Extreme Rules 2015

Extreme Rules 2015 Review



I've never done a live review while a show is actually going on, but it should be fun so let's get started.

I didn't see the whole pre-show match between Neville and Barrett, but it looked like a **3/4 match to me.


Dean Ambrose vs Luke Harper: Chicago Street Fight
We're in Chicago so the crowd is very hot tonight. A hot crowd is always awesome. This feud is continuing from WrestleMania when Harper put Ambrose through a ladder and took him out of the contest. This match was pretty awesome while it lasted and they took the fight all the way to the back where Harper hijacked a car and drove away with Ambrose inside as well. I have no idea if the match is over or not so I'm not sure if I should rate it. What I saw was about **1/2. Hopefully we'll see more.



Dolph Ziggler vs Sheamus: Kiss Me Arse
I was really cringing when I saw the name of this match, but it turned out to be pretty damn good. At first I wasn't sure about Sheamus taking a loss seeing as he just returned, but I was fine with it once the aftermath took place. Hitting Dolph in the balls and then with a brogue kick to make him kiss his arse was a great moment for his bully character. So Sheamus looks good in defeat and Ziggler got a nice win. Plus it helps that the match was good with Sheamus dominating and the crowd begging for Ziggler to make a comeback. Good stuff all around. ***1/4



New Day vs Cesaro & Tyson Kidd
The Tag Titles are on the line. I'm actually starting to love New Day's gimmick of intentionally getting the crowd to boo them. It's entertaining and I hope it goes on for a while. Cesaro & Kidd get a face reaction from the audience. Cesaro managed to catch Big E in mid-air. His strength always amazes me. The fact that he isn't a star always amazes me. This was an insanely fun tag match with not one dull moment to be had and a hot crowd to go with it. Cesaro & Kidd work very well as a face team and I'm not mad that they lost the Titles here. I'm hoping the plan is for New Day to keep the Titles for a little while until The Lucha Dragons are ready to take them. Great tag match. ***1/2



New Day are interviewed backstage by Renee Young until Ambrose and Harper return to the building for their match.


Dean Ambrose vs Luke Harper cont.
Both guys get back to the ring and about two dozen chairs are brought into the ring. After a bit of brawling and a nice nearfall with a powerbomb on a chair, Ambrose hits Dirty Deeds and gets the pin, and also his first PPV win in almost a year. I'll put the rating up to *** since it was a fun idea and a fun match overall.



John Cena vs Rusev: Russian Chain Match
The U.S. Title is on the line. I'd say Rusev has a 0,5% chance of winning this. I've liked Cena's run as U.S. champ so far as he's given a few midcarders a chance to show their stuff on TV, even in a losing stance. This is a four corners kind of match which I hate as they're rarely good. Unfortunately, this wasn't an exception. It was pretty dull all the way through up to the predictable ending with Cena hitting the AA and retaining. I have to wonder where both Cena and Rusev go after this. At least Rusev has still only been pinned once so he still looks like a monster. The first disappointing match of the night, although I wasn't expecting much to begin with. **



Nikki Bella vs Naomi
The Diva's Title is on the line. When the hell did the Bellas start getting face reactions? I can't wait for Charlotte to get called up to kick both of their asses. Naomi's heel turn kind of came out of nowhere, but the again so did AJ Lee's retirement. This was a pretty good match. I've always liked Naomi with her athleticism, and it looks like Nikki's been training and learning some new stuff. Looks the the 'Give Divas a Chance' movement is working out. Nice match. **1/2



Roman Reigns vs The Big Show: Last Man Standing
Oh please God let this be the last match that these two guys have together. It's getting to ridiculous Kingston vs Ziggler in 2010/11 levels. This was either gonna be surprisingly good or as dull as I expected. Fortunately it wasn't surprisingly good; it was surprisingly great. It was mainly a spotfest, but it was a fun one in which both guys were motivated and the crowd was hot for it. The table spots were all well done, especially the finish with Reigns lifting up the announcers table to bury Show. Great match and Reigns is really growing on me. ***1/2



Bo Dallas is here as I guess we need to waste some time. He basically just shits on the audience and it is glorious. This brings out Ryback for the beatdown. One Shell Shock later and this segment is over.



Lana and Rusev are backstage as she informs him that he will face Cena at Payback in an I Quit match. This feud is really continuing? Sorry Rusev but you have no chance. Cena never loses that match.



Randy Orton vs Seth Rollins: Steel Cage & RKO Banned
The WWE World Title is on the line. Oh yeah I've been looking forward to this one. I really enjoyed their WrestleMania match and Orton getting the win was the right idea as it immediately made him look like a Title threat and gave Rollins something to prove. Not sure how I feel about Kane being inserted into the story, but if it ends with him getting his mask and wrestling gear back then I'm all for it. This started off quite slowish, but once they started hitting the big moves things really got going. Orton hitting a pedigree was awesome and a great nearfall. The finish was dramatic as I couldn't tell who Kane was going for. Rollins hitting an RKO was a great ending and I'm sure the feud will continue. A great main event here. ***3/4



7.5/10. A damn good show here and much better than what I expected. The two main events delivered and the undercard was very good. The only disappointment for me was the Cena/Rusev match, so skip that one. All in all a very good show that's worth a watch. Nothing groundbreaking but it's a good waste of time.