^ "Triple H Conference Call Report: Discusses 205 Live, NXT Takeover: Toronto, Says HBK Working at the Performance Center and More - 411MANIA". 411mania.com.
- ^ a b c d e Powell, Jason. "WWE Stomping Grounds results: Powell's live review of Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin with a special referee for the WWE Universal Championship, Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler in a cage match for the WWE Championship, Becky Lynch vs. Lacey Evans for the Raw Women's Title, Samoa Joe vs. Ricochet the U.S. Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f Powell, Jason (June 24, 2019). "6/24 WWE Raw Results: Powell's review of U.S. Champion Ricochet vs. AJ Styles in a non-title match, Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon and Drew McIntyre in a handicap match, WWE Champion Kofi Kingston vs. Sami Zayn in a non-title match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
- ^ a b c Powell, Jason (July 1, 2019). "7/1 WWE Raw Results: Powell's review of the first show with Paul Heyman as executive director, Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley in a falls count anywhere match, Viking Raiders vs. New Day, the build to Extreme Rules continues". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
- ^ a b Powell, Jason. "WWE Super ShowDown results: Powell's live review of Undertaker vs. Goldberg, Seth Rollins vs. Baron for the WWE Universal Championship, Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler for the WWE Championship, Triple H vs. Randy Orton, Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
- ^ a b c Barnett, Jake (July 2, 2019). "7/2 WWE Smackdown Live Results: Barnett's review of the first show since Eric Bischoff was named executive director, the build to Extreme Rules continues". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
- ^ a b c d Powell, Jason (June 25, 2019). "6/25 WWE Smackdown Live results: Powell's review of Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler and The Miz vs. Elias in best of three falls matches, Daniel Bryan and Rowan vs. Big E and Xavier Woods in a non-title match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
- ^ a b c d Powell, Jason (July 8, 2019). "7/8 WWE Raw Results: Powell's review Roman Reigns and a partner of Shane McMahon's choosing vs. Drew McIntyre and Shane McMahon, Rey Mysterio's return, Becky Lynch and Seth Rollins vs. Zelina Vega and Andrade, final hype for Extreme Rules". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason. "WWE Stomping Grounds Kickoff Show results: Powell's live review of the pre-show". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
- ^ Rueter, Sean (June 25, 2019). "WWE 205 Live results (June 25, 2019): Change has come". Cageside Seats. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (July 9, 2019). "7/9 WWE Smackdown Live results: Powell's review of Finn Balor vs. Shinsuke Nakamura in a non-title match, Roman Reigns vs. Dolph Ziggler, Nikki Cross vs. Carmella, Daniel Bryan vs. Xavier Woods vs. Otis, the final push for Extreme Rules". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (June 17, 2019). "6/17 WWE Raw Results: Powell's review of Seth Rollins vs. Daniel Bryan, Baron Corbin reveals the special referee for the WWE Championship match at Stomping Grounds, Braun Strowman vs. The Miz vs. Ricochet vs. Cesaro vs. Bobby Lashley in a five-way for a shot at the U.S. Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason. "WWE Super ShowDown Kickoff Show results: Powell's live review of The Usos vs. The Revival". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (June 10, 2019). "6/10 WWE Raw Results: Powell's review of Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins vs. The Revival vs. The Usos for the Raw Tag Titles, Lars Sullivan vs. Lucha House Part in a handicap match, Shane McMahon and Drew McIntyre celebration, Samoa Joe on Miz TV". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
- ^ a b c Powell, Jason. "WWE Extreme Rules Kickoff Show results: Powell's review of Finn Balor vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for the Intercontinental Championship, Drew Gulak vs. Tony Nese for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship". Pro Wreslting Dot Net. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Powell, Jason. "WWE Extreme Rules results: Powell's live review of Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch vs. Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans in an Extreme Rules match for the WWE Universal Championship and the Raw Women's Championship, Kofi Kingston vs. Samoa Joe for the WWE Championship". Pro Wreslting Dot Net. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Barnett, Jake (July 15, 2019). "7/15 WWE Raw Results: Barnett's live review of the Battle Royal to determine Brock Lesnar's challenger at SummerSlam, Alexa Bliss vs. Naomi vs. Carmella vs. Natalya for a shot at the Raw Women's Championship at SummerSlam, Extreme Rules fallout". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
- ^ a b Powell, Jason (July 29, 2019). "7/29 WWE Raw Results: Powell's review of The Revival vs. The Usos vs. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson for the Raw Tag Titles, Ricochet vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Cesaro vs. Sami Zayn vs. Andrade in a gauntlet match for a U.S. Title match at SummerSlam, Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "Shinsuke Nakamura def. Finn Bálor to become the new Intercontinental Champion". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "WWE Cruiserweight Champion Drew Gulak def. Tony Nese". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "The Undertaker & Roman Reigns def. Shane McMahon & Drew McIntyre (No Holds Barred Match)". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "Raw Tag Team Champions The Revival def. The Usos". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "Aleister Black def. Cesaro". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "SmackDown Women's Champion Bayley def. Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross (Handicap Match)". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "Braun Strowman def. Bobby Lashley (Last Man Standing Match)". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "The New Day def. Daniel Bryan & Rowan and Heavy Machinery to become the new SmackDown Tag Team Champions (Triple Threat Match)". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "AJ Styles def. Ricochet to become the new United States Champion". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "Kevin Owens def. Dolph Ziggler". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "WWE Champion Kofi Kingston def. Samoa Joe". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ a b Benigno, Anthony. "Universal Champion Seth Rollins & Raw Women's Champion Becky Lynch def. Baron Corbin & Lacey Evans; Brock Lesnar cashed in on Rollins to win the Universal Title". WWE. Retrieved July 14, 2019.